This guest post was written by Sean Cohen from Aweber. You can read more about Aweber and their kick butt newsletter platform here: Aweber.
The future of customer service is here. Technology has made seeking out support faster and easier than ever. But, has your digital age company sacrificed true service in the name of automation?
Today, finding customer support is as simple as writing an e-mail or picking up the phone. But, even though you’re not face-to-face with your customers, you still leave a lasting impression. Do you come across as caring and competent, or menacing and mechanical?
Offering stand-out service on the Internet isn’t as hard as it is rare. Take these simple steps towards old-style service in the digital age:
- Give Each Customer a Personal Response
- Be Clear, But Sincere
- Offer Live Customer Support
- Make Sure Your Support Reps Have All the Answers
Give Each Customer a Personal Response
When a customer sits down to e-mail your company, it’s because he needs help. He chooses e-mail because it’s quick, but his request still warrants a satisfying and personal response!
Companies eager to save time and money often take automation too far in their customer support. Each customer has a unique question, and deserves a unique answer. Even if you save time by copying and pasting stock replies, change the opening and closing to make the message sound less robotic.
Be Clear, But Sincere
When responding to customers’ e-mail, be sincere and to the point. Before sending a message, try turning the tables. Ask yourself, “Would this answer satisfy me if I were the customer?”
Take that extra moment to give your customer the help he deserves. It might mean the difference between a satisfied customer and a credit card chargeback!
Offer Live Customer Support
E-mail has become an acceptable form of communication. But, live customer support is still necessary. The plethora of information available online can be overwhelming to customers, especially those new to the Internet!
Single your company out from the crowd by providing customers with a real person to talk to. Live phone support is an invaluable way to foster trust. When your customer has reached the end of his Internet rope, and just needs help, your toll free number is the answer he’s looking for.
Make Sure Your Support Reps Have All The Answers
The presence of phone support will do no good if your staff doesn’t know your product! Customer support reps should be warm and friendly, and willing to help with any aspect of your product.
What a good feeling it is to talk to someone who feels confident in his product. It’s even better if he’s knowledgeable enough to solve your problem without transferring you all around the company!
Provide Stand-Out Service; Gain Lifelong Customers
Too many e-businesses skimp on customer service, hiding behind web sites and message boards. Customer support is an integral part of every company, even those operating solely online. Be one of the few to offer stellar service, and gain customers for life!
October 22nd, 2009 at 4:01 am
I had mentioned in my comment on your post on Toktumi how important customer service is and this post elaborates on the theme. There is no doubt whatsover that in any business, online or off, that customer service will make it or break it.
October 22nd, 2009 at 8:25 am
Good info. with a very powerful service would result in customer satisfaction. with a sense of satisfaction that it is not possible to an online business will get off their sales. good luck
October 22nd, 2009 at 12:23 pm
All the things are really important to impress the customer as well as to stabilize them!
October 22nd, 2009 at 6:28 pm
In todays time it is hard to find good customer service, in person or electronically. I have been in customer service field for over 20 years and yes you can teach the hows of customer service to an employee but it just seems some were born with it while others can never truly grasp the concept.
October 22nd, 2009 at 10:55 pm
This was a fantastic reminder that great customer service is really just common sense. Provide to yoru customers the type of experience you would like to have yourself, and you'll keep them as customers for a long time! Thanks for takign the time to post this!
October 23rd, 2009 at 7:43 am
I agree. Sincerity is one of the most important thing to do in business.
October 25th, 2009 at 11:32 am
Yes, this article is really true. Though you are dealing with an online business, your client is really your vip.. And you must take good care of it. This is the real essence of costumer service. And this is reflected in your traffic. Anyway, how could you maintain a strong traffic?
This is a very good article in an amazing website. Kudos!
October 25th, 2009 at 11:40 am
Thanks for good iformation
October 26th, 2009 at 3:43 am
One way to make sure your staff has "all the answers" is to produce an evolutionary database of questions and answers. Accessible via tags and search queries.
October 26th, 2009 at 6:28 am
I think nowadays its little tough to provide a good customer service but these are simply nice ways shared here and they can be helpful if they can be followed. I liked the first way as you need to give priority to each customer for making a better customer service.
October 26th, 2009 at 6:54 am
I am agree with you. Without sincerity you can not run your business smoothly.
October 26th, 2009 at 9:46 am
a very interesting article. Good customer service is needed so that customers are satisfied with our services.
October 26th, 2009 at 1:46 pm
This could be a good reference. I will bookmark this page. Thanks for the post.
October 26th, 2009 at 3:23 pm
Nice post.
October 26th, 2009 at 9:29 pm
Good customer service is definitely essential for any business. You've clearly thought a lot about it and have formed some clear opinions of the best way to approach customer service.
October 27th, 2009 at 3:22 pm
Got an answer here. Thanks for the great post. I will bookmark this for reference.
October 27th, 2009 at 9:40 pm
No matter what you do for the customers it will always be less but do it. Keep trying to get their problems solved, never forget one happy customer can do a lot of advertising for you.
October 28th, 2009 at 3:16 am
Previously, it was hard or impossible to carve off a subset of customers and test new offers and workflows in a real environment through agent training. Business process technology makes it much easier to create and run what-if scenarios, or subdivide a group and design a test offer for them. People cause problems, whether through misremembered training, simple errors in looking at data, or even through malicious intent.
October 28th, 2009 at 9:24 am
Others insist on having CS operators with that "smiling voice", but for me, I could not care less. For as long as he/she is able to answer my queries, that would be Ok.
October 28th, 2009 at 3:22 pm
I think that the problem is in recruiting the wrong types. At the recruiting stage, if one looks for the right attitude, with training all employees can be made into excellent customer service persons.
October 29th, 2009 at 2:22 pm
Thanks for the ways. This could be great.
October 30th, 2009 at 12:14 pm
Bookmarking for reference. A lot of these I will more companies would implement. While it does take money, overall, I think sales would jump exponentially. Look at Newegg. Just like any other business, they started off small. Now they are the leading reseller of computer electronics. They're great customer service is what helped them get there.
November 1st, 2009 at 9:48 pm
I personally like sites that offer online, chat-type support. Makes things so much easier.
November 2nd, 2009 at 7:51 pm
This is not 30 years ago where business treated customers or clients in any way they pleased to. Today there are a lot of competition. Prices are tight, and the only way to out play your competitors is customer service.
Customer loyalty is very important, and will find many companies, online or offline break policies and rules to please their clients, because if you dont, someone else will.
Personalized emails, where customers name is used, empathy is displayed goes a long way. Too many scripts are being used by companies now a days, and outsourcing causes lack of confident in companies that fail to provide correct answers. So companies should think long and hard before outsourcing this to a 3rd party.
Thanks for the post.
November 3rd, 2009 at 6:14 pm
nice info !! info is too true and useful .Thanks for this good news.
November 4th, 2009 at 9:10 pm
Yes we cannot overestimate the importance of quality customer service. With the internet, it is simply too easy for customers to share their experiences with others. So if you are not maintaining a good reputation, you are bound to lose sales. Good customer service is a great way to separate yourself from your competitors and keep your customers coming back again and again.
November 5th, 2009 at 5:07 am
Today in the world of marketing the customer satisfaction is the must and for that we need to have great understanding.
November 5th, 2009 at 5:03 pm
Nice post and thanks for the ways.
November 6th, 2009 at 3:29 am
These tips are really appropriate. I think costumer satisfaction is big thing. But it is so hard until you will not interact with your costumer. Nice post.
November 6th, 2009 at 3:31 pm
Ways are great, thanks!
November 8th, 2009 at 8:19 pm
Your blog is so informative
November 10th, 2009 at 9:42 pm
Don't know if every company does all the requirements described here in the post but i must say that I really appreciate and suppose that it's their duty!=)
November 15th, 2009 at 12:40 am
Good information. Also, remember personalization, which is especially helpful when dealing with online customer service.
November 15th, 2009 at 7:42 am
Good info. Also remember that good old fashion "going the extra mile" for the customer.
November 30th, 2009 at 9:21 am
Very good concept and you have posted very useful trick.Thank you for this post.
December 6th, 2009 at 4:35 pm
Very Interesting and Informative post.Thank you for sharing this.
January 5th, 2010 at 10:42 pm
very useful informations
January 25th, 2010 at 12:10 am
Customer Service will make or break your business. Good customer service (as well as having a live person actually answering the phone) goes a long way toward winning the trust of your customers. This leads to repeat business and referrals (along with low customer acquisition costs). Our CSRs have the ability to call an all-hands mtg if they EVER feel they have encountered an issue with our product or service that needs immediate attention. While being a small company helps keep our customer service very hands-on, I continue to be amazed by competitors who don't offer simple methods of live interaction like live chat, or try to hide their contact information on their site.
January 24th, 2010 at 9:05 pm
I like your style
March 9th, 2010 at 10:16 am
Much appreciated , cool info and bookmarked yout blog!