Nibletz Staff
If there is just one thing you should know before starting your own business, it is the importance of having incredible customer service. In fact, good customer service is the probably the single most important factor for any business.
That may seem like a tall statement to deliver given all of the other facets that make up a successful company, but going above and beyond and over-delivering in the realm of customer service is going to be immensely valuable to your business and make you invaluable to your customers.
You may not believe us still, which is why we are going to rephrase what we just said. Ahem. In business, there are only two ways – just two ways – to improve the revenue, profits and operations of a business and that is to decrease costs or increase sales. That is where customer service comes in. It is far easier to increase sales through good customer service than it is to decrease the cost of what you are selling, whether that is a product or a service.
But if you are content with just taking our word for it, then read on and we will explain exactly how important good customer service will be to your startup; more important than anything else.
The Trust Aspect
It doesn’t matter what sector you operate in, or plan to operate in, chances are it is saturated with an immense amount of competition. Some will be more established, some will be more professional, some will be cheaper and some will have cornered a certain market. As such, people very rarely stay loyal to a company if they have very good reason to. The rise in competition just has a way of getting under the skin of customers. That is why it is so important you put in extra effort into the service you offer and really focus on building their trust in you. The better your customer service the more trust you will manufacture, and the more trust you manufacture the less likely they will be to take a risk with one of your competitors. Customer loyalty is going to be the best revenue source you ever have, it is as simple as that. So gain their trust and keep it.
The Price Doesn’t Matter
Okay, so it matters to a certain extent, but not as much as you probably imagine. Think about. When you go online to buy something – anything- you probably look at an average of three different options, reading reviews of each of them before buying the one that offers the best value. Not the cheapest, but the best value. People know that cheap probably means not as good, and probably means they will end up spending more in the long run. As such, people are willing to spend more on a good experience. Human errors happen, so do mechanical and technological ones, but a company’s ability to act on this mistake will go a long way. The service they offer to ensure a customer is more than satisfied with everything will resonate in their review, whether that is on Amazon, on Trustpilot, on Glassdoor or even TripAdvisor. Good customer service goes a long way.
Word Of Mouth Is Good
Word of mouth is one of the most powerful assets your company can have, especially in the early stages of business when you don’t have much money to spend on marketing or advertising. Word of mouth is essentially a free means of marketing, while also harnessing the power of a reference-slash-testimonial. There is a huge difference between you saying your product or service is good and an independent person saying your product or service is good. Essentially, it can make or break your business. That is where customer service comes in. If a customer receives a wholly positive experience and service then they are going to talk about you, you are going to stick in their minds and they are going to recommend you to people or businesses. If they have had a positive experience they are much more likely to put their name on the line. It is simple psychology.
Be As Proactive As Possible
Customer service should not just be about letting your customers come to you, but offering a great service as soon as possible this could be achieved by implementing a live support chat function on your website, which could mean researching the services from Tierpoint and considering a new partnership to maximize the effectiveness of this option. It could mean connecting with your followers on social media to make them feel valued. This could even become a solid marketing tool if you are clever about it. In the past, we have seen some Twitter responses from big supermarkets go viral as they implement a level of humour into the Twitter responses. In short, the more proactive you are when it comes to customer service the more attractive you will be to your customers and the more likely you will attract new customers. Say hi to them in the comment box once in awhile, offer to resolve any issue in the public sphere so that others can see how amazing your process is and how friendly and easily you handle your complaints.
It Reduces The Chance Of Issue
Problems arise, things happen and accidents occur. It is a part of life and it is a part of running a business, and there is nothing you can do about it. However, what you can do is learn how to react to a problem in the most efficient, effective and professional manner possible and make sure the importance of this echoes through your business. Customers are never too happy when a service or product is below par, but they become actively infuriated when the customer services dealing with a complaint are below par too. So make sure you listen to all complaints and deal with them in a polite and timely manner. Handle any and all problems in a personal manner so that they don’t just feel like a number but feel like a valued customer. Knowing they can go to you to get something resolved will be incredibly valuable to how your business grows.
