In many cases, great customer service is obvious. Are you focused and aware of their needs? Are you delivering on your promises? Do you create problems for your customers or solutions? If you can’t confidently answer these questions you should relook your business model. Without customers, you have no business, so their satisfaction should be your number one priority.
If you answered yes to all of the above (and even if you didn’t), you should set up communication channels between the company and your customers. Give them the opportunity to provide regular feedback (good and bad) and respond quickly and timeously to complaints.
Andrew Cook, founder of Smoke Customer Care Solutions, shared the experience of one of his clients, a financial services provider operating in a highly competitive industry.
“Financial services products are becoming increasingly commoditized and companies are no longer able to differentiate on price and features. Service and reputation of service is starting to have a massive impact on customers decisions to move or stay with a company,” he says.
“One particular insurance client of ours focuses on understanding their customers – via various automated customer surveys. Customers that are not receiving the level of service that they expect are addressed and processes are modified to ensure the poor service is not repeated. This has resulted in a 12% reduction in customer churn over the last 6 months, with a substantial impact on bottom line and the achievement of budgeted profit. Keeping customers is the easiest way to ensure business growth.”
