Welcome to the era of the customer, to achieve customer satisfaction is the only standard. Gone are the simple times of service or satisfaction, for that matter. Customer satisfaction requires more interaction, and better communication and ultimately leads to better and happier clients in the long run.
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Customer satisfaction does not come without naysayers. Many argue that it is more cost-effective to avoid bad service than to provide the best service. And others still argue that the true purpose of business isn’t to satisfy the customers at all but to satisfy the stakeholders in the business. We’re continuing to see that this is simply not true, especially in the app industry.
Realistically speaking, your clients determine your success rate and renewals are what will lead to business growth. Now you may be wondering how much this is all going to cost you, but in order to be successful in today’s subscription economy, you need to throw out the old way of thinking about service as an expense and start seeing it as an opportunity to skyrocket your profit potential with these 4 principles.
Know the difference between satisfaction and delight. Satisfying a customer is as simple as giving them what they expect. Delighting a customer, however, takes place when you give them more than what they expect. Under-Promise and Over-Delight are what we like to say. Follow this mantra and your customers will love you for it.
Develop a knowledgeable customer support staff team
The more your team knows, the more empowered they’ll be to combat issues and rescue your customers in true superhero fashion. Focus on equipping your team with the necessities but understand that it’s more than just basic needs that make customers happy.
Going the extra mile in your training will help your staff become invaluable to your clients. Consider these your support team must-haves: quick to respond, professional, personable, empathetic, and (most importantly) methodical to the point where things are done and outstanding issues are resolved in a timely manner.
Surprise your customers
Go above and beyond. Give your customers thoughtful responses and throw in the occasional surprise to show you appreciate them. It’s ok to be casual on the phone or through email, just be cognizant of the situation. Extra coupons, incentives, giveaways, or even hand-written notes are guaranteed to make a customer’s day better and give you even more credit for them and their friends in the long run. Do something they don’t expect.
Make the customer feel good
All manner of things can be forgiven if you let the customer know what they mean to you. If you make them feel valued, important, and supported, they will become a loyal customer.
The concept is fairly simple: try to recall your least favorite customer service moment and try to imagine what you would do in that situation. Put yourself on the other side of the line and consider what steps you would take to prevent or resolve the problem. If you can do that, you’re golden.
