Remember the 80:20 rule? Outstanding customer service aims to go even better than that. You may not get everything perfectly right, but getting most of it right will be much, much better than the majority of your competition.
1. Be Your Customer - Walk in their shoes, listen with their ears, and see with their eyes...
Encounter your business the way your customers do and experience what they experience. Stand in line, call your support center, report a complaint, and check on an order. Soak up feedback.
2. Give Memorable Customer service
Make everyone's (yes, everyone's) life's mission to focus on the customer - even customer service team members seemingly out of the line of fire. Remember the last moments of a customer's interaction with your business leave the most lingering experience. Remember the last minutes of the conservation will be what are remembered- make it memorable!
3. Listen Hard to Complaints
Complaints are a wonderful gift - they're feedback of the highest order. Enjoy them and learn fast. A positive response to a complaint will be remembered as great customer service and actually builds trust.
4. Enable Customer service representatives
Enable and encourage customer service representatives to give an immediate and generous customer experience. Allow them to directly solve an issue without lots of delay or paperwork.
5. React Fast
Make sure that you and customer service representatives’ work with pace and immediacy to solve customer issues. I'll bet you can remember the pain of a slow reaction from your dealings with other companies, right? Don't be like that - respond ASAP.
6. Have Product Available
Generally, you can't sell it if you haven't got it. Work your system hard and focus to get the product there on time. Check your other locations for stock.
7. Be Systems-Focused
Ask, "What would my customer think of this - would it give an impression of brilliant customer service?" If not, reshape the system fast!
8. Be Curious
Encourage everyone on your team to overhear, be politely nosy, ask questions and obtain feedback and information from your customers. Save it all in your CRM Success System for others to learn from - grow that knowledgebase.
9. Research the Marketplace
Your experiences as a customer elsewhere can educate you about what to do, or not do, in your own business. Encourage customer service representatives to share what they learn this way as well, and implement the best into your business.
10. Have Fun
Have fun with customers - a pleasing personality goes a LONG way in customer service. Smile while on the phone with customers and it will come through. This builds relationships - you are in a relationship business, right?
There you have it: 10 tips for success, in an easy to use framework. Will you take up the challenge to deliver outstanding customer service?
