CUSTOMER SERVICE
Know The Power of Being Responsive
The number one mistake that a lot of businesses make is a lack of emphasis on providing excellent customer service.
And, no this does not always mean the customer is always right but how you respond to customer questions, complaints and feedback is critical for your success.
In the online world Customer Service is the lifeline of your business.
You need to:
- Respond in a timely manner.
- Provide correct, accurate information in your responses.
- Demonstrate that you care about your customer’s inquiry.
But so many online only businesses get a big fat F in this area.
I actually get a little bit annoyed myself as an online customer when the company makes it impossible to find information to contact them OR if they don’t respond when an email is sent.
New entrepreneurs have been sold a story about making passive income and automating everything. You can sit on a beach and never have to worry. Everything is taken care of for you.
BUT customers now have more choices then ever before. They can easily find what they are looking somewhere else and trust me – they will look high and low if they are not satisfied with how you have treated them.
I was recently trying to purchase a service online.
I replied to a promotional email that was sent to me – no response.
I went to their website and tried to use their chat functionality – no response.
I searched their website to try and find another way to contact them and discovered a different email address so I tried it – I received an automated response. And, then they responded a day later to my actual question. I missed seeing the game that I wanted to watch live. It was a frustrating experience.
You can see as a customer I was highly motivated BUT it was only because I could not get this service anywhere else. If I could have – I would never have given this company any of my money because it was just too difficult to get a response.
I am always getting asked about how you can stand out as an online business, retain customers and even get customers to refer others to you which is the best way to win new business and the answer is provide AMAZING customer service.
Here are some of the reviews from my ecommerce store that I started in 2006. Take note that each of these reviews always mentions how good the customer service was.
You will notice the following statements:
- Highly recommend
- Great customer service that goes the extra mile
- Best Customer Service
- It’s a pleasure
- Questions answered same day
- Shipments are fast
- Amazing personalized service
- Received a reply immediately from the owner
- Yes an actual person replied and said it was no problem
- Humbled by Janet’s attitude and professionalism
- Good at communicating
- Fantastic friendly customer service
- Thank you for being diligent
- Unique service
- 10/10
- Customer service was outstanding
- She followed up
- You don’t get this outstanding service in retail anymore
These are the types of things you want written about you and your company BUT you have to have the proper systems and processes in place so you can be responsive then you can make sure people have a good experience and feel good about being your customer.
Poor customer service can lead to customer dissatisfaction, reduce customer retention and damage your reputation.
Most companies focus too much on increasing sales, reducing costs, and improving product quality, and overlook the importance of providing excellent customer service.
As a result, they fail to hire the right people for customer service roles, fail to train their staff properly, and do not allocate sufficient resources to customer service.
Here’s a little secret – treat every customer the way you would want to be treated, make sure they have a great experience, deliver excellence and offer your current customers some referral incentives for being so amazing. If people like you they will want to help you. and you never have to chase new customers.
TAKE ACTION: ASSESS YOUR CUSTOMER SERVICE
Answer the questions below:
- How long does it take you to respond to customer questions or inquiries?
- How can you improve your response time to customers?
- How do your customers feel about you or your business based on their experience?
- Do you have a system in place to ensure the information that is being shared with customers is correct and accurate?
- Have you set up processes or templates for commonly asked questions or concerns to ensure your company is consistently providing the same information to each customer? If yes, when is the last time you reviewed and improved them?
If you need assistance to improve your Customer Service systems or processes please feel free to reach out. I am offering a new service where you can just book the time you need. So no subscription fee, no monthly fees, just a pay as you use option.
Until next time,
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