What is customer service to you? If you think about it in terms of great customer service experiences you’ve had as a consumer, you’ll probably think about friendliness and a willingness to solve problems. If you’re thinking about the best customer service you’ve provided in your own career, you might think about a time you were super patient or let a customer rant at you for half an hour. These are all excellent customer service examples, but as a business, how do you ensure you’re delivering that level of confident, competent service every day?
The Customer Service Experience: What Is Good Customer Service?
With regards to helping your customers, what is great customer service? Customers expect quality service that they don’t have to wait too long for, that either rewards them, solves a problem, or leaves them feeling more loyal to your brand or company. Good customer service examples include:
- Fixing a customer’s problem quickly and compassionately
- Liaising between departments or logistics suppliers to understand the issues a customer is facing
- Finding the right product for a customer’s needs rather than pushing sales of a product the company wishes to shift fast
- Sticking with a customer and calling them back as needed to ensure they’re happy with the outcome of a situation
Ten Tips for Exceptional Customer Service
Consistency
You probably know a company you could list some examples of good customer service for, but every now and then, when you’ve called, they’ve been disinterested or unhelpful. Quality customer service means delivering every time, on every call, every email, or every face-to-face interaction. Once you understand the basics of great customer service, this isn’t difficult to achieve.
Empathy
Empathy doesn’t mean simply saying, “Sorry about that.” It’s about putting yourself in your customers’ shoes and understanding why their issue is important to them. If a product or experience hasn’t met their expectations, apologize – even if it’s not directly your fault. When you speak to a customer, you are the face of your brand. Show that you understand their frustration, empathize, then focus on the solution rather than the problem.
Really Listen
Never make assumptions. Let your customer tell you what they need, and respond accordingly. Customer service advocates who make notes throughout a conversation are far more likely to have the information required to help a customer well.
Respond Quickly and Effectively
Whether your customer hasn’t gotten their delivery of the latest skincare products, or they just want advice on the best exfoliator for their skin type, don’t keep them waiting! Gather the information they need quickly and relay it to them at a pace that suits them. Likewise, don’t rush them if they want to ask more questions or have additional issues to address.
Follow Up
Sometimes a customer’s query can’t be resolved on the initial contact. This might mean you or your team has to go away, find something out, and either call the customer back or drop them an email. It’s absolutely vital that you follow through with this. Always set realistic timescales and expectations. A customer who has to call back because their customer service associate didn’t bother to follow up is always going to be more irate, which, in turn, is bad for your brand reputation.
Go the Extra Mile
Go from good customer service to exceptional customer service by finding out what more you can do to make your customer’s journey simpler and more rewarding. If you have a loyalty scheme, make sure they know and check if it might benefit them. Confirm their contact preferences, and check if they’re receiving promotional updates from you. This makes customers feel cared for and helps you have more positive interactions with customers.
Take Criticism and Feedback
Customer service teams are the primary bridge between the company and the customer. It’s natural to get defensive if a customer appears to be badmouthing your company, but it’s important to put these negative feelings aside and take the feedback you’re given. It could help you improve your products, your service, or how you work with your partners.
Ask Questions and Make Suggestions
Ask them which of their products they’re enjoying the most. Advise them of new products that are coming out that might interest them. Offer samples, if appropriate. As a provider of health or beauty products, do you have hints and tips you can offer to help your customers get the most out of your products?
Understand Your Products
As a follow-up to the last point, you can have more productive and positive conversations with your customers if you know your products well. Customer service advocates should be trained on the details of your catalog, how to use each product, and the benefits each product provides.
Work With a Reputable Contract Manufacturer
Having a fantastic catalog of high-quality health or beauty products is much easier when you work with a fantastic manufacturer. Contract manufacturers are ideal for helping you bring a unique or bespoke product to market. You can provide the best level of customer service because, after all, you designed it!
What does good customer service mean to you? Whether you prioritize consistency, empathy, or efficiency, no one can deny that having a high-quality product that delivers every time is vital to both retailer and customer. Contact The Pure Source about your product ideas today and see how we can help make them a reality.
Takeaway
What is great customer service? It’s the ability to consistently deliver compassionate and patient assistance to every customer equally and deal with queries in the most efficient way possible while retaining a human touch.
