Customer service is not easy but is not rocket science either…
“If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.”
Albert Einshtein
How confident are you that everyone in your company is prepared and could do this whilst being effective and natural with it?
You might not be able to plan out everything that a customer throws at you. You might not be the biggest or even seen as the best brand, the one thing that you can always do to help be ahead of your competitors is by having a really good customer service team to provide that great customer experience
Why do you need Customer service and how it’s related to business success?
We previously explained in this blog post, why positive customer service is important for every business. Even one bad customer experience can ruin previous good ones and end your relationship with that customer. But great customer service, will not only help the customer, if something has gone wrong in the process it may save it, who will then possibly even become a brand advocate.
“If you can’t explain “Audiences want to engage with brands who are invested in listening, engaging and building a sustainable community for the long term. Customer service is the digital front door to a brand’s home – it’s a necessity in today’s landscape.” –it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.”
Karen Freberg, Associate Professor in Strategic Communication at the University of Louisville
Great customer care goes along way to business success. It is not easy to get to the customer delight stage but once you do, you will have loyal customers and their recommendations to their friends and acquaintances.
That all being said, just how important is it really to business success. One argument is that some companies with notoriously bad customer service continue to prosper. This is certainly true…for a while!
When customer service is done right, it can tremendously boost a company’s bottom line and that is a fact. The strong positive relationship between them should always be present no matter how a company defines “success”. Don’t take our word for it.
Numerous surveys have asked that question and found out that working on a strong customer service solution can increase sales, revenue, and profits.
“Seven in 10 U.S. consumers say they’ve spent more money to do business with a company that delivers great service,” American Express VP Raymond Joabar shared when announcing the results of their survey on the topic
“Prompt and personal customer service does indeed pay off — customers remember good and bad customer service experiences, and they’re willing to reward companies that treat them well.” Harvard Business Review
Consumers shared that they’re willing to spend 17% more on businesses with good customer service (up from 14% a few years ago) the survey found. Part of this change is driven by millennials and GenZ, who are the most willing to spend more for great and personal care.
Here are 12 ways on how to improve your customer service:
- Listen or learn how to do so!!! That is priority skill number one! If you want to provide a great experience you need to actively listen and focus your attention on the customer at hand.
- Focus on understanding the customer’s problem and creating a positive interaction. Even if their concerns are not – valid you can help with listening and being responsive.
- Pay attention to your tone. Before you speak (or write) in a sharp way, ask yourself, “Would I talk/explain things to my grandma like this?”.
- Follow the golden rule— put yourself in your customer’s place as personalization goes beyond first names (please remember their names to avoid awkward or even unpleasant situations).
- We want our customers to feel and know we have their back. Work on your empathy as this can tremendously help you facing angry customers. You can easily do that by reading more fiction. Even Barack Obama explained that reading fiction made him a better leader.
- Repeat, verify and clarify. Confirm with them that their concerns are understood correctly. It’s a simple but powerful concept.
- Lead with positive language and reaction. Even if you’re delivering bad news, there is a way to deliver them so that the outcome to be positive for both parties.
- Address problems/issues right away. If you can do something about them – do it and let them know. Tell the customer what you can do, not what you can’t. Explain how you will handle the situation. Communicate how you will follow up (if there is a need for that). Work as a team (and with your team if needed) and create trust.
- Reply on time. But fast service may not always be ideal. If you can’t – explain why, but don’t let them wait for too long without an update. Your KPIs should be specific and measurable so define your goal and focus on measuring that.
- Angry customers are going to happen and there are two main reasons for them – either they are complaining to get something for free or they really had a bad experience. In both cases, you need to let them explain (p.1) and show your empathy (p.5). Once you’ve done that – complete p.5 and take control of the situation. Don’t forget p.8.
- Ramp up your customer loyalty programs or rewards programs. Those programs are widely used in e-commerce. Offering incentives to repeat/loyal customers is a good way to: spike customer retention rates, improve referrals, decrease the payback period, prolong customer lifetime value, drive product/service adoption. Additionally, don’t forget to create a dedicated page explaining the loyalty program.
- If you are direct B2C try mapping your customer journey. Once you map this out, you then have more clarity on where you can reach out to customers and how. This way, you’re not only getting churn but more data to improve your product.
And the best thing is mastering those skills can help you in countless situations.
E-Motive are experts on e-commerce marketplaces. To find out more about how to have excellent customer service or if you want to get online fast and sell more contact us.
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