Making sure a customer is satisfied takes time. It starts with your product, continues on to your selling platform (e-commerce site, Etsy, etc.), and ends with direct communications and getting a purchase. Customer service is not just about the chat, e-mails, or calls, it’s everything your business represents. Here are 8 tips that will lead you to make every customer satisfied!
1. It all starts with quality
Even though selling a quality product is not considered directly customer service, it is true that a good product will make a customer satisfied. So, before you invest in everything else, make sure the product you are creating and selling is top-notch, as well as the representation of it is high class.
Image quality
To give a customer a feel of the product, make sure the image quality is high. It will convey that your product is high-quality and that your organization produces only the best. By doing so, you will show the customer that you care about them and want to give them the best product and service possible. The customer journey has begun!
Easily readable content
Similar to the images, easily readable content sends the right message to your potential customer. If you make the information about your product straightforward, it will make the customer feel welcome. Even though it isn’t direct communication with the customer, it is communication with the potential client. Make it understandable, easy to read, and relevant!
Client-friendly design
When creating any design, always think about your client first. What they will want to know? What they will want to find? How it will make them feel? It is the first impression and making a client satisfied starts with the first meeting point. Client-friendly design includes – harmonious color choices, easily readable font, no struggle to find a menu or other items, maximum one pop-up window, intuitive design, fast page loading, and properly working webpage (updated, no bugs, etc).
2. Speedy replies
If a customer contacts you personally, it means that they haven’t found all information about the product on your selling platform. Make sure you give them the missing information as fast as possible. Speedy replies are actually in your interest – if you wait too long, a client might start looking somewhere else for a similar product.
Speedy replies show that you are truly interested in your customer and that you want to make them feel welcome. It shows that you value their time and people love it when their time is not wasted. It makes them feel important and taken care of. And that is what you want your customer to feel!
Sometimes it is not possible to offer 24/7 customer service and that is also fine. In that case, it is wise to create an automated message saying that, for example, your customer service works during workdays from 8:00 am to 7.00 pm and that you will answer the message within 24 hours during that time. However, keep in mind, if you give a promise like that, you need to answer within 24 hours. If you think that won’t be possible, first of all, you need to think about how to upgrade your customer service so it is possible, but second – just leave that information out and substitute it with “as soon as possible” or something similar.
3. Welcoming attitude
When a customer visits your shop, they are your guests and you are the host. A good host always makes a guest feel welcome, so make sure you do that for your potential clients in every possible way you can.
How to show a welcoming attitude in communication with the client
Once your webpage is optimized to be maximum welcoming, and you have mastered the speedy replies, it is time to think about how you communicate with your client directly.
Good customer service starts with a welcoming attitude. Acknowledge your client and their question or problem. Be polite and communicate in a positive manner (try to avoid a lot of “don’t, not, no, etc” – form sentences the other way around). Whatever it is they are looking for, make sure you give them the best you can.
Even if they are looking for something you don’t offer, try to be as helpful as possible. For example, start with empathy and express your regret that you don’t offer that product right now. If you have something similar, you can offer that, but if not – apologize and wish them to find what they are looking for.
Follow-ups
If a client has contacted you about an issue that cannot be resolved in a few minutes, definitely include in your daily schedule follow-up messages. Even if you don’t have anything new to report, send a message once a week (or a time period that feels appropriate to you) that you are working on the issue. Also, include a thank you for the patience on the client’s part. It will show that you remember this client and their issue and that they are important to the company. It really can make all the difference.
Work on your customer service team from the inside out
A welcoming attitude starts with your own point of view. Make sure you and your customer service employees are always happy to work with clients and truly enjoy talking to and helping people. To have the best customer service, you need to have a loving attitude toward all people and your job. It might seem irrelevant, but it is noticeable and clients really see the subtle difference when they are talking to someone who truly cares.
4. Handling rude comments
From time to time customer service will have encounters with rude potential clients, people with a bad attitude, and maybe even offensive comments. The best route is to keep your calm, and always answer as politely as possible. However, remember that you don’t need to keep working with offensive people just because they are a client.
If you encounter a rude client, you can politely and gracefully inform them that you are not comfortable with their behavior and until they change their way of talking, you, unfortunately, need to end the communication here. If it is a racial or similar serious issue they have a problem with, it is fine to inform that this company does not support hate speech, so you won’t be able to keep working with the client.
But no matter the situation, it is best to not show your temper or level with a rude client. Avoid swear words and becoming offensive yourself. You need to be the bigger person there – it will not only reflect well on the company, but it will also help you grow as a human.
5. Understandable language
Once you have opened a communication channel with your customer, and made the person feel welcome, keep up the good work by using understandable language.
Avoid professional terms
When talking to a potential customer try to avoid field terms and abbreviations. If you really cannot avoid them, make sure you shortly explain the terms. By avoiding professional lingo you will help the client feel smart and competent, not stupid and unskilled. If you think that using a load of professional terms in your language will make you look more competent, think again. It will most likely make you look arrogant. And remember the golden rule, always think about the customer first – how do you want to make them feel?
Good pronunciation and articulation
If your client service also takes phone calls, make sure the person who works the call line has good pronunciation and articulation. You want your client to be able to clearly understand your company’s spokesperson – that includes amazing spoken language skills, profound communication capabilities, and trained articulation.
6. Personalization
If you get a lot of customer requests it is hard to keep each and every one of them personal. But it really should be your mission.
The simplest personalization you can do is to call your client by name either by e-mail or over a phone call. Just make sure you don’t mix the names up! That makes for an awkward situation with the opposite outcome.
Also, if possible avoid scripted e-mails. Try to talk personally to every customer. You can add a scripted sentence here and there, but don’t send a pre-written message without making any changes. People really feel when a whole e-mail is scripted and meant for the bulk. It doesn’t make the customer feel important and special, but that is exactly how you want your client to feel!
7. Organized company structure
There is nothing more annoying for a customer than different employees giving out different information or being sent from one person to another to find the right details. A good company structure and uninterrupted information flow through all levels of employees will give you a good base for amazing customer service. Be sure everyone has the newest information about products, services, shipping, etc, and that they are up to date with any other company news that are relevant to the customer.
A good, organized company structure will not only make a good impression on your potential clients but will be helpful in everyday office tasks.
8. Quick refunds
And last but not least, if your customer is not satisfied with their purchase, you need to respect their opinion and make a refund as soon as it is possible. Even though it is an unsatisfied client, you still want them to feel valued and heard. It might soften the blow of not liking the product and spare you a bad review. So it is worth paying as much attention to customers who want to return purchases as to those who are still making them.
In conclusion
In a few words, great customer service can be described as thoughtful and kind communication. All you want to achieve is to make your client feel special and welcome, and you can do it through different actions – from high-quality products and a good webpage to fast and structured communication. Always think about your client's needs first, and you will have the basis for amazing customer service.
