Taking care of the customer should be a priority for every business, regardless of how long it’s been running. Failing to meet expectations of your client base can result in them going elsewhere, so poor customer service can have a detrimental effect on any company. Competitors are readily available at the touch of a button thanks to the internet which may mean you need customers more than they need you. Stay on top and enforce customer loyalty by focusing on meeting customer demands.
IMAGE: PEXELS
Social media doesn’t just play a part in promoting your business, it is a vital tool in customer care. It’s all well and good offering phone calls when customers need to get in touch, but many people expect service at their fingertips. In fact, data from Smart Insights revealed that 63% of customers expect businesses to offer customer service via a social media channel.
This number is certain to increase as technology becomes increasingly accessible from any location, so making the most of it is guaranteed to get you ahead. Only 16.1% of people from the study chose phone calls as their preferred method of customer service; offering an alternative is a great way to meet customer demands. Setting up a customer service page is easy, allowing you direct contact with your target audience to resolve queries quickly.
As well as contacting customers via social media, a remote working system could benefit both staff and clients. Getting staff out of the office and in front of customers works wonders for boosting relationships, improving loyalty while putting a friendly face to the company name. Even if your staff don’t need to pay your customers a visit, giving them the option to work remotely has been shown to have positive effects on their morale. Happy staff means increased productivity and motivation levels, which in turn improves the quality of customer service.
Negative reviews are always tough to swallow, but they often contain useful information and critiques to improve on. Learn from previous mistakes by regularly looking at customer feedback and taking it on board. Some of it may just be personal opinion but it will help you understand what parts of the businesses have issues, especially ones that reoccur again and again.
Customers are unlikely to return if they don’t see an improvement of company issues and word of mouth can have a huge effect on any business. Show them you care about their needs by listening to reviews and making improvements where required.
Once you’ve perfected your product, communication is key to a successful business. Things can – and do – go wrong but it’s how you react to this that will have a lasting effect on the customer. Be honest but positive throughout while replying to customer queries regardless of the channel. If you can’t deliver a product or promise, get in touch with the customer as soon as possible and let them know why the issue has occurred as well as how it will be fixed.
A study from New Voice Media shows that 91% of customers will take action after a negative experience, with 51% saying they would never use the company again. How you handle the situation has a huge impact on this result, so be personal and positive to offer a good experience even when things go wrong.
If you are interested in even more business-related articles and information from us here at Bit Rebels then we have a lot to choose from.
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