Does your business offer exceptional customer service? These tips may help you up your game.
Many companies give you 24/7 access to your account information and have a customer service rep available 24 hours a day as well. When it comes to service expectations these days, the bar has been significantly raised. While you may not have the resources to have someone available 24/7 to answer customer calls, there are many low and no-cost things you can do so that your customers find your company easy to work with.
Here are some dos and don’ts about providing exceptional service.
Do: Make It Easy to Conduct Business Over the Web
Companies may employ a web-based portal to allow prospects and customers to help themselves. Whether it is to order a product or service or look up the details of an invoice, many customers want the ability to do business 24/7, without speaking to a human. Personally, I have moved my business from several providers that didn’t allow me to do to things on their website (such as look up invoices and order additional services) to those who do. Sure, there may be a small upfront cost to set it up, but it is easier now than ever. And once you do set it up, you have likely made it easier to do business with you than a competitor.
Tracking customer satisfaction, perhaps by tracking customer retention or the data from a quick survey you give your customers after they call or visit your site, may be an important metric for your company.
Don’t forget that your portal (as well as the rest of your website) ideally should work well on mobile devices.
Do: Ensure Your Team Is Well-Equipped and Trained
While more and more customers prefer to do business via the web, many still want, and sometimes need, to deal with a human. The key to good live-person service is often a combination of processes and training. This may include:
How you answer the phone. Example: Thank you for calling [Company name]. My name is Jane and I look forward to assisting you. How may I help you?
Having well thought-out, canned responses to the top five to 10 inquiries. Not sure of what the top questions are in your business? You might ask whoever is dealing with customers to keep track for two to three weeks. Then work with them to develop best practice responses.
Ensuring your employees have easy access to the information that is needed. This might include shipping status, invoices and customer statements.
Asking if there is anything else that you can help with before ending a call. (Bonus: If appropriate for your industry, you might want to let the caller know about a special that you have right now.)
The more your customers tend to call, the more you may need to have staff that is well trained on handling customer service inquiries. This goes for emails, too. If your company can’t afford or does not warrant a dedicated customer service employee, you might consider setting up a process whereby other employees are handling customer service calls and emails and are trained accordingly.
Do: Keep Track of Customer Satisfaction
A good practice for businesses owners is to have a few KPIs (key performance indicators) that they track on a regular basis. While these will vary based on your business and your goals, most KPIs are strong on revenue- and growth-based metrics. These may include new customers acquired or average sale. Tracking customer satisfaction, perhaps by tracking customer retention or the data from a quick survey you give your customers after they call or visit your site, may be an important metric for your company. Remember that your best prospects may be your current customers.
Don’t: Assume Customers Have Lower Expectations
Just because your business is small, doesn’t mean that customers expect less from your company. Traditionally, smaller businesses have excelled in providing great service, typically because the owner is involved. The bar is now raised for companies of all sizes. A small business may be perfectly suited to leverage its agility and processes and technology to give customers a unique and positive experience.
Don’t: Outsource Your Customer Service
Along with the quality of your product, your customer service may determine how you stack up against the competition. Customer service is often a core competency for any company.
Don’t: Make It Difficult for Your Customers to Connect With You
Don’t make it hard for people to find your phone number or email, which ideally will be on the top or bottom of each page on your website. Once they call, don’t make it hard for them to get a human on the phone
