Customer service is about exceeding your customers' expectations. These tips will put you well on the way to success and profitability.
Here are a collection of simple tried and tested ideas that business owners can implement easily and cheaply...
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Using the telephone
Answer the phone with a positive attitude
Keep a notepad next to the phone
Ensure messages are passed on
Make sure you phone back at the given time, even if you still don t have the answer
Listen well
Speak clearly and concisely
Ask questions and try to give useful answers
You must have a user-friendly automated answering service
Change your recorded message often use it as a marketing tool
Keep background noise to a low level
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Listening skills you have to understand what your customers want
Put yourself in their place look at your business from their point of view
Find out what their real expectations are
Ask for your customers opinions, and listen to them
Always take time out to talk to your customers
Take time to objectively observe how your customers interact with your staff
Have an independent body evaluate your business strengths and weaknesses
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Your staff are your frontline
Smile! A basic principle which breaks down barriers
Teach your staff how to sell
Ensure your customers are welcomed speedily and in a friendly, confidence-inspiring manner
All should treat your customers with respect
Looking the part shows you want to impress your customers
Respect is also about taking care of personal hygiene
Staff must have confidence in their interaction with customers
They must be knowledgeable about the product or service you are selling
Customer service can t be thought of as a basic. Everyone has a lot to learn.
Staff should visit competitors businesses
Take them to a business you admire
Introduce regular brainstorming sessions
Debrief staff after good and bad experiences
Encourage customer praise for good service
Reward staff for outstanding customer service
Ask a customer to come in and talk to your staff
Give staff experience in other areas of your business
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The personal touch can make all the difference
Be patient and courteous
Show pride in your business customers enjoy being included in your success
Strive hard to greet your customers by name. They are special
Reward customers for coming back
Try to be a step ahead. Anticipate their needs
Remember dates. Birthday, anniversary, first visit, a referral, products purchased before
Make their visit memorable. A chat, a joke, a drink. The personal touch
Start a special customer club
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Making it easy for your customers to buy from you
Ensure your trading hours are right for your customers
If necessary, go to them
Make sure your prices are correct and your customers understand and accept
Offer the products that logically fit your business and help your customers find them easily
Make it easy for customers to pay you. Easy payment options and procedures. No queues
Eliminate complications or obstacles to making a purchase
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Making your premises look and feel appealing
Make it easy for customers to visit you. Location, signage, parking
Make the entrance inviting and accessible
Does the layout work for your customers. Product and services, uncluttered, clean, lighting
Fly your own flag. Put Award Certificates in a prominent place. It instills confidence
Speed up your service. Traffic control. Waiting area. Express line.
Avoid irritating customers with loud noises. Music. PA.
Keep up cleanliness. Customers expect it
Review they way your premises look. Revamp every five years
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Making promotional material well written, easy to understand and professional
Plan your promotional material from the customers point of view. Get their opinion before it s produced
Answer the most commonly asked questions
Avoid using technical jargon you understand but they may not
Make it professional to inspire confidence
Make your contact details easy to find and easy to read. Type size is critical to customers with poor eyesight
Keep text to a minimum by sticking to the facts
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Following up a sale is good customer service
Take the time to ask your customers their thoughts on your business, right their on the spot
Make a follow up call. Most don t do this. It makes you stand out
Develop the habit of explaining what the customer should do if there is a problem
Stay in regular contact, or contact customers that you may have lost
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Face to face customer service
Be welcoming
Be organised
Be prepared to make a recommendation
Talk TO the customer, not THROUGH the customer
Do something unexpected
Remember to say thank you
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Customer service and the Internet
Make your website user-friendly
Use your website to answer questions
Respond to emails quickly
Don't shout or use abbreviations
Use photos of real people
Make automated responses simple and professional
Keep text to a minimum
Ask your customers to review and rate your website
Update regularly
Don't use spam
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Internal customer service. Think about it carefully
Treat your trade suppliers with respect and courtesy. They also refer you to others
Work closely between sections of your business
Don t let your customer suffer because of internal problems or bickering
Follow up communication quickly from your own people
Give your customers contact numbers for outside trading hours
Don t keep your customers on hold. Offer to call them back
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Maintain a personal commitment to customer service
Staff attitude to customer service flows from the top. It s up to you
Write down your own customer service strategy to suit your business. It should be part of your business plan
Be consistent in all you do
Keep on looking for new ideas
Look at other successful businesses for ideas
Don t discuss politics or religion with customers
Know when to take a break. Customer service can suffer when you are under stress
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When things go wrong
Have a clear and concise policy. But be flexible
Always have a solution. Get it right the first time
Accept that you can t please some people
Don t ignore. It adds insult to injury. Always follow up a complaint
Deal with telephone complaints. Write down details. Don t interrupt. Empathise without admitting fault. Ask how they would like things resolved. Advise course of action. Give details of how they will be contacted. Follow up with the person who will be handling the issue. Contact customer afterwards to make sure they are happy.
Follow up all written complaints with a letter resolving the issue
A third party complaint is a terrific opportunity to take control of the situation, writing a letter and winning back the customer
Make one person responsible for monitoring customer service
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More customer service issues to keep the brain ticking
Be aware of cultural differences
Take special time to always think about your customers
Visit your customers businesses
Embrace new technologies
Invite good customers to special events
Keep your database as accurate as possible
Use packaging as a memorable promotional tool
Remember the extra little things make a huge difference
If you go to the customer s home, ensure you clean up afterwards
Avoid being overly familiar with customers
Don t make the biggest mistake of not delivering on time
Be at the customers home at the time of the appointment, not two hours later. Always call if you are running late
Go shopping at the competition
Set up a customer hotline
Keep your paperwork simple. Make it easy for your customer to understand
Don t forget customer service when you are busy
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Many of these tips are published with permission from
101 WAYS TO REALLY SATISFY YOUR CUSTOMERS by Andrew Griffiths
http://www.andrewgriffiths.com.au
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