According to Wikipedia, customer service is "the provision of service before, during, and after a purchase." It goes on to say that "customer service plays an important role in an organization's ability to generate income and revenue. From that perspective, customer service should be included as part of an overall approach to systematic improvement." We whole-heartedly agree; thank you, Wikipedia, for supporting the messages that we drive home on a daily basis. You know we are passionate about this, and it's no surprise that these "picks," once again, give you solid and unique tips and tricks for executing outstanding customer service. Scoop up your favorites and create your own list of tips—train to them, be consistent with execution, and reap the rewards!
10 Tips for Improving Customer Service and Keeping More of Your Customers
These 10 tips are straight forward and seem logical, but so many companies fall short in several areas. Don't be one of these companies. When you improve your customer service, you improve your customer retention, which means you will have a higher revenue. That's our goal, right? Read on so you can learn these 10 tips...
"1. Customer service is all about customers’ needs first and your needs second.
If your customers expect a response from you in 24 hours and you always respond much later, that’s putting your needs first and their needs second.
2. Customers are like a spouse, they need to feel special to continually respond to your offers.
You make your customers feel special by over-delivering in every area, especially in those areas they don’t expect. Imagine how you’d feel if you sent an email with..."
Customer Experience Is a Year-Round Effort
We teach and preach on this: having a customer-focused culture is key to ongoing success. It's all about building better experiences and exceeding customer expectations. The prior article had 10 tips, and here are 6 more for you that have some of the same messages, but with a different twist. You can't have too many tips when they equate to higher revenue for your business, so take a look...
"...Creating positive customer experiences should be the focus of every business. And after 17 years in the industry, it’s clear to see that loyal customers and employees are two sides of the same coin. Often, the most loyal and engaged employees have better interactions with customers to build positive experiences and lasting relationships.So how do companies go about creating successful service initiatives and programs? They need to prioritize keeping customers delighted, engaged and at the center of what they do...
Top-of-Mind Influence: Are You Reaching Your Customers?
We want our customers to remember us and to think about us on a regular basis rather than to be just fleeting thoughts and momentary glances. How best do we achieve this? It is all about your ongoing, consistent presence—how you show up in front of them on a regular basis. You probably already have a marketing and social media strategy (or the start of one), but are your efforts getting the results you need and want? This article talks about how to take social media, email, and blogging to the next level.
"Most business owners and marketers spend a lot of time thinking about their customers. We spend countless hours trying to determine how best to connect with them, what offers would motivate them to purchase, and where we can find the best customers. The unfortunate truth is that for all the time we spend thinking about our customers, they are significantly less likely to spend much time thinking about our brand. In fact, it is almost certain that our customers do not think about us..."
