The business landscape is always competitive, and your company should be doing everything in its power attract customers. One of the most deceptively simple ways to do this is to offer your customers exemplary service. This is more than showing up on time for appointments and double checking the quality and effectiveness of your product.
Offering service that goes the extra mile is a care value, a set of actions you and your employees can take every day. In the hectic world of business today, this art has been seemingly lost, but there’s a few ways to pick the mantle and being a shining example of your customer service within your industry.
- Accountability and timeliness are essential
- Use your customers’ names to improve personalization
- Always ask for and act upon feedback from interactions
Always Take Accountability
There’s an age-old adage: “something that’s not your fault can still be your responsibility.” This perfectly encapsulates the attitude your company and employees should have toward taking action and calming customers when something unexpected comes up.
Customers keep track of these things carefully because companies who try to dodge accountability or pawn it off on a never-ending chain of command, show a complete lack of respect or care for their customers. Taking responsibility will increase customer satisfaction and help you retain a wide of customers who admire your integrity and commitment to fixing their problems in a timely and responsible manner.
Always Be Timely
Yes, a timely manner. Even if you take accountability for any slipups on your company’s end, you can still add tension to the situation by taking action too late or being lackadaisical in your response time. Some issues are too big to take care of all at once, and accidents do happen.
However, if you can’t solve the customer’s problem or assuage the situation in one setting, you should always provide an immediate and concise e-mail or phone call telling your customers what you will do and when. Again, this is really just a simple form of courtesy, letting your customers know that you care about them and your company has their back, even in times of trouble, no matter the source of the problem.
Say Client Names And Ask Questions
One sore spot within the business world can arise form the interactions between your employees with your customers. To make sure your customers are being cared for respected, instruct your employees to use their names and ask questions frequently to make sure they understand the situation and if they need additional help.
These practices are both signs that your company is really listening to what your customers have to say and will do everything in your power to fix the problem. Communication between a business and a customer doesn’t have to feel like there’s a hierarchy involved; it should flow naturally and be casual, as customers will feel better appreciated this way.
Improve Personalization
Calling your customers and clients by their names is only one way to improve personalization within your company. Make sure your customer help lines are always manned by real people and that your customers have the option to speak someone live if they so choose. Chatbots are great for guiding customers through your system, but there should always be a welcoming, warm human at the end of the destination.
You can also provide personalization within your e-mails and phone calls; any form of communication which would be ordinarily robotic and cold can be made personable and warm with a few easy touches, such as including customers’ names and knowing what they stand for and represent.
Utilize Social Media
Social media has become a brand haven in recent years because it allows businesses to display their messages and products to a wide audience who’s usually willing to listen. This is all fine and good, but social media should also be used to communicate with customers in a personable way just as often as it’s used to sell your products or services.
You can use any number of social media platforms to connect to your customers, such as LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest. Many brands are fearful to interact with customers in any meaningful way on these platforms, but your company should never hesitate to tag and @ clients in an attempt to humanize your company and seem closer to your customer base in their daily lives.
Always Give Feedback
Finally, there’s one method which never fails in the customer service field. When you interact with customers, always ask for feedback, to let them know how your company can improve and look to the future for continued pleasant interactions. Customers love being asked for their opinions on these interactions, especially when they veer into the extra pleasant or frustrating.
This feedback should be specific and actionable and can even come in the form of a review which your company can put on its website to increase SEO and attract other prospective customers. Make sure to listen to the feedback and adjust your business practices based on how your customers commonly perceive you.