The Changing Rules Of Customer Service

Many companies seem to think that social media is just one more channel for their advertising message. Nothing could be further from the truth. If all you do is scream Buy – Buy – Buy at the social media audience you won’t have one, or at least you won’t have a large and active audience.

There are many classic customer service rules and tips that need a makeover because they just don't make sense in today's digital environment and global markets. Service in a digital landscape is vastly different from ringing up a customer in a local boutique. Plus, protecting your employees from rude customers is now equally important as catering to a customer's needs.

Here are 5 new customer service best practices for the social media era. Remember, as a business you have to satisfy your customers and your workers, but don't worry. You often can make everyone smile.

Respect Your Customer's Time
Customer service automation can work in certain industries, assuming it's truly designed to expedite the process. In real life, showing respect for your customer's time by having more workers during peak hours and offering self-checkouts helps build your reputation and make your customers happy. Many customers today are all about getting in and out as quickly as possible, not hanging around to chat.

Hire More Multilingual Workers
This is an increasingly worldwide market. If you can't communicate with potential customers and clients around the globe (or even in your own neighborhood), you're opting out of what is potentially the majority of your market. Having multilingual staff on hand can instantly expand your demographic reach.

Reward Satisfaction
If you really want to build a thriving business, reward your customer service reps who achieve the highest satisfaction ratings--not necessarily (or just) the highest sales. There are many ways to gauge this, from satisfaction surveys to positive comments on social media.

Embrace Mobile Readiness
There are currently more people using mobile devices than desktop. Mobile readiness is two-fold. You need a separate mobile website or an app, or both. You can have one or both of these options depending on what suits your customers. You should also make sure your site provides similar user experiences across different devices. Not sure of the best approach? Ask your customers. A survey can reveal your real weaknesses. Also remember that your customers are using their mobile devices to talk about your product on social media platforms. 

Protect Your Employees
Sometimes the customer is out-of-line. Your employees deserve to feel safe, comfortable, and protected from abuse while on the clock. Make it a priority, to have procedures in place, and ensure that your workers know it.

Customer service is one of the toughest jobs out there, and it's only getting more challenging because it changes so much. Is your company ready?

SMART Service Desk IT Service Management Software is a great start to creating your very own customer service legends. We know that your satisfied customers will return again and again. Let us help you increase productivity, reduce operations cost and improve customer experience with our ITIL compliant solutions. No matter the size of your business we have your customer retention solutions.

SMART Service Desk
600 West Ray Road
Suite D-3
Chandler Arizona 85225
602-235-0975
info@smartservicedesk.com
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