Everyone knows that customer service is key to building success as a small business. The simple fact is that if your customers feel like they have been given a short thrift and their custom wasn’t valued and appreciated, they will go elsewhere in the future.
Not only this, the ease of leaving online reviews means that all it takes is for one small indiscretion from an employee, and before you know it, negative reviews are popping up everywhere you do not want to see them.
As a small business, your resources will likely be stretched, and the last thing you want to do is to fight fires on the customer service front to avoid losing customers. It will significantly impact your ability to grow and expand and make a success of the company.
But, there are many different ways you can effectively improve your customer service efforts without focusing solely on this angle alone.
Outsourcing and SaaS
If you aren’t outsourcing, why not? There are many different areas of your business you can effectively outsource, and failing to do this can be detrimental to your growth.
Look at the business areas that take up a lot of your time personally and have the biggest impact and find the right outsourcing company to take on this for you. Benefits from a more streamlined process, more time to focus on other business areas, and increased efficiency.
SaaS can help you automate your business areas that would otherwise require employees to be tied up doing. Tools such as software to identify phone numbers, read this blog post about phone lookup, answer simple queries, post to social media, and more can help you work towards an easier way of working. And when you aren’t bogged down with these small tasks, you have more time to dedicate to providing a better customer experience all around.
Staff Training
The more your employees know about the company, how to handle customer relations, stock levels, services you provide, etc., the better service they can provide your customers and the better an employee they will be for you. A harsh fact is that only 12% of employees leave employment for more money. More people leave due to not being properly trained or given the necessary tools to do their job well.
They don’t need to know how to handle complaints as their first line of defense, although this skill is very much warranted. They need to know how to avoid that complaint in the first place. This is done by thorough and effective staff training to give them the tools to do the job and have their input valued by your support.
Engage with Feedback
You need to be actively asking for and taking on board what is said. Don’t just ask for it to be left to dwell on a desk or in an email somewhere. Ask for how you performed. Ask for how you can do better, take the feedback on board, and look at how you can effectively incorporate what is being asked of you.
Not only does this show customers that you are invested in their experience, but you are paying attention to what they are saying. This builds a good relationship and encourages return custom as the customer feels valued. So not only do you get to improve your customer service, but you also get to retain or even gain clients too.
Employee Relationships
This is possibly one of the most overlooked secrets to providing excellent customer service. Employees should be treated with the same respect, openness, and appreciation to be valued customers. The more satisfied your employees are with their jobs, the more committed they will be to the success of your small business.
It’s a tough world out there for small businesses, and it can be difficult to cut through the noise. Client service is your opportunity to distinguish your goods and exceed expectations to establish a loyal customer base and make your company distinctive.
Utilize Staff Where Their Skills Are
Knowing who performs best at what task within your business will allow you to have them apply those skills where they will most benefit you. Sure, you may have taken them on for a different role, however by forming good owner-employee relations within your company, you discover where your people most excel and use this to your advantage. Employees who feel valued are more likely to stick with an employer than if they feel their particular skill set was wasted in a job role they do not enjoy.
