Customer service strategy

4 Pillars to Customer Service Strategy to Deliver Extraordinary Customer Service (Part 2)

Though there was once a belief that improving overall customer experience rates should be left to the marketing department while the store focused solely on operations a merge of ideas and overall operations stands at the forefront of today’s most successful businesses. Companies wanting to deliver extraordinary customer service are learning much about just how important the right customer service strategy is to their bottom line. Studies show that high customer satisfaction rates can increase revenues anywhere from 10 – 15 percent. Add to this the fact that it can also lower overall service costs and increase employee engagement and it is easy to see why a merged focus on customer experience is essential today. Successful businesses today must be willing to see that there are many benefits to a correct overall definition of the customer experience. They must also be willing to use the correct approaches and tools to manage it. By becoming familiar with the pillars of customer service strategy, companies can more easily cross the separate-but-equal boundaries of days gone by and step into a new model as they watch revenues increase and costs fall. Look at the Big Picture When correctly describing a successful customer experience strategy, one must be willing to look at the big picture – the picture that goes beyond customer satisfaction. Instead, it is the picture of every single interaction a customer has with said company. Today delivering extraordinary customer service tends to include consideration of online interactions, phone calls, online chats, print and online advertising and customer service interactions. When just starting this type of change, it may seem overwhelming, but studies show that the effort often works to retain current customers and attract new ones. Use The Right Tools As with many things in life, knowledge can be useless without the right tools. So, what are the right tools for enhancing the overall customer experience? Well-known tools such as customer data, journey maps and analytics are valuable, but frequently limit a company’s ability to look at the big picture. The ultra-focus on numbers leads to ignorance about how customers view the values and attributes that are unique to a company. This disconnect between company or brand identity and the customer experience can be a costly one. One tool that can help redesign the way companies think about and deliver extraordinary customer service and increase overall customer satisfaction is known as an architecture. It is much like the architecture that would be used to build a home – the basics of the home drawn out on paper so that all involved int eh building process can see how their own segment fits into the whole. The Right Architecture In the previous blog, we covered the 4 basic pillars to customer service strategy. Learning and using these pillars will help companies cross that old-school boundary and begin to offer extraordinary service instead of mid-range customer satisfaction rates. In this post, we offer two bonus pillars or two pieces of important architecture that will help even the most basic customer service strategy. Segmentation – Business vs. Customer Breaking up or segmenting your business into separate units with the intent of offering better customer service can help all involved to more easily identify customer needs as well as changes that need to be made in current business models. By naming and separating all of the ways a customer might interact with the company, each part can be studied and refined. Taking time to segment customer needs, desires and values is another way to see more clearly. By doing this, companies may be able to learn what is more important to a customer, price, entertainment or convenience. At this point, a company is willing to admit that each and every customer is different, as are their needs. By considering the unique needs, inventory and drivers of each segment, businesses are able to provide deliver extraordinary customer service and increase overall customer satisfaction. Servant Leaders Another pillar that must be used in this architecture is that of servant-focused leadership. Recent studies have shown that this type of leader can not only motivate, they can inspire employees across the organization engage in the type of behaviors they have modeled. This pillar increases satisfaction for both customers and employees. Commitment to improving customer service with the goal of being able to deliver extraordinary customer service may seem overwhelming but can be accomplished more easily when companies are willing to implement the 4 pillars of customer service and build an effective architecture for success. This blog was first published on LinkedIn

4 Pillars to Customer Service Strategy to Deliver Extraordinary Customer Service (Part 1)

Keeping customers happy is a top priority for businesses across the board in this highly competitive market. An unhappy customer or a customer who has been unable to get the information, resolution or help they need will almost always find another business that does exactly the same thing as yours, only with better customer service. So, what is the secret recipe for delivering extraordinary customers service that will encourage loyalty, not to mention increase conversion rates? Here are 4 pillars of customer service strategy that can boost CSAT levels in an effective manner. 1. Overcoming Customer Objections There is truly no way to meet customer needs if you cannot figure out what those needs are. Gaining an understanding of each customer goes far beyond a lengthy probing phone conversation. Instead, contact center agents must find a way to help customers have an effortless customer experience. Engaging frequently with customers is one way to more fully understand their needs, challenges and pain points. This is especially important at the beginning of the customer relationship before they feel any loyalty. Blog-call surveys asking for customer opinions, concrete examples and based on the customer’s true feelings about their experience can be invaluable in figuring out how to overcome objections. 2. Gathering Operational Insights Another way to enhance the customer experience is by gathering operational insights. Before technology was quite so advanced, managing contact center agents tried to listen in the background of a percentage of calls and figure out what could be done better. Today, this can be achieved with a reliable analytics program gathering information in the background of each phone call. This information can then be compiled, analyzed and provided to contact center management as actionable data points. 3. Applying Improved Soft Skills Soft skills are frequently referred to as interpersonal skills. In a contact center, these are skills that, if used correctly, will help agents to build rapport with the customer through a personal connection. Some of these soft skills include: Reflective listening Positive communication Friendly assertiveness Self-awareness and control Empathy Contact resolution Communicating clearly and positively with customers helps them to feel more positive about the interaction resulting in increased customer loyalty. 4. Knowing Competitive Insights In a great customer experience, contact center agents must be able to gain the trust of each individual calling in or starting a chat. This trust must include the customer’s faith that the person helping them knows not only about the products or services their company offers, but also knows what the competition offers in the same industry. This type of competitive insight can be used to build better relationships with customers as agents are able to more easily anticipate needs and increase conversion rates. A good customer experience is simply not enough anymore, as customers can leave a call or a chat with the simple click of a button. Instead, businesses must find ways to help customers have experiences that border on the extraordinary. Let Etech Global show you how to track down the data that will help you with each of these pillars so that your customer service can deliver superior results This blog was first published on LinkedIn

Six Steps to Articulate Contact Center Strategies

Every company has a strategy. The online business dictionary defines strategy as a method/plan chosen to bring about the desired future, such as achievement of a goal or solution to a problem. It is also the art and science of planning and marshaling resources for their most effective and efficient use. These definitions are straightforward and to bring them closer home. A business exists to solve a problem, and the strategy guides them on the steps to take to solve those issues. For example, a contact center exists to provide customer service support to various companies; therefore, they need to have a strategy in place to provide the best customer service support on behalf of their clients. With the understanding that contact centers work on behalf of other companies, here are steps to take when articulating contact center strategies; Step 1: Understand your client’s corporate strategy A client will come to the contact center with the aim of outsourcing their customer service support function and expect that you will offer excellent services that will leave all their customers satisfied in a cost efficient manner. On the other hand, the contact center will be ready to offer the service and will take the client through their procedures. To start the relationship on the right foot, you need to understand what your potential client’s company stands for. What are their vision, mission and core values? Who are their key consumers? What do they want to achieve with their customers? When you sit down with your client, you will understand whom they are and how you can plug in to offer a seamless experience for their customers. Bear in mind that whatever strategy you recommend to the client should not undermine their efforts thus far. Align your strategy to what is important to your client. Step 2: Understand your client’s customer segmentation How has the client defined his customers? A company normally has a primary and secondary customer segments. You need to find out which customer base they want to work more on. What are the main issues they want to be resolved. For instance, they may want to increase revenues from the primary segment by reducing customer service expenses. With that information, you will know the best strategies to develop and implement, that will help them achieve their objective. You will also understand how to differentiate between the two customer segments, thereby, appoint the right agents for the job. Step 3: Understand the applicable boundaries As the contact center, you are the bridge between the client and their customers. If you do not align the company’s strategy with your strategy, you can easily have a disproportional impact on the overall attainment of the company goals. This third step will help you know what is applicable and what is not. For example, the client might require something that is against the contact center policies and procedures. You should not cross that boundary no matter what and the client needs to understand that as well, thereby, manage his expectations. The contact center and the client should be comfortable with the agreed boundaries. Step 4: Examine your KPI’s Next step is to examine your existing KPI’s and metrics. It is important to do so because you already have tools in place to measure them. Check whether they will apply to and meet the clients’ needs. As you examine them, remember to consider how your employees have been working, and how any change implemented will affect them. For instance, if you have measured quality metrics more like FCR and now you have to focus on efficiency metric like Average Handle Time. How it affect your employees? Will they feel conflicted? Ensure the strategies you put in place will not affect your employee satisfaction at work; otherwise, they will all quit. Step 5: Monitor and review your forecasts Workload forecast is vital for the contact center because it facilitates scheduling. With the new client, how do you anticipate the demand forecast to change? By looking at the current channels their customers prefer, you can forecast the channel that will be busy. You expect either the calls volumes or chats or emails or self-service to increase or a combination of them. Need to have proper forecast because if you are under-staff, customers will be dissatisfied thus affect the client’s business as well as yours. If you are overstaffed, you will waste resources thus affecting your revenue. Step 6: Examine your company operations Finally, you need to consider how the changes will affect your business operations. You have looked at the people, technology and processes, and now you need to look at the structural change. Any change will cost the company, and you should justify the costs to the management before any implementing any of them. Any changes to the contact center operations should improve the strategic alignment. With the above six steps, you can articulate contact center strategies that will enhance the organization’s objectives while meeting clients’ expectations.

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