5 New Customer Service Strategies
Difficult to straddle that patient/customer fence? To help, we offer five forward-thinking customer service strategies for this year and beyond.
Tip: Remember that every company is a media company,
and you better have a voice.
- Everyone’s a Multichannel Consumer
More than half the consumers recently surveyed would rather use texting than any other communications tool when addressing customer service issues with a business.
Whatever channels you use, the easier it is for patients and customers to reach you, the more likely they are to remain loyal. The key is transparency among channels. A recent study of 7,000 consumers found that though 67% of online shoppers made purchases involving multiple channels, 87% said brands and businesses must work harder to create a seamless experience.
- “No-Service” Channels Win Big
Forrester Research recently determined that for the first time online self-service has beaten out live/voice communications as the most popular channel for customer service communications. Don’t sell that phone system yet, though. The real answer is that you need to offer options, while still being accessible by phone.
- Social Support is a Must
Social media is a must-have. However, so is the ability for a consumer to switch offline and onto a live phone call with you. Some retailers have taken Twitter, for example, to a new level with their ability to tweet a personal link to a customer that will work only for that individual to interact live about an issue.
That sounds great, but the reality is that most businesses are behind—way behind—when it comes to social. Over the next year, look for fresh solutions to these challenges, as more social support vendors get acquired and come up with one-stop, full-service offerings.
- Create How-to Content
Sure, your patients and customers most likely still use Google when they don’t know something or want to fix or adjust a product (talk about a headache for optical). The point is to add how-to content to your practice’s mix. It’s all about maximizing the value of purchases. YouTube, in combination with blogs and other media, creates a great complement to your in-person service. As Forbes contributor Blake Morgan puts it, “Remember that every company is a media company, and you better have a voice.”
- Service and the CEO
This year, CEOs and business owners have been making service a priority. If there’s one reminder that this is happening it’s the appointment of Chief Customer Officers in large companies, showing that CEOs are literally giving service a spot at the table.
We hope these five future-focused service strategies will help you now and in your planning for 2016.
What customer service strategies work best for you? Please tell us and join in the conversation on our Facebook page here.
Reference: For more on customer service, check out Blake Morgan at www.forbes.com
Erinn Morgan
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