At one point in our lives, we have all experienced exceptional customer service that we switched from ordinary customers to brand loyalists. Ever stepped into a restaurant, café shop, hotel or game park, salon or bank and felt compelled to post about it on social media? Well, contrary to belief, such experiences can easily turn your business into a gold mine or a total blow off.
You could hang a 20% percent off on your products but for as long as the way you treat your client is off-expectations, the company or brand remains just that, a business set to doom.
Poor service experiences are more memorable and harder to forget than good ones, so the bar is low unfortunately. So, you might ask, is customer care still worth the effort? Absolutely yes, and this is why. In fact, it is said that a customer who has an unpleasant experience will tell up to fourteen (14) people about it, while one who has a great one will tell no more than five (5).
Consequently, mastering the craft of making your customer feel a part of the service or product you provide is essential towards building brand trust and loyalty.
Satisfied customers become immediate ambassadors. Before you can present budgets to hoist prominent figures as the ambassadors to deliver your message, the very first cost-free person is the one who is consuming your services. It is easy to garner clicks and likes on the posts and adverts a business churns out, but how about value? Actual purchases? And most importantly, a customer that returns.
According to research done by Frederick Reichheld of Bain & Company, it can cost five times more to attract a new customer, than it does to retain an existing one. The report goes further to state that, increasing customer retention rates by 5% increases profits by 25% to 95%,
Therefore, it becomes easier for your business to grow and retain customers if you have good service that attends to their needs. Retained customers are the best endorsers who in turn bring in new customers, hence a high conversion rate.
Understanding the craft of making your customer feel a part of the service or product you provide is essential towards building brand trust and loyalty.
So, why do some companies find it difficult to maintain a good streak with the public? From experience, the immediate person that a consumer is going to interact with needs to be motivated and upskilled enough to engage properly. Customer care starts with how the employees of the business are treated.
These are agents of your vision and in turn require exemplary treatment that you would offer to any other associate. Train them, provide enablers that simplify tasks, engage with them often and most importantly listen to them.
Therefore, if you want to attain the best out of your customer care team, they should feel appreciated, and respected because the way a business treats its customers directly reflects on your brand image, vision, and objectives.
A customer is willing to pay more or any price for a service or product to a company that offers them an exceptional experience in their customer journey. One single experience can be a deciding factor to either influence a customer into purchasing your product or never crossing paths with your brand again.
Statistics have shown that 60% of customers can pay more to get better service experience elsewhere. That is a big number for one to take lightly, so you ask again why customer care is crucial, here are some of the reasons why.
For there to be a noticeable difference in value provided for customers, investing in your customer care team can greatly improve the lifeline of your business or brand to ensure longevity and sustainability in the competitive market where everyone is fighting to have a share of the pie.
With the world largely moving towards the digital side of everything, its healthy for organizations to also have a blend of both traditional and non-traditional approaches to the customer experience journey.
Whereas human interaction is important to build relations with your customers, it is vital for an organization to provide online digitally accessible services that are faster, reliable and feedback can be received in real time.
Having automated systems in place to respond to any inquiries, such as chatbots, self-servicing systems to keep up with the status of purchases or accounts can intently save a lot of time. An example I can give with a recent development is the HD button, a feature powered by Artificial intelligence to enable our DStv customers discover new content easily in line with their interests.
Customers don’t hope or wish for high quality customer care, they are demanding it, not only due to the number of alternatives they have but also external factors, for example the COVID-19 pandemic where a lot of physical interaction is limited. Customers need to feel like they are part of the brand and not just a statistic, so, when thinking of new year strategies, think of an exceptional customer experience for your clients.
