If you ask a business owner how they are different from their competition, they will likely note customer service. But are you really walking the walk, when it comes to this area? Whether you sell B2B or B2C, your customers’ appetite for good service is only increasing, which means your service level must be up to snuff. Here’s how to take your customer service to the next level:
Motivate employees. Help them help you succeed. That means helping them understand the goals you want them to reach and how you’re measuring them. Communicate your expectations and make sure they have the knowledge and tools they need to deliver top-of-the-line service. For instance, you might create a cheat sheet of answers to FAQs or customer service procedures to follow so employees can have this at their fingertips.
It doesn’t have to be all serious either. You might consider engaging employees in friendly competitions and offer prizes for the winners. Or motivate employees to top their own sales goals by tracking their numbers and trying to improve by a certain amount each month or quarter.
Data tells a story. If you conduct customer surveys or other means to assess satisfaction on the regular, you might be best served to review it monthly to look for big-picture trends. For example, if you’ve recently hired new personnel and customer problems are suddenly taking longer to resolve, perhaps it’s a training issue that needs to be addressed.
Tune in. What are customers or prospects saying on social media and online rating and review sites? You can use social media monitoring platforms so you can address anything negative that might hinder customer acquisition. Consider asking customers for additional feedback—for example, if you own a coffee shop, thank them for the review but also ask, “What could we do better next time to improve?”
Remember, a happy customer is worth his or her weight in gold. Do you part to keep them happy and the rest will follow.
