Customer Service Team Is Your New Sales Team
October 12, 2018
After waiting on hold for over an hour and a half with his new bank, Morgan is finally greeted by a grouchy customer service agent, Heather. Morgan points out a few charges he doesn’t recognize on his latest credit card statement. As Heather routinely questions Morgan about the charges, he can’t help but feel she doesn’t believe his claims.
At his last bank, Morgan would proactively receive calls or text messages whenever they suspected fraudulent activity. He’s never needed that service more. Unapologetically, Heather tells him she can’t offer much help. She has no answer as to why these charges appear on his statement, and cannot offer him a refund. Morgan, dissatisfied with his experience, decides to go back to his previous bank.
Ever experienced poor customer service like this before? If the answer is yes, you are far from alone. Today, 86% of consumers quit doing business with a company because of a bad customer experience. Hence, there is no place for bad customer service if you want to compete with the big dogs and retain your customers.
Typically, a customer’s first point of contact with a brand is by interacting directly with an employee (either speaking on the phone or visiting a store). This initial interaction is the first opportunity to deliver excellent customer service and reinforce your brand promise.
Customer service – done right or done poorly – is reflected in your brand’s revenue and loyal, happy customers (or maybe the opposite). Forrester concluded that “superior CX drives superior revenue growth1.”
Customers have more choice than ever before with whom they do business. If you want to retain customers and grow your business, offering exceptional customer support is a must. The happier a customer is with a brand, the longer they’ll stay with them. It makes sense – happy customers remain loyal.
According to Gartner, in two years’ time, 81% of companies now expect to compete mostly on the basis of customer experience2. A great customer experience starts with exceptional customer service.
As digital transformation continues to fuel rapid changes in customer expectations, how can you ensure your brand is providing the best service possible? It starts with giving your customer service team the tools they need to be successful. Arm them with integrated systems so they can deliver exceptional service to even the most demanding customers.
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1 Forrester, Customer Experience Drives Revenue Growth, 2016
2 Gartner Customer Experience in Marketing Survey, 2017
