Deliver Quality Customer Service

Quality Customer Service

Today, thanks to globalization and advances in technology, there are numerous opportunities that businesses around the world can explore. However, the business environment in the modern world has its challenges. Companies continually look for ways to attract and retain customers, stay ahead of competition, increase market share, and grow revenues and operations. While customer service plays a critical role in helping businesses achieve these goals, the customer has become more discerning, making it important to put in place strategies that will ensure the needs of the target market are met.

Quality customer service is one of the key differentiators of good, bad, and indifferent companies. With the important role that good customer service plays in helping to build good relationships with customers, it is necessary to ensure that customers leave with a great impression. This will not only make them feel appreciated and valued but will also make them want to do business with your company in the future. In fact, customers who receive excellent customer service are likely to return often and spend more. By recommending your business to their colleagues, friends, and family, satisfied customers will help you to attract new customers, clients that you will then retain through maintaining high quality standards in customer service.

With customer service evolving so quickly, one of the questions that managers and business owners has is: What is quality customer service? A simple good customer service definition will help to answer this and act as a guide on how companies manage customer interactions. Quality customer service involves providing efficient, quick, and friendly service to customers as well as building strong relationships with them. It also entails responding to customers’ issues in time and handling any complaints swiftly. This is achieved by understanding customers’ needs and meeting them, ensuring quality product design, and offering customers several options for communicating and contacting customer service.

In order to entrench effective customer service and ensure it contributes to the long-term success of the business, managers and executives should make it a critical part of the company culture. This process will involve staff as well as the products the company offers. All employees should not only understand what quality customer service entails but also have the right attitude, good communication, and sales skills to deliver it. In terms of products, you should know your products, including the brand names, their location, place of manufacture, and price. This will go a long way in building customer confidence.

Why is good customer service important?

Seven out of ten U.S. consumers say they have spent more money to do business with a company that delivers great service. This goes to show how important good customer service is when it comes to building relationships and doing business especially since studies show that it is more expensive to acquire a new customer than to keep a current one. Here are the reasons why quality customer service is important.

Provides value-effective customer service programs emphasize on treating customers well, answering questions, responding to complaints, and exceeding customer expectations. Such an approach keeps customers engaged and builds strong relationships.

Reduces employee turnover – employees are likely to work for an employer who treats customers fairly and recognizes the contributions of their staff. When a company delivers great service, employees will be more engaged in their work and are more likely to stay through challenging times.

Retains customers – customers who are appreciated are likely to be loyal to the company. Once the business comes across as trustworthy, there is a good chance existing customers will keep on coming to make new purchases.

Creates endorsements – loyal customers will not only keep on doing business with the company but will also help strengthen the brand through online reviews and private endorsements. Companies that provide quality customer service will often get more new customers from recommendations than from advertising messages.

Profits – one of the main goals of any business is to make a profit. Quality customer services helps to retain existing customers and attract new ones, a factor that contributes to higher revenue and a rise in profit.

Once companies understand the importance of quality customer service, they should also learn the difference between great and good customer service. While in the latter case, companies do the minimum to keep customers satisfied, the first case involves going beyond keeping them satisfied to retain their loyalty. In the end, 51% of customers will not do business with a company after one negative experience.

Excellent customer service examples

While good customer service differs from company to company, there are basic characteristics of quality customer service. It is important for companies to stand for the values that mean a lot to their customers. Generally, customers tend to support businesses that represent them and share their beliefs. While there are many good and bad customer service examples, here are some excellent ones that every business can learn from.

Ritz Carlton flies in allergy ingredients for customer

A family that had traveled to Ritz Carlton Bali packed special food for their son who had severe allergies. Unfortunately, the food spilled before they got to the hotel. When the kitchen staff could not find replacement ingredients, the executive chef got his mother-in-law to fly to Bali from Singapore to deliver them. This is a great example of exceptional customer service in a restaurant.

Fry’s Grocery store stops scam

Another exceptional customer service example was when an employee at Fry’s Grocery in Arizona noticed that a customer was spending huge sums of money on prepaid gifts. On talking to the customer, it was discovered that he was being scammed. This is one of the best examples of good customer service in retail.

FedEx employee delivers package in hurricane

One of the most inspiring examples of good customer service stories is when there was the threat of Hurricane Irma hitting Florida. When a man in Orlando ordered a generator with overnight shipping, FedEx had suspended deliveries to this area due to the impending storm. An employee of the company used his personal vehicle to make the delivery before the hurricane landed.

Delta apologizes after storm delay

When heavy snowfall led to a Delta flight being diverted, causing airline delay, the airline sent personalized emails to each of the passengers, explaining the situation and apologizing for customers’ frustration. The company also put bonus points in the customers’ frequent flyer accounts.

Xfinity pens perfect response

After a warm support call with the company, a long-time customer sent a “Thank you” Tweet. On discovering from the customer’s Twitter profile that he was a poet, the employee created a perfect poetic response, making for one of the most legendary customer service examples.

Providing excellent customer service examples to employees helps to show them what the practice entails and triggers their creativity so they can find ways of ensuring customers get a good impression. However, it takes more work and time to define what quality customer service means to a certain company and to implement the culture in such a way that it becomes part of daily business activities.

How to Improve Customer Service in the Workplace

Customer service is one of the keys to any successful business. This means that companies that do not have it should make it a priority and find ways of improving customer service. However, customer service has evolved over the years, making it important to identify effective customer service strategies that will help you keep customers satisfied and increase sales performance.

Here are a few tips to help improve customer service in the workplace.

Create customer service standards for the team to follow

Once the leadership understands the importance of customer service standards, they will be in a position to define them for their organization. Creating customer service standards will allow the team to know what is expected of them, enabling them to make the necessary adjustments. In order to ensure that the practice is continuous and sustainable, the management has to make it part of the company culture so that it forms one of the values that guide employees’ conduct and business operations.

Improve customer service skills with dedicated practice

Embracing habits that promote improved customer service can take time. This is why it would be necessary to encourage practice as companies strive to improve customer experience. One of the examples of good customer service skills is effective communication in customer service. By communicating clearly, employees will be in a better position to answer customer queries, provide information, and address complaints. However, effective customer service skills can only be developed and strengthened through continuous and dedicated practice as well as activities like role-playing.

Train reps on key procedures, processes, and other important knowledge

Before the relevant employees can better their customer service skills, they will need to receive training on key procedures, processes, and other important knowledge. Today, social media outlets provide a channel through which customers can communicate with their favorite brands instantly. In order to meet the needs of your target market, reps have to know how to handle a wide range of situations. Training will help them keep up to date with emerging trends that influence customer service, a factor that will place the company ahead of the competition.

Look at every customer touchpoint

It is very critical that companies know and understand their customers in order to deliver superior service. Looking at every customer’s touchpoint will not only help to personalize messages but also respond through the right channel. With the numerous communication channels that technology has brought about, businesses should have people who are familiar with the platforms. In this way, the business will appear more human and have increased visibility on the various platforms, a factor that will ensure excellent customer service.

Enhance your customer service strategy

Any business that is looking to improve customer service must have a clear strategy to help achieve set goals. Effective customer service techniques will not only serve the customers better but also deliver the desired results. Managers can consult experts in this field in order to come up with strategies that will ensure return on investment. Lessonly, a simple training software that helps teams learn, practice, and do better work, can help to ensure that the customer service strategy is implemented as required.

Delivering quality customer service doesn’t have to be difficult. These tips are a great way to ensure you have happy customers, talented employees, and a great reputation. If you’re ready to deliver quality customer service, Lessonly can help. Learn more or get a demo today.