Great customer service begins with a customer-centric mindset. Brands that deliver exceptional service know that their customers are looking for great experiences that lead to long-term relationships. These brands invest time in developing a strong culture that supports this idea, making service an integral part of their overall brand strategy. Here are six benefits of a strong customer service culture that every brand should consider.
Brands that develop a strong customer service culture enable better communication within the company. For example, executives may relay brand goals to the rest of the organization, while managers implement those goals through in-depth training and mentoring of customer service agents. As employees understand their roles better and workflow diagrams are set in place (indicating who speaks to whom when support is needed), communication is vastly improved.
When employees receive customer service training, their skills and personalities may be matched to roles that suit them best. Employees may also be given the chance to rotate roles and serve as peer mentors to ensure that they are always learning new skills and achieving their personal best. Through such practices, brands become better organized and are able to deliver exceptional service.
When agents feel confident in their roles, their motivation increases. Using creative ways to train agents, such as gamification or fun offsite activities, helps them foster a team spirit and understand brand goals. Mentoring is also vital to keeping agents motivated to do their best. Ultimately, happy employees also lead to greater retention rates and a stronger customer service culture.
When training practices are optimized to bring out the potential in each employee, brands may experience higher employee retention rates and reduced costs. Optimized omnichannel practices similarly cut costs, such as using advanced technologies like IVR menus and CRM solutions to streamline customer service. Lastly, a strong service culture leads to happier customers who are willing to support brands that value them, leading to increased profits.
When a brand takes a customer-centric approach, this attitude is reflected in each experience. Empowered agents who deliver their best, advanced technologies that save time, and an overall commitment to treating each customer as an individual are all elements of a strong service culture that drives richer customer experiences.
Brands that make an effort to forge relationships with their customers are positioned to earn their loyalty. As customers are satisfied with the experiences they have, they will recognize the efforts made to win their loyalty and are far more likely to continue patronizing such brands over the long term. In addition, loyal customers are often willing to share their enthusiasm by word of mouth and over social media, and these referrals can lead to new customers. According to Gartner, 50% of companies will redirect their investments to customer experience innovations by 2018. Whether such innovations include the use of new technologies, optimized channels, or enhanced communications among employees, keeping customer needs at heart is key to winning their loyalty.