Today’s customer is changing the world of customer service. The volume and speed of communication has quickened at breakneck pace, and customers expect questions and comments to be answered and acknowledged quickly. How can your business keep up? Check out these 10 customer service best practices pulled from experiences and stories from leaders in the service industry.
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Customers are flocking to new channels of communication and companies that are adopting customer-centric principles are crushing their competition. Here are 10 customer service best practices that can ensure small business success:
- Think beyond the cubicle: the standard call center has an average annual turnover rate of 26 to 33% so you need to support your employees so that they WANT to provide awesome support for your company.
- Implement gamification: This can help you interact with your customers in a new, fun and productive way.
- Make sure that you reward and recognize your employees since 54% of workers said they would likely leave if they don’t feel appreciated. In order to provide awesome service, you must have happy employees who want to represent your company and product in a positive light.
- Leverage a community of experts using their feedback to determine what areas need more attention.
- Share helpful resources: Enable your customers to find answers to their issues through blogs, white papers and self-service sites and allow them to easily share any tips and tricks with others.
- Go mobile: It’s important to implement mobile support since that’s where your customers are- 60% of consumers have the customer support app from the company they do business with.
- Meet customers where they are: Keep support costs down and prevent the reality of having your customers waiting in a call queue by serving up information to your customers throughout the customer journey.
- Know customers before they call: Track your customer’s social profiles and service history so that you can deliver personalized service and make them feel special. This will result in a loyal customer.
- Turn setbacks into solutions: Customer issues can be used to build brand loyalty based on how you deal with them. Listen to the customer and really try to help them.
- Keep it real: Support your employees’ career and work-life balance to attract and retain your highest performing employees.
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