Over the moon because of good customer service

Customer service moonlight

It is all about setting the right expectations:
"reaching for the moon" is probably too ambitious and "once in a blue moon" does not happen often enough. The attributes of a good customer service programme need to take into account the fact that customers like to know what to expect and do hope to receive more each time.


Picture courtesy of http://www.lukeaddison.com with our thanks

Customer service: the risk of social media fatigue

Social media customer service

Social media is still a black and white world, customers like it or they don't. Interestingly a shade of gray has appeared recently with a number of social media converts complaining of fatigue and returning to more traditional ways of communication such as handwriting. If the trend setters are already considering a switch away from social media, customer service executives have to consider very carefully their customer relationship management strategy: heavy investment in the new digital marketing world should be matched with proper stocking up of pens and paper.

Picture courtesy of http://www.wearesnook.com/ with our thanks. Snook is a new initiative that service designers Sarah Drummond and Lauren Currie have launched in Scotland.

Making your customers feel welcome

Welcome customers:

Maintaining good customer relationship is all about making customers feel welcome. Even if the door looks good it is much better when it is open.

Picture copyright - The Real Flower Company -http://www.realflowers.co.uk/ with our thanks.

Importance of customer service: seeing the light

Customers love their freedom but definitely need guidance and help, thereby making customer relationship management a complex endeavour. If rightly done though, the customer will be guided to the right place and do the right thing: buying multiple products and services

 

The importance of customer service cannot be overstated. In today's competitive marketplace, businesses that provide excellent customer service are more likely to succeed than those that do not.

There are many reasons why customer service is so important. First, it can help to build customer loyalty. When customers have a positive experience with a company's customer service, they are more likely to do business with that company again in the future.

Second, customer service can help to increase sales. When customers are happy with the way they are treated, they are more likely to spend more money with a company.

Third, customer service can help to improve a company's reputation. When customers have a positive experience with a company's customer service, they are more likely to recommend that company to their friends and family.

Fourth, customer service can help to reduce costs. When customers have a positive experience with a company's customer service, they are less likely to complain or file a lawsuit. This can save companies a significant amount of money.

Fifth, customer service can help to improve employee morale. When employees are happy with the way they are treated, they are more likely to be productive and engaged in their work. This can lead to a more positive work environment and improved customer service.

There are many ways to improve customer service. Some of the most important things that companies can do include:

• Hiring friendly and knowledgeable employees who are willing to go the extra mile for customers.
• Providing customers with multiple channels for getting in touch with customer service, such as phone, email, and social media.
• Making it easy for customers to find the information they need.
• Responding to customer inquiries promptly and courteously.
• Taking steps to resolve customer complaints quickly and fairly.
• Continuously monitoring and improving customer service.

By following these tips, companies can improve their customer service and reap the many benefits that come with it.

In addition to the above, here are some specific examples of how customer service can help businesses:

• A study by American Express found that 80% of customers are willing to spend more money with a company that provides excellent customer service.
• A study by Bain & Company found that a 5% improvement in customer retention can lead to a 25% increase in profits.
• A study by the National Retail Federation found that 70% of customers will stop doing business with a company after just one bad experience with customer service.

These studies clearly show that customer service is essential for businesses of all sizes. By providing excellent customer service, businesses can attract new customers, retain existing customers, and increase profits.

Not prepared to pay for good customer service

Customer service and your finances

Customers definitely want companies to understand the importance of good customer service in finance sector and to employ people who have the right skills to deliver. But, with the consequences of the credit crunch still being felt, many customers are down to their last pennies and simply not prepared to pay extra for service. If finance companies want to offer high quality service to some clients (and charge for it) whilst keeping a keenly priced mainstream offering, they should adjust their brand proposition by either offering distinct products and services, potentially under two brands or, more dramatically, by focusing on only one segment of the market.

Picture courtesy of http://moregeous.wordpress.com/ with our thanks

Good customer service: oiling the wheels

The customer service wheel

Delivering good customer service is simply making it easier for clients to achieve what they want, it being buying a product or service, reaching a destination, or simply protecting their well being. Engineers have managed it successfully for centuries. The rule is simple: if you do not oil the wheels, they start squeaking.

Picture courtesy of http://www.elmurphy.co.uk/ with our thanks

Customer service: not taking any chances

Customer service risk

Should companies take risks when managing customers relationships? There are well documented cases where economic imperatives have forced companies to take short cuts and potentially sacrifice their long term future. Most customers will let it happen once but like falling off a bridge, it is not something that they will want to experience again.

Picture courtesy of http://www.peterstephens.co.uk with our thanks

Monitoring customers' purchasing habits

Customer service monitoring

The increased availability of tools to support customer loyalty initiatives can be intrusive and creates threats to privacy in the eyes of customers. They could also be accused to contribute to the creation of a boredom factor. As customers are always presented with their favourite products, shopping for everyday items, tends to become a utility service. How could this mountain of data be used with more imagination to deliver better customer service?

Picture courtesy of http://sophieeggleton.withtank.com/ with our thanks

Good customer service delivery: changes afoot

Customer service delivery

With the growth of internet shopping being experienced at the moment, ways of delivering customer service are evolving rapidly. The number of parcels being shipped is increasing exponentially and customers are having to adapt and make different choices for their delivery. A little while ago the main issue was whether the internet based virtual shop was trustworthy. Nowadays the main concern is to choose which organisation can be relied upon to deliver the goods on time. Is delivery becoming a key buying criteria to the extent that good customer service will become known as good service delivery?

Good customer service qualities should include a sense of anticipation

Good customer service qualities are all about knowing what the customers want and anticipate their needs before they even show up. This will ensure their well-being and a high level of customer satisfaction.
Picture courtesy of http://www.carlpendle.com/ with your thanks.

Good customer service: a lifeline to retain customers?

Is good customer service a lifeline to retain customers?

Many companies know how to deploy fully fledged customer service but will not because of economic imperatives. A two tier system is often created whereby customers are only offered a good level of service if they threaten to chose another supplier, a clear case of emergency . Customer service executives with the full range of skills are allocated to the retention effort ("we are going to lose this customer unless we do something...") and become the lifeline to retain valuable customers. Does this make sense? If the service was better in the first place, customer retention would not be an issue.

Good customer service skills are increasingly in demand

Good customer service skills 

A difficult environment makes attracting a new customer more challenging than ever. Existing customers will only return if they have been offered impeccable service or rock bottom prices. Continuous investment in training to improve customer service is required to ensure that the valuable shoppers will not hesitate to come in and start to look around for alternatives.

Picture courtesy of http://orlylyndonphotographer.blogspot.com/ with our thanks

Providing good customer service beyond the high street

Customer service in the high street

Providing good customer service: with the emergence of a multitude of social media, the delivery of customer service is rapidly transforming through the exploitation of new communication channels. Social media marketing has been used to drive customers to online shops and even high street shops. Interestingly shops are now being used to drive Twitter traffic, thereby enabling opportunities for repetitive contact. Soon we will want to shop through the social media sites and and will go to the shops when we want to socialise...

Picture courtesy of http://www.laurenceborel.com/ with our thanks

Design is a key component of customer service

Customer service design

Travelling at the back of a plane can be a very frustrating experience but an increased emphasis on design can improve considerably passengers' perception. Should the designers become officially part of the customer service team and ensure that customer service design plays an important role in customer handling?

Picture courtesy of http://blog.rampcreative.com/ with our thanks

Does customer service rely too much on technology?

Customer service technology

These wonderful spreadsheets have been in use for many many years yet they are fast disappearing with the introduction of sophisticated computer programs. Does the customer win as a result of technology improvements? or are we more and more likely to hear the well known answer "computer says no..."

Picture courtesy of http://tikichris.wordpress.com/ with our thanks

Good customer service does not have to be bland

Whilst communication over the internet and the telephone is reducing in many ways the opportunity to deliver traditional face to face customer service, plenty of industries still have the chance to impress. We would suggest that the adoption of designer labels instead of the traditionally bland outfits would do wonder to please customers. Why not try it with one of our recent favorite pieces from Olivia Rubin?

Picture courtesy of www.oliviarubinlondon.com with our thanks

If customer service fails....

....it is more likely than not that the company would be facing a storm, and nowhere to escape to.

Picture courtesy of http://www.tracymorter.com/ with our thanks

The attributes of good customer service

What are the attributes of good customer service?

Customer service attributes

We have been looking for a long time for a picture illustrating good customer service attributes and even started to build a list: flexibility, strength, elegance, discretion, respect, attention to detail, changing with the seasons - a tree does it all: it meets our expectations.
The success of a company's customer service strategy will then be heavily dependent on being able to deploy a team of employees whose skills are in adequacy with the attributes required.
Depending on the industry you operate in, many more attributes may be relevant. For example, you need to be aware of the full range of activities of the organisation you work for, you need a full range of personal skills to handle customers and some technical skills to advise them on your products and services. In short, customer service executives need a full range of tools at their disposition to help resolve customer issues and make their experience better.
Please feel free to suggest other attributes to be added to the list by leaving a comment below.
Picture courtesy of www.19sixty3.com with our thanks.

customer service blog: how to deliver good customer service?

What is customer service?

Welcome to Very Best Service - The customer service blog dedicated exclusively to customer service.

The main objective of this blog is to illustrate customer service concept in pictures with a catch phrase and a short statement justifying the assertion. This blog is supported by a couple of additional resources:

- On verygoodservice.com we look for the very best companies such as hotels, retailers, online shops, travel companies, restaurants.... which are recognised as being the best at what they do and have recently won awards for their products and customer service.

- On our good customer service examples blog we feature real life stories from customers who have enjoyed a great experience from companies listed on our website.

Through our collection of customer service post we will also attempt to answer the question "what is customer service?" - To help we will post about the definition of customer service as well as give some customer service tips. We will touch on items such as culture, quality and how to handle customers.