Customers need help before, during, and after making a purchase. Customer service provides this support through information, assistance, and creating a trusting environment. This support can be delivered through many different media, like phone, email, online chat, social media, text message, and more. Customer support can be a great way to distinguish your business from your competitors.
Customer service is important in reducing turnover. Employees who have to deal with unhappy customers are unlikely to enjoy their jobs for long and may leave to seek more hospitable working environments. After all, good customer care works from the top down, and employees who are specially trained in the art of quality customer support are far more likely to represent the business in the way that ensures satisfaction and repeat business.
Implement service policies that address every conceivable aspect of the customer experience. This includes how quickly your phone is answered or your website or email questions responded to, how many cashiers you have on busy days, how generous your return or exchange policy is, and how you handle irate customers. Put yourself in your customer’s shoes and brainstorm every potential scenario your specific business could encounter, and then develop customer-friendly ways to address them.
When you interview candidates, ask them what quality customer support means to them. Pose sticky customer scenarios and ask them how they would respond to the situation. This gives you an idea of whether the people you hire for your front lines will represent your business in a way you find acceptable.
Good Customer care starts with your attitude and employee training. Train your employees on customer service policies. Role-playing works well with one staffer acting as the customer and another as the staffer. Moderate the session to offer your take on what the role-players did right and where they can improve. Make customer service training an ongoing part of your company’s professional development program so that staffers are continually urged to up their games.