How to level up your customer service and skyrocket your business

Your customer service should be treated with as high priority as any other function in your business. Your customer service provides a bridge between your customers and your business, and without it, you have no business. Your customers should be at the heart of everything you do, as they are the ones that buy your products and services, recommend you to their friends and family, and generally keep you afloat. 

Not only will good customer service win you new customers, but it will also help you to retain customers. Repeat customers are vital, as they are more likely to trust you enough to spend more money and try your new products and services. Good customer service is also vital for your brand image and reputation. The way you serve your customers will reflect on the kind of business you are, as 96% of customers say that the service they receive, plays an important role in their choice of brand and their loyalty to that brand. Customer service, therefore, drives how customers view your business and impacts their purchasing decisions. 

Whether you are a new business looking to create a strategy for your customer service, or you are an established brand looking to make improvements, here are some top tips on how to level up your customer service and skyrocket your business. 

Understand your customers

You will be extremely limited if you provide generic customer service, and do not endeavor to understand the needs of your customers. The more you learn about your customers, get to know them and their problems, the more likely you are to understand how you can serve them better. You should start with a customer persona. This will provide you with detailed information about who your customers are, their likes and dislikes, their problems and struggles, and the best ways to communicate with them. This will not only serve your product and service development but also the way that you handle customer enquiries and the methods of communication that you put in place. You should review all interactions that you have had with customers in the past, especially any negative experiences or complaints that you have received. Take all the data and keep track of it, so that you can identify any patterns and provide the most appropriate solutions. This is important as if a problem continues to occur, it could be a system or process that needs changing, which will significantly improve your business. 

Continue to invest in understanding your customers, gathering data, and improving internal processes and tools that can help you capture important customer insights and information. You should always be learning about your customers and making improvements. 

Create a good first impression

Customers will likely make their decision within the first 30 seconds of interacting with your business, which means that first impressions are vital. This will help you to make more sales by developing better, and deeper relationships with your customers. If your customer service is face-to-face, then you must ensure that every employee:

• Is smart and presentable 
• Makes strong eye contact 
• Has friendly and welcoming body language
• Gives a warm smile
• Greets the customer nicely and sincerely
• Gives the customer their full attention
• Listens to the customer fully and addresses their needs/concerns

If your customer service is online, or via the phone, you are more limited with the impression you can make, but you are not at a disadvantage, as there are still plenty of things you can do. You must ensure that every employee:

• Sits up with good posture and smiles, as this will make a difference to their voice
• Has a good tone of voice
• Leaves space for the customer to say everything they need to 
• Uses polite words and phrases so the customer knows they are there and listening
• Summarizes what the customer said
• Get rid of any distractions and give the customers full attention
• Portray confidence 

Regardless of the method of communication, the impression you make on your customers will make or break your business, and its reputation. 

Set high standards

Right from the moment you hire an employee for your customer service team, you should set the standards high. All employees should be trained well and monitored to ensure the level of service remains good quality. Not just while training your employees, but you should also create a culture of good communication and customer service throughout your entire business. You can do this by setting out a standard of rules and practices that everyone has to adhere to. Your customers will expect this level of service every time, and that level of consistency will help to build trust and credibility. 

Make communication easy and simple

To make a good impression, and please your customers, you should make communication easy and simple to access. This may be providing a range of different channels to contact you, for example, by email and phone. Many businesses are also utilizing technology for their customer services and investing in chat for websites, which enables a quick response and deals with simple customer service problems instantly. 

You should endeavor to streamline customer service processes, and always look for ways that you can improve the service and access for your customers. Put yourself in your customer’s shoes and test how easy it is to access your organization, what steps your business takes to understand your customer’s point of view and what barriers your customers face, for example, time delays. You can also take this a step further and ask your customers directly, what they find easy, and what they would prefer. This way you can make changes based on factual information. 

The more effortless the communication and access they have to you, the more likely they are to continue using your service, purchase your products, and stay loyal to you.

Go above and beyond for your customers 

Customers will come to you because they have a problem they need solving or a need that needs to be met. What a great surprise to your customers, if you were to exceed their expectations? As long as their basic needs are met, you can delight your customers with a service that goes above and beyond the normal standard they would receive anywhere else. Standard service will give standard results. This can increase customer loyalty, the credibility and reputation of your business, and encourage new referrals. This can be anything from adding a special touch to your service, remembering a meaningful milestone or event for your customers, or providing an extension or discount on a product or service. 

Personalize your service

Every interaction your customer has with your business should be personalized. You should take the time to engage with your customers, find out who they are and the root of their problems. Personalizing the customer service you provide can improve the standards and heighten your success. You can personalize your customer service by ensuring your employees:

• Make customers feel welcomed
• Use their name throughout the interaction
• Remember small details about them 
• Tailor their responses to the customers personality
• Asks open questions 
• Summarizes the information back to the customer so they know they were listening 
• Be interested in what they have to say 
• Be empathetic

Focus on building a community of loyal customers 

Building customer loyalty is vital if you want to see your business skyrocket, and can be achieved by building a community. New customers are important, but keeping your customers loyal will bring you consistent growth and should be at the front of your business decisions. A lot of money can be wasted if you are constantly trying to generate new leads and becomes an unattainable practice to base your business on if it comes at the cost of losing existing customers. It has been reported that with a boost of even just 5% retention, you can see your profits rise up to 95%. Building loyalty will take time and effort but is worthwhile in the long run. You should ensure that everything you do, including all your messaging, communication and content is valuable, and serves a purpose to your customers. This will make your brand stand out from the rest, and ensure customers are picking you over your competitors, and choosing to be a part of your community. Think about what you can provide them with, what they are getting from your community, and what they will miss out on if they are not a part of it. Building a community encourages customer loyalty, and boosts your brand awareness. When customers feel more connected to a brand, they are more likely to stick with you, recommend you to family and friends, and provide you with priceless feedback and insights. 

With every industry around the world becoming more competitive, customers are being presented with a wide range of options when making their purchasing decisions. High-level customer service can put your business ahead of your competitors, and give customers another reason to choose you. Make sure you are constantly learning about your customer’s needs, how you can make improvements, and providing a service that goes above and beyond the standard practice. Good customer service can ensure your business grows to new heights.