Adherence to certain guidelines can provide incredible sales results to any operation
By next year, customer service is expected to be more valuable than price as the brand differentiator. 86% of all consumers are more willing to spend more – between 13-18% more – when presented with an outstanding customer experience. In order to help a business stay ahead in the game, following a few simple customer service rules will provide substantial improvements to profits and drive the company forward for years to come.
All problems need to be turned into positives. Outstanding customer service means fixing a problem without letting your customers know that a problem existed. This is possible through constant evaluation of all customer-related procedures – as seen from the customer’s point of view – to determine how effective each procedure is.
Businesses should always encourage open dialogue, even if it means receiving negative feedback. Some would say that negative feedback is the most positive feedback because it gives the company an opportunity to make changes based on what customers want. This is the quickest avenue to success. Additionally, all feedback should be shared with pertinent internal members that can benefit from the knowledge.
Empathy and speediness of replies go a long way in customer relations. Over half of consumers expect a response within an hour. So vital is this to good customer service that some studies show that customers are seven times more likely to make a purchase when they receive a response within one hour. All responses need to be fast and must be tailored to the individual consumer, always addressing their actual concern.
One of the newer customer service initiatives being deployed is the customer service journey map. This map touches on every point along the customer’s interaction with the company and creates solutions to help improve the experience.
There is a benefit to offering rewards programs, which is why they’re so frequently used. Customers love to feel pampered and know that they’re receiving more for their money, and loyalty reward programs provide both. In many cases, increasing a customer retention rate by even just 5% can result in an increase in profit of up to 95%. This makes virtually any rewards program worthwhile.
Give customers a reason to stay and they’ll come back for more. Give them a reason to walk away, and you’ll most likely never see them again. Excellent customer service can ensure that they’ll remain loyal and continue to return.