Weekly Roundup in Customer Service
February 12, 2015
“Great customer service is perhaps the most important tool that businesses can utilize to ensure repeat business and inspire brand loyalty.”
— Robert Cordray
Customer service is a continually evolving aspect in our world today, and I truly enjoy being able to read new and exciting ideas trending in the world of customer happiness. I’ve found some helpful and interesting articles that I’m looking forward to sharing with you all!
#RAKWeek2015. It’s Random Act of Kindness Week, and what better way to extend these acts than through your customer service mediums? Tricia Morris focuses on the value of bringing a “human” aspect back into companies in her article, Practice Random Acts of Customer Service Kindness. By genuinely reaching out to customers and thanking them — whether by card, email or tweet — you show that you value them as a customer and that the relationship is more than transactional. This goes a long way in creating loyal customers and increasing their life time value.
Reputation is Everything. One of the greatest and most important ways to engage your customers (and acquire new ones) is by investing time into your social media accounts and maintaining them — whether it’s your Twitter, Facebook or Instagram account. Robert Cordray explores this in his article, Social Media And Customer Service — Reputation Is Everything. As more customers seek to use Twitter and Facebook for answers to questions and issues, ensuring your company is prepared to effectively address, measure and respond to these inquiries are key to nurturing relationships with customers.
Sales + customer service = success! Your company probably has a solid customer acquisition strategy bringing in hundreds, thousands, maybe even millions of new customers each month, but is your customer service team prepared to deliver service that creates new brand advocates, up-sells products, and increases the life time value of newly acquired customers? It’s easy to forget about current customers while wooing new ones, but it’s crucial to build relationships with your current users and keep making them feel special. Nate Holzapfel encourages companies to keep pursuing customers and to keep “selling” them in Customer Service and Sales: You Can’t Have One Without the Other. By reaching out to them, going above and beyond on promises and requests and letting them know their importance to the company can certainly elevate your company to new heights.
Help the customers help themselves. In a world where instant gratification reigns, customers’ attention spans (and patience) run quite short, so by giving them self-service options, makes all the difference in how they perceive your company and their experience with it. In Ten Best Practices For DIY Customer Service, Judy Philbin discusses the ways in which companies today should allow DIY features for their customers so that they’re able to quickly find their answers and move on (as opposed to sitting in a call queue or waiting for an email back). An easy to navigate website, and FAQ section are some standout points; however, it’s important to note that some issues will still require a human aspect to it and to not always make the customer do everything themselves — using discretion in this area is important!
Here are some more articles I’ve written about customer support:
