In today’s consumer marketplace, there are a number of ways that people can reach out to your brand. How you run these customer service channels can make a huge difference to how people see your company and its reputation.
If you want to keep on top of your CX experience, we’ve rounded up some of the best advice.
Social media
Social media is one of the most popular ways to contact brands. If you want to build a truly great customer service experience, then you are going to need to have a presence on these channels.
Don’t set up a social channel that you aren’t going to actively monitor. It looks lazy and unprofessional.
Keep it updated with the relevant information, content, and contact details. If you’re a home business and don’t want your address made public, then look into virtual services which can be used to give your company a more professional look.
Some companies are now allowing customers to message them via What’s App, taking advantage of the popularity of the app.
Letting clients contact you via social media gives them a quick and convenient to get in touch and have their questions answered. Strong social customer service channels can help you retain customers and increase their spending.
Live Chat
This platform has a range of uses, you don’t just need to use it for complaints. Being able to chat with someone in real-time is very appealing for a number of reasons. You can use it to answer questions, talk people through using your product or site, and deal with financial questions.
If you take it one step further and introduce a chatbot function, you can even deal with some enquiries without needing to speak with anyone at all.
Forums
If your customer base is large enough, you can set up forums for people to ask and answer questions and share their opinions of your products and services. There are a number of advantages of doing this. You can still answer questions on the forums, with the added advantage that the answer will reach a lot more people at once.
To get the best out of your forum, you should have forum moderators, who keep a check on the content, update threads and respond to inappropriate comments.
Specialist app
With the proliferation of smartphones, developing your own app can be an excellent connection channel between you and your customers. By implementing tracking, you can also tailor the experience to the individual too.
Customer surveys and reviews
The heart of customer service is to find out what your customer thinks of your product, and find ways to improve it. Knowing exactly what your customers think and how they move through the buyer journey.
SMS
Although almost everyone has a mobile phone, not everyone has a smartphone or is comfortable using it. This is where text messages come in.
Using text can be handled by automation for general requests and free up resources. If you are unable to sort this issue within the text chain, you still have the opportunity to move it onto the phone or email.
SMS is the perfect complement to other forms of customer service channels.
Dedicated customer portal
For complex support needs, a dedicated portal might be the best way to handle everything. These portals often include support ticketing systems and include a range of helpful features such as instant access to your customer and financial data within the portal. If your service is sufficiently complex, and you have enough customers, this can be one of the better ways to handle your customer enquiries.
Conclusion
There is no ‘one-size-fits-all approach to customer service. At the end of the day, your company needs to find the best combination of channels in order to fulfil the needs of your existing customers and convert potential ones. There are new platforms and best practices being developed all the time.
Don’t be tempted to hand on to the old ways of customer service such as the phone or email, customers are digital savvy and demand to be able to contact a company via whatever method suits them.
If you’re in the process of setting up your business, remember to put some thought into the customer service areas. After all, it’s not just about complaining, your customer service channels are a brand-building opportunity for you and can play a role in converting leads into paying customers.
Review your systems regularly to ensure that you’re providing for the needs of your customers on any new channels.
