“Did You Know? Over 90% of #business #marketing budgets are spent to get customers to call. Only 6% is spent to actually handle the call.” (Tweeted by @Conrecept.) Now if this is true, and I suspect it is based on what we witness and evaluate each day, think of the money that is wasted and the customers that are lost because focus is just on sales, marketing, and PR. Scary and sad. And to further shock you, according to the "2015 Global State of Multichannel Customer Service Report" published by Parature, from Microsoft and Microsoft Dynamics CRM, today's consumers have increasing expectations for customer serivce. In fact, according to the report, which surveyed 4,000 consumers across the globe, 60% have higher customer service expectations than a year ago. What you need to do is obvious- you have to step up your customer service game!
- Impress from the start. First impressions mean everything; they set the tone for the entire customer experience.
- Make a connection. You have to build rapport to develop a relationship with your customers.
- Ask appropriate questions. Effective discovery questions allow you to customize to your customers’ needs and to tailor your conversations to what they care about the most.
- Be sincerely attentive. Truly observe and listen to your customers, and be mindful of the feedback that they give.
- Personalize. Get to know your customers so you can create personal experiences and personalized conversations.
- Show consideration. Always focus on what you can do, say, or sell to your customers so you are taking the best care of them and their unexpressed wishes.
- Exceed expectations. Go the extra mile by engaging in superior customer service and be proactive with offering solutions so your customers will keep coming back.
- Be honest. Always be open and honest with your customers, own up to mistakes, and admit when you are wrong.
- React quickly. Never make your customers wait because the faster you respond, the faster they will be satisfied.
- Show your appreciation. Go beyond a simple “thank you” by doing something more genuine and special to show your customers that they are appreciated.
These 10 skills are absolutely essential for growing your business and will help you to exceed the higher expectations that customers now have. As promised, here's the link to download this list in the form of a training tool.
