Your customers are the lifeblood of your business, without them, there is no growth or profit. Delivering exceptional service is a part of making sure your customers stick around for the long-term and refer their friends and family. This means going above and beyond the average service, we get in most places. It helps to consider how you like to be treated as a customer by the businesses you buy from. There are so many customer service techniques out there, you really have to tailor your plan to your unique style and business. In the meantime, here are a few ways to create exceptional customer satisfaction.
Set Goals and Standards
As with other areas of your business, it’s necessary to have customer service related targets. This means having a time limit set on response rates, a deadline for service tickets to be closed, and an overall customer satisfaction expectation. Having these metrics in place helps you to manage and motivate your customer service team effectively and efficiently. It also gives you a way to review and track performance.
Other programs to consider are ones that let you enter your business criteria to study like Conjointly’s Kano Model Tool. It puts you in the driver’s seat while discovering what works for customer satisfaction and what doesn’t.
Have Exceptional Customer Satisfaction Through Support
Waiting times for customers trying to get through to your business can be a real turn off. In fact, slow responses whether by phone or email are one of the top reasons potential customers choose to “walk away” and shop elsewhere. Quality phone customer support isn’t always easy, especially if you’re running a limited staff. Many companies consider using temporary staff to handle busy times. You might also choose to hire someone full-time for this position.
Another solution is outsourcing your support service to another company. This can be beneficial and efficient because often you can find specialty services to fit your type of business. For example, you may need a virtual receptionist for lawyers that handles basic legal queries and new client intake.
Use Automated Response Software
A simple and effective solution to a full email inbox is utilizing automated response software within your messenger applications. By using sophisticated artificial reality chatbots, you can respond to a greater number of customers in a much shorter time frame. With software that learns appropriate responses to many of the commonly asked questions that your business receives, you will be able to deal with a large percentage of your customer queries instantly.
Where the issue is too complicated and requires human intervention, a holding message can be sent. This is so the customer knows the case has been passed over to the relevant department, and a member of your team can take it from there.
Put the Customer First
For many businesses, cost-cutting is a regular exercise as it may be the only way of increasing profits during difficult economic times. Often, these exercises target front line customer service staff and cutbacks are made. As a business leader, weigh the pros and cons of reducing your service staff. You need to know how it will affect the current and future bottom line and the quality of service to your customers.
Follow Up
Just because you get that sale once doesn’t mean your work is done. True exceptional customer satisfaction and service goes way beyond taking their money. Make sure your customers are happy and satisfied with their products or services. Your follow up techniques can vary depending on your business. Do, however, adopt a plan that gets implemented consistently. You can also get future orders from knowing what your customers are interested in. This is where sales tracking comes in handy.
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