Great customer service can really help a company grow rapidly although there’s a knack to getting it right. Your customer service staff is a key element in your success and they provide a shop window to the way you do business. How queries and complaints are managed can be crucial to your reputation and as we all know, a bad rep can kill a business faster than anything else.
First of all, you have to understand who your customers are and what kind of product or service you are providing them with. If your customer service department communicates efficiently and effectively with all callers, they are likely to win you repeat business and referrals to grow your business.
In this article, we take a look at the qualities of a good customer service agent and how they should approach their role to achieve its full potential.
- Persuasive Speaking Skills
The most persuasive people in business are usually working in sales. Persuasion is an important part of sales but is also invaluable in customer service. The way a customer service agent can use persuasion in their role is in turning problems into solutions and moderately interested customers into brand evangelists.
According to research, almost 75% of consumers say they offer repeat business to those firms giving them a positive service experience. This is a significant percentage and reveals the importance of having your customer service reps speaking confidently, positively and ultimately increasing lead conversion.
- Empathy
Empathy is another “tactic” used in sales in order to develop a rapport with potential clients. This also sows the seeds for a long-term customer relationship which is what every business wants. Empathy is all about the ability to understand where another person is coming from. If a customer has a complaint about your product for example and is upset with the service, disregarding their feelings on the matter is a big mistake.
Customers need to feel as though they are important to the businesses they spend money with. Having their problems addressed is one thing but if there is an element of empathy and compassion rather than being obstructive, they have a more satisfying customer service experience. Although your mind is on your bottom line, your customers are directly responsible for keeping you buoyant and so you should always be attentive to their needs.
- Adaptability
One thing that is certain in the world of customer service is that no two days will be the same. This is because people aren’t the same and everyone has their individual approach in the way they speak and deal with others. It’s important for customer service reps to know their business inside and out so that they can handle any left-field queries or complaints.
Getting automated systems to deal with all the ways your customers communicate with you is vital for running an efficient department. Queries, complaints and orders will come from different sources including email, telephone and social media or perhaps in person. A good CRM system will allow you to manage customer communication by using a ticket system which prioritizes requests.
- Ability to Use Positive Language
The language your customer service reps use is important. It is very likely that some of their calls through the day will be negative and this needs to be with a positive approach as a counter. This is also a technique used in sales where objections are ruled out one-by-one until the client is back on track with how they view the product or service.
If your customers contact you with a problem, reps need to stay positive no matter how angry or frustrated they are. In real life, it is easy for things to escalate to heated arguments but you can’t afford to let that happen in business. Remember the very well-worn saying that “the customer is always right” and make sure your customer service reps do as well.
- Clear Communication Skills
Although this may seem very obvious, it is really important that your customer service agents can speak clearly and concisely. Mumbling and rambling and using overly technical language does nothing for encouraging further business. It’s also important to bear in mind that English may not be the native language of your customers. If you have a significant proportion of Spanish speakers, for example, you should have Spanish-speaking reps to deal with their calls. Even if a customer service agent has got a great approach, it won’t translate to the customer unless they have good communication skills.
- Self-Control
It’s probably fair to say that customer service reps will have their patience challenged, sometimes on a daily basis. Some consumers with problems or complaints can become rude or even personal when they are stating their case and your agents should never rise to it. One of the ways many customer service departments deal with angry or frustrated clients is to make the simple statement: “I’m sorry you feel that way”. This uses empathy while not acknowledging any error on the side of your business. Customer service agents need to remain calm in the face of all types of situations and they also need bags of patience.
- Taking Responsibility
A good customer service rep will take an interest in the customer and not just the individual orders they place. Solving one problem doesn’t mean that the customer will keep on doing business with you. How an issue is solved is just as important as providing a solution in the first place. The main thing is to take full responsibility for the customer’s needs.
As your company’s front line, your customer service reps need to be able to deal with as many queries on their own as possible. Customers who are passed from pillar to post in attempts to get a quick fix to a problem are less likely to continue doing business with you. Research shows that 70% of customers said they no longer did business with firms because their problems weren’t resolved in a single interaction.
Mystery Shoppers
One of the best ways of companies finding out exactly how their customers experience purchasing through them is to use a mystery shopper service. Consumers are invited to becoming a mystery shopper and give feedback on the experience so that companies are able to use it to improve their customer service experience. Mystery shoppers provide enormous insight into the way your business looks to your buying audience and what kind of experience they have when buying from you. Reviews are generally very comprehensive and give true and unbiased opinions from the people who matter: your customers.