What is Important in Delivering Excellent Customer Service? The 6 Things that Really Matter

2019-01-11

What ranks the highest on your priority list? Your sales figures? Your employees?

 

Yes, these are vital to your business success, but without happy customers you won’t have sales and you won’t need employees to do any work.

 

So, we want to help you get customer service right. Often, this gets bumped to the bottom of the list because the department doesn’t always result in turnover.

 

This approach is wrong: Your department is only part of your customer service process. Ideally, your entire business must be customer centered.

 

And if that sounds a bit daunting, relax. We’re going to make it easy for you. Below we list the six most important features of quality customer service. If you can get this right, you’ll have smooth sailing and many customer smiles.  

 

 

6 Tips That Transform Customer Service

How Good are You at First and Last Impressions?

You may incorporate many features, apps, forms and processes in your customer service. Managing all of them can be overwhelming and even unnecessary. If you feel it’s putting too much strain on your staff, focus on the moments that really matter:

• The Beginning: Make sure the initial contact with a customer puts them in a positive mindset. If the phone doesn’t ring for too long, it they’re met with friendly smiles or if you arrive on time you have half the battle won. A tool such as Serfy which keeps clients informed about arrival times of site workers therefore becomes an important customer service resource, rather than simply an employee management tool.

• The End: When they walk away, put down the phone or when you leave they have to be in good spirits. Once again friendliness goes a long way to manage this. But there are more ways to get this right. Seeing a team pack up tools in an orderly fashion or making sure your service team’s vehicle starts the first time will leave the right impression about your values.

 

These times are so vital because human nature forgets most of what happens in between those moments. You’ll have them coming back for more if you can impress during those timelines. So determine all the factors at play at the start and finish & see if you can manage them more effectively.

 

What do You Do When Things Go Wrong?

We’re all so quick to state our innocence. You may think you’re protecting your brand if you don’t admit to mistakes, but it has quite the opposite effect. When customers publicly—or even in a private message—tell you about their complaints it’s time to own up and listen.

 

The good news: Get this right and an unhappy client may become a loyal follower. People appreciate being heard and seeing change come from their actions.

 

The secret is to have a policy in place which helps employees (all employees, not only your customer service agents) manage a situation well:

• Determine the problem
• Admit to wrongdoing if relevant
• Research the situation
• Communicate that you’re looking into it
• Give feedback on what you did to solve the issue

 

When you’re known as someone who considers its clients’ concerns, you’ll attract more business than trying to be perfect (and of course failing miserably).

 

An added bonus: When you have this type of conversation on your Facebook page and others see it, they’re bound to trust you more that your competitor down the road. Therefore, unless someone seems very vindictive, don’t instantly delete or block negative comments. It’s not even necessary to always take the discussion private.

 

Important tip: You need to train your staff in these matters so everyone automatically uses the same approach. An understanding culture is built over time; it won’t appear instantly.

 

Do You Ask for Feedback? Do You Listen?

The matter above also begs the question: Do you even consider your clients’ opinions? Part of your policy must include platforms where you ask for feedback:

• Online questionnaires
• A feature on your business’ app
• Paper based forms clients can fill in
• Comment sections on your website

 

But asking isn’t enough. As with responding to negative comments, you’ll benefit from the fruits of the feedback process if you act on it:

• Thank them for their input
• Report when a certain feature gets upgraded
• Answer all questions

 

Your response (not the paper or online poll) proves that you listen to customers and that’s what impresses: Listening, not feigned interest.

 

Do You Humanize Each Experience?

Here’s the truth: Much of your customer interactions happen via digital and technological means, right? How is that working for you? Many people fear it makes businesses seem remote, uncaring, clinical and distant. These characteristics don’t draw customers, as humans are designed to respond to personal, humane situations, rather than clinical ones.

 

Can you add the personal touch they’re looking for? A few practical tips should help you create a new approach and culture:

• Do you use your and your employees’ faces on marketing?
• What about personal thank you notes with large purchases?
• Invest in quality AI that won’t result in a robotic voice answering your clients’ questions, but rather a human one.

 

Small changes can make a huge difference and draw clients back for more.

 

Are You Really Using Technology to Your Customers’ Benefit?

There’s a reason why products such as Serfy is quickly becoming more popular than before: You function in a technology driven world and that resource is the only way you’ll impress your clients:

• Use apps (like Serfy) to communicate with clients, because it’s an easy tool and clients can see you move with the times.
• Take your marketing online because paper based advertising doesn’t impress anymore.
• Customers want quick service no matter the task at hand. Automating features in your office will draw clients and keep them smiling:
  • Faster sales processes
  • Quick delivery
  • Enhanced accuracy

 

These are just some of the benefits you’ll love. But why so important? Because in your clients’ modern day living, these characteristics have become non-negotiable from service providers and businesses. Prove to them you’re worth coming back to.

 

Did You Train & Empower Your Employees?

We already mentioned the aspect of empowering your employees to get this aspect right. Remember: What seems logical to you isn’t second nature to everyone. To ensure your employees act according to your policy, intense training is required. Therefore, creating the framework for customer service isn’t enough: Make sure your team will use it according to your customers’ preferences.

 

Ready to create some smiles now?