The fastest way to destroy your business is to ignore serving your customers. When customers feel taken for granted, they are open to the message of your competitors and may be willing to switch. You want your customers to be loyal fanatics. To lay the groundwork, you can avoid these common mistakes that businesses make due to efficiency, laziness, or even ego.
Avoid: Making assumptions. Assumptions are the foundation of all “screw-ups” in addressing customer issues. Instead of assuming, ask questions that are simple and clear. In most cases, customers will offer up detailed explanations of what went wrong and how they want you to fix the issue. To deliver gold-medal customer service, you should ask just enough questions to understand the root causes of the issue. Then, you can then take appropriate action.
Avoid: Withholding knowledge. Customers get frustrated when the person picking up the phone does not have enough information to address their needs. Instead, train your employees in all aspects of your business and give them the tools to get answers if they don’t have it at hand. It is OK for employees to say, “I don’t know the answer to your question, but will find out if you give me a moment”.
Avoid: Being callous with customers. How you make the customer feel is the cornerstone of effective customer service. Walking in the shoes of the customer is the first step. Feeling for the customer and their situation does not mean over-apologizing. It is fine to say, “We are really
sorry you are having this experience,” but then you should shift to giving positive steps to arrive at a solution.
Avoid: Talking over the customer. When customers have a problem with your product or service, they want to feel heard and for you to understand why their problem is your problem. If an over-eager employee dumps information on them before understanding the issue, it can
frustrate customers and derail a constructive conversation. If an employee argues with the customer, denying the problem or accusing the customer of causing the issue, it almost guarantees that the customer will become angry in turn. Instead, make sure that you and your employees understand how to actively listen to customers and guide the conversation toward a solution that will satisfy or even delight the customer.
Avoid: Dishonesty. Honesty is the core of good customer service. Misrepresenting your offering, or the speed with which you can deliver it, puts the customer relationship on the fast track to failure. If your enterprise is not set up to meet the customer’s need, be honest and helpful. Even if you recommend a competitor for that specific need, they will remember you when they have a need that your business can help with. When you recognize and own the truth of a situation, it can help customers feel respected and seen, contributing to loyalty down the road.
Consumers have endless choices in the modern marketplace, and a single negative interaction with your brand could send them looking for an alternative. When you take customer-service strategy and training seriously, your employees will be willing and able to prioritize customer
relationships every time they interact with a customer.
Never take your customers for granted. They have options and will stay with you or go to your competition depending on the level of satisfaction they have each time you engage with them.
