Four Strategies for Providing a Winning Level of Customer Service
Customers are at the very core of every business, and for this reason, they should always be a top priority in every decision that you make as a company. Happy, satisfied customers aren’t just more likely to come back and use your brand again; they can help your business build credibility, boost your reputation with good word of mouth marketing and even bring more customers in. If they have a positive experience, over 70% of customers are likely to recommend a brand to a friend, relative, colleague or acquaintance. So, that’s why it’s hugely important that you are focused on keeping your customers happy with high-quality products and an excellent level of service.
Practice Internal Customer Service
Good customer service starts from within – and it’s not only important to provide it to external customers, but also to colleagues and co-workers. There’s a very close link between how employees are treated and how they treat customers, so great internal customer services are absolutely crucial to improving the experience that your customers have. Excellent communication, support, and training offered to staff members is a great way to start – set clear expectations, make sure that everybody is informed, and ensure that employees have the necessary resources to do their job well.
Get to Know Customers
Most customer service definitions are pretty standard, but some customers will prefer certain methods and strategies over others. The key here is to really get to know your customers and understand what it is that they want and expect from your brand; when you understand who your customers are, what they like and dislike, and what they are looking for then it becomes much easier to provide them with a level of customer service that they will be highly satisfied with. Use engagement tools like social media or distribute customer surveys to encourage your customers to tell you more about themselves.
Go the Extra Mile
Yes, any business can provide great customer service – but going the extra mile for your customers is what’s going to eventually make your brand stand out from the crowd. Going above and beyond for your customers whenever you have the opportunity to, especially if there’s nothing in it for you at the time, shows them that your business really does care about them and the experience that they are having, in turn encouraging customer loyalty and giving them a reason to return to your brand in future compared to opting for a competitor.
Incorporate Customer Service into Everything
Bear in mind that customer service isn’t just something that you can provide when you’re face to face or communicating over the phone with a customer. In order to provide a strong level of customer service, it’s best to ensure that it’s incorporated into everything. Consider your website, for example – is it easy for customers to navigate and understand? If you sell products online, could you make the returns process easier for your customers?
Providing an excellent standard of customer service should always be a top priority.
