As word of mouth is critical to driving more customers towards business, a company should stress more about developing the customer front. If a customer finds it hard to connect with a business or get an answer to its query, he quickly switches to the vendor.

A business should understand that response time is low now, and customers have the most options. According to a report, “nearly 46% of the customers desire the companies to respond to the queries within 4 hours.” In addition, the remaining ones desire instant response if they have urgency.

Thus, regardless of how best the product or service you provide, customers recall their first interaction with the firm.

A negative experience can impact brand value and customer trust. A negative customer review can trigger doubt about the product or service in the customer’s mind. When you build brand equity, you also build customer loyalty. However, negative impression impacts both.

What does Customer Service Implies?

Customer service is the assistance and advice a business provides to a user or a prospect. It is the support a company offers to customers before and after purchase. It means more than helping and providing solutions to their needs.

The company answers the queries like- product price, usage guide and replacement issues. In today’s version – customer service implies instant and immediate service on the platform and channel they use the most.

For example, if a customer contacts a firm the most through emails. It would be ideal to address his queries through emails only.  As per Gartner’s survey, “74% of respondents believe that creating a seamless customer journey across different channels is important.” It is the reason CSS companies invest a lot in new customer-centric channels and improve the existing channels.

Tips to improve your company’s Customer service

In most customer interactions, a customer reaches out to the company to:

• Make a request
• Ask a question
• Note a complaint

The company’s representative helps customers get answers to their most pressing concerns. Here are some ways to optimise your customer’s service:

1)     Ensure a friendly tone and interaction

The most important rule in marketing or improving customer-business relationships is – FRIENDSHIP. Ensuring a friendly tone helps the customer get comfortable while discussing an issue. Always be respectful and courteous while dealing with customer queries.

It helps the company representative provide the best solution and gain the customer’s attention. A customer listens if you ensure a cordial and generous tone.  It is important to remain emphatic to customers with every interaction. It is evident from a fact.

According to EY Global Consumer Health Survey 2023, “only 37% of global customers in the survey believe that they offer very good or excellent care.”   Moreover, around 55% of respondents are active with health and undertake medical checkups.

And coming to the point among these, “Around 27% believe that the firm lack empathy, courtesy and respect.”

Thus, rather than being an aggressive seller, try to be more conversational and consultative. “Do not talk about your product. Instead, go ahead and know their business issues.”

2)     Monitor all the touchpoints

Touchpoints are the part and modes of interaction that a customer use to interact with a brand. Identify the path and the point they often get stuck. Contact them and help them meet a particular goal.

Collecting feedback and reaching out the potential customers through email is one of the best ways to connect with customers. Review the touchpoints regularly and match them with the customer’s expectations.

As per surveymonkey.com, “You should view the customer touchpoints and review it accordingly.”

Here is how you can do that as per the same source.

However, for this, you would need to expand your efforts in marketing and be active throughout. Monitoring everything from questions to pathways and obstacles at each touchpoint becomes a little bit overwhelming.

With the right solution, you can streamline everything with just one setup. You can do so by investing in customer experience management software. That is good if you have just started the business but still receive frequent queries. Managing everything with limited capital gets overwhelming.

Moreover, if you are a bit low on finance and in the early years of your startup, you may not own stellar credit. Do not worry. You can still capitalize on the opportunity and get instant finance. Tap bad credit instalment loan for your needs. With this, you can invest in the best consumer experience management software. Track every question and customer pathway in real time without missing any.

3)     By being active on social media and always

Companies benefit from having active social media accounts. Nearly everyone is on social media. It makes it imperative for every company and brand to ensure an online presence. Interact with customers and followers through engaging videos, posts and reels.

Share content that customers or persons find important and helpful. You can share how-to guides, long-form blog content, testimonials and behind-the-scenes images to pique customers’ interest. You can also host quizzes and ask about your customer’s preferences.

It would help you know your customers and prospects better. This insight may help you optimise your products and services as per customers’ requirements and needs.

You can share facts about your industry, your company’s “why” behind adopting a particular industry or simply share video testimonials.  Testimonials videos help connect with customers and prospects on a different level. You can set up automatic responses to apply to customers in real time.

4)     Find opportunities to thank your customers

Customer loyalty is not given; it is earned. Thus, do not leave customers after they conduct a transaction with you. Instead, send them a personalized thank you note. You can include this practice with every invoice or bill you create.

Moreover, you can surprise your customers on their special days like- Birthdays and Anniversaries.

Do everything necessary to help consumers. Figure out the ways that help solve a problem only.

For example, if you are a lender and your customer needs immediate cash despite a low credit score, help him with possibilities. Familiarize him with the ways he can get instant money without sporting good credit. Loan providers like Huge Loan Lenders share expertise in helping customers get immediate financial assistance without impacting the bottom line. It provides after-loan approval assistance to customers to ensure the best experience.

Thus, thanking customers afterward is a good way to improve customer experience.

Bottom line

These are some of the best ways to improve your customer service. It should be at par with your competitors. A brand gains importance by maximising the return customer count. To ensure the same do what a customer wants.  Ensure prompt query response and utilise end software to improve customer service.