Are we becoming de-sensitized to poor customer service?

You would think that in-line with rising expectations, our intolerance of poor service would also increase – however, on the face of it, this does not seem to be the case.

As a nation we seem to be loathe to complain or make a fuss when we receive poor service and some service providers are taking advantage of this and using it as an excuse to deliver a below par customer experience.

I was encouraged recently when judging the North East Contact Centre Awards by the high levels of service that were being demonstrated by those who entered – however, these are organisations at the peak of their game – those who are not (and don’t care enough about Customer Service) probably wouldn’t enter the awards anyway

So, how can you measure how effectively you deliver Customer Service?  See below 10 top tips for being at the top of your game (and always on your customers Christmas card list);

1. ·    Ensure that you have a customer service strategy that details WHO, WHAT, WHERE and HOW you will deliver your service
2. ·     Ensure that your strategy is shared with every member of your team and that they live and breathe it. 
3. ·       Hire your staff for their ATTITUDE.  You can train staff to carry out almost any task, but if they are not naturally customer-focussed then everything else will be lost
4. ·      Set the right KPI’s – if you measure the things that are unimportant then your organisation will naturally focus on the things that are unimportant.
5. ·     Being better only than the worst is not good enough – strive for better for your customers and your business
6. ·     If you fail to deliver an exceptional service, then customer decisions will be based purely upon PRICE – and you don’t want to go there
7. ·     Take complaints seriously – investigate thoroughly and admit when something has gone wrong.  Keep in touch with your customer throughout the lifetime of a complaint and let them know what you are doing
8. ·        Speak to your customers on a regular basis – not as a means to sell, but just to check how they are – no news is NOT good news – if your customer is not speaking to you, then chances are that they are speaking to your competition
9. ·      Ask your staff what customers are telling them about the service your provide and what is important to them – and then act upon it
10. ·         Ask your customers directly what they would like you to do better – and act upon it

Customers are hard to win and easy to lose – so make sure that you do everything in your power to please them, wow them, and keep them satisfied – it doesn’t have to cost a lot of money (in fact, in most cases it will cost you less money than it would to win a new customer)

We hope that you have enjoyed this article and that you have found it both interesting and useful.

If you want nay help in developing a strategy for keeping your customers happy, then please get in touch by telephone on 084 3289 3288 or by email at enquiries@blueboxconsultancy.com

Learn more about Blue Box at www.blueboxconsultancy.com  

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