5 principles of great customer service
Rule number one: customers are always right. If they’re not, rule number one applies.
This isn’t an understatement. In fact, when you run a business, you’d do many things to delight your customers.
Customers are the heart of every business. They’re the biggest asset that companies should care for. When it comes to providing customer service, customers’ experience is what brands seek the most.
Having a happy customer will help elevate your business significantly. That’s because these types of customers won’t mind returning to your brand and make a second purchase. They’ll become a loyal customer that benefits your business in the long run.
Key advantages of good customer service
Customers often judge brands from first impressions. Customer service is the first stepping stone for customers to get to know your business personally. If you manage to serve a great service, customers will see this as a good point.
Retention
Customers will return for a brand with good customer service. They know who they can contact whenever they run into problems.
When the service isn’t helpful, customers will have a hard time solving their issues. They can’t rely on the brand’s representative anymore.
At the same time, if the customer service is good, people won’t hesitate to make another purchase.
Testimonials
Customers will likely spread the word about a brand they’ve encountered themselves. If they received poor service, they won’t hesitate to tell others how bad the treatment is. Likewise, when they find your customer service helpful, spreading nice comments about you is more likely to happen.
This situation affects a lot. If your company gives a bad impression to the public, the damage is very much expected. You’ll suffer from public judgment and lose potential customers.
That’s why serving good customer service is an essential thing. Happy customers will recommend your product or service to their closest one and subsequently attract more people. Eventually, you’ll close more deals.
Five principles of great customer service
1. Listen to customers
The number one rule to every service agent is listening to their customers. When you listen to your customers, you show your attention and empathy.
Customers often don’t demand a quick solution right away. Instead, they ask for the brand to understand the problem they’re facing. They wish to get the issue addressed properly, not leave them hanging with problems they can’t solve.
Listening to their issue will improve your professionality as a brand because you take every problem seriously. You’ll gain their trust when you understand your customers’ pain points.
2. Respond promptly
Responsiveness determines customer service quality. When customers are put on hold for too long, they’ll most likely hang up.
People don’t want to wait a long time to get help. In contrast, they want to connect with you as soon as possible.
A long response could harm your reputation and lower your chance of getting back to the same customer. If you don’t fix your agents’ responsiveness, many customers will drive away from your brand quickly.
Try to respond in a timely manner. Customers appreciate it when customer agents answer the query right away. They’ll find your service helpful and professional at the same time.
3. Understand your products/services
Suppose you’re a customer trying to connect with the company representative. When you address your problem, this representative doesn’t fulfill your expectation. They don’t actually answer the question you’re looking for.
This is very annoying on your end as you expect some help from the brand itself. When you’ve got no solution, no matter how many times you ask the customer service, you’d consider moving to another brand.
The situation above can happen when your customer agents don’t fully understand your product or service. They can’t fix the problem when they aren’t knowledgeable enough.
It’s crucial to know the stuff you’re selling. Customers will be assured when their problem is being handled by someone who knows the situation.
4. Maintain honesty
Be transparent about what you’re working on at the moment. Customers feel uneasy when they don’t know what’s going on. This includes the understanding of your agents.
When your customer agents can’t troubleshoot a problem, informing the customer that they will be directed to the right person is important. Instead of putting them on hold without a clear direction, being honest will be very much appreciated.
Customers won’t judge you when someone competent takes over the situation. In fact, they know that their problem is being taken seriously and someone from your company is going to solve it.
5. Be friendly
Customers expect human interaction from an actual human. That means a heartwarming welcome, smile, and friendly tone are essential in making a conversation.
Your agents should act more like humans rather than robots. Although professionality is number one, it doesn’t equal speaking coldly. Your customers wouldn’t like talking with a machine as it gives the impression of talking with a template.
Welcoming customers with a cheerful tone will improve your bond with them. The brand-customer relationship is vital in managing the business in the long run.
Bottom Line
Building a good customer relationship requires some work. You need to approach customers in a friendly manner, as this gesture signifies your appreciation for them. You should also understand their issues by becoming knowledgeable of your product or service.
Customers expect a quick response, hence don’t put them too long on hold. Make sure to be as transparent as possible, including telling them that you might need some time to solve their problems.
Show your interest in helping your customers. Let them know that you’re there by making a friendly gesture. That is the way to serve a good service for your customers.
About the author
Andre Oentoro is the founder of Breadnbeyond, an award-winning explainer video company. He helps businesses increase conversion rates, close more sales, and get positive ROI from explainer videos (in that order).