Customers crave friendly, informed service. I know this, because I’ve worked the front lines in Glance Network’s customer service department. The relationship I have with our customers is of the highest importance to me. That attitude is reflected in the rave reviews we’ve gotten from our customers in return.
Moreover, there is plenty of evidence that good customer service is positively correlated with a company’s financial performance. In a CRM Today survey of 2,000 customers in the U.S and the U.K., nearly half (49%) said poor customer service led them to change service providers in at least one industry.
In order to continually improve customer satisfaction, we stick to ten key principles of customer service to provide a fantastic customer experience. I’d like to share these principles with you so your contact center, too, can receive rave reviews about how you constantly exceed expectations. That kind of customer satisfaction translates into loyal customers and word-of-mouth sales. So trust me when I say—it’s well worth your time and effort.
1. Be a good listener
Take the time to identify customer needs by asking questions and concentrating on what the customer is really saying. Don’t make assumptions.
2. Identify and anticipate needs
Customers don’t buy products or services. They buy good feelings and solutions to problems. Don’t just follow a script – proactively work to understand and solve underlying issues.
3. Make customers feel important and appreciated
Treat customers calling into your contact center as individuals. Always use their names and find ways to compliment them. However, you must be sincere—people will know if you’re faking it.
Read: 10 Tips for Stellar Customer Service
4. Understand the power of “Yes”
When customers have a (reasonable) request, tell them that you can do it. And always, ALWAYS do what you say you are going to do.
5. Say you’re sorry
When something goes wrong, apologize. It’s easy and customers like it. The customer may not always be right, but the customer should always feel like they won.
6. Go above and beyond the basics
Give more than expected and give the unexpected. Think of ways to elevate yourself above the competition.
This doesn’t have to mean a huge monetary investment. It may be about something as simple as taking notes about customer conversations so the next time they call you can have a more personal interaction or offering relevant tips to make the customer experience even better.
CTA — Read: Grow Customer Satisfaction by Practicing Respect
7. Get regular feedback from your customers
Encourage and welcome suggestions about how you could improve. Don’t get your back up about criticism when it comes to contact center interactions. Understand how you can use that feedback to make the customer experience even better.
8. Always be polite and appreciative
Never forget that the customer pays your salary and makes your job possible. Say please and thank you. A little politeness goes a long way.
9. Treat your staff well
Contact center employees are your internal customers and your front line. They need a regular dose of appreciation.
Again, this doesn’t have to be an expensive investment. Thanking them, trusting them, training them, listening to them—these are all ways to let your contact center team know how important they are.
10. Have help available precisely when they need it
Your company may have the world’s best software, but if your customers can’t understand it and aren’t able to properly use it—why have it at all?
Even if you’re designing with UX simplicity in mind, complex software experiences can be too much for some people. But those moments where your customers feel confused or frustrated by their digital experience is precisely when person-to-person help matters most.
This is where Glance visual engagement solutions provide you with the means to instantly see what your customers see and collaborate with them with ease via cobrowsing, screen sharing, agent video and more. That kind of connection lets you learn more about the most difficult parts of your user experience, and allows your customers to feel cared for in a rare, personalized, human way.
If you’d like, we can show you exactly what we mean: Book a short, personalized demo here.
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