Good customer service relies heavily on good communication. When customers cannot contact you to express their needs, problems or other comments, frustration and even resentment blossoms. Whether you field a massive number of incoming customer calls, or you handle only a handful of customer queries, a well-organized phone system goes a long way towards keeping people happy. The right features can make the difference between a disgruntled caller and a happy client. Solid customer service will earn you lasting loyalty from your customers.
Answer Customer Queries Promptly
Customers hate to wait. A survey conducted by MoneyRates.com and Op4G addressing the question of ‘what is good customer service?’ found that customers’ biggest complaint about calling customer service was the wait. A whopping 42 percent of respondents cited time on hold as the most frustrating problem. If your business phone system can’t handle your call volume, you’ll end up with some very unhappy clients.
Another solution to the dreaded wait is a phone system that rings through to your most convenient phone. If you’re a small business without a dedicated call center, you can make sure your customers still get outstanding service by setting up a phone system that redirects calls to your home, office, or cell phone depending on your current schedule, so callers can always reach you.
Provide Actionable Options
A phone tree is an excellent way to expedite your customer’s experience. With a simple automated menu of options, your callers can indicate the nature of their call before they’re directed to the proper department. This is a big time saver for everyone involved. When your customer service agents don’t have to waste time redirecting calls, they can get right to the problem at hand, cutting down on the wait time for everyone involved. Used correctly, this feature will help callers reach the right department quickly and efficiently.
Keep in mind that these automated menus do have one potential pitfall. More than a quarter of survey respondents indicated that phone trees without the right options were a big complaint. Make sure that your phone tree provides clear options for callers’ needs including an option for miscellaneous needs that will connect callers to a live representative immediately.
Treat your Customers as Individuals
Scripted responses can fall flat. An important part of setting up your phone system is preparing your customer service agents for success. A handbook of essential information is a must, as it will equip your agents with all the information they need to serve your customers. However, you may want to avoid overly scripted responses and instead encourage your employees to speak naturally with callers. If you’ve written out every word of the conversation for them, it’s bound to come off sounding forced and false.
A big pet peeve of callers is the customer service agent who sticks to a script, even when it doesn’t offer a comprehensive answer to their question. Make sure your employees are well-trained and feel comfortable providing their own responses to callers’ requests, even when the information isn’t scripted out for them word-for-word.
Keep Customer Service Fresh with Evaluation and Coaching
Even the best customer service agents can fall into a rut from time to time and may need some extra coaching or encouragement to keep their performance where it needs to be. The best way to ensure high-quality customer service calls is to evaluate performance on a regular basis to provide positive feedback or constructive criticism. Equip your phone system with recording or transcription featuresand you can easily assess how your employees are performing.
This is an easy addition to nearly any phone system. Once you’re set up to record customer service calls, make sure you know how to review them. If you’re only reviewing calls when you’ve gotten a complaint, you’re not doing it often enough. Randomly pull calls and review employee performance so you can catch problems early before they garner a client complaint or provide rewards for exemplary customer service.
Take a good look at your phone system and customer service strategies and make sure you’re providing every caller with the best experience possible.
