In the global marketplace of business and social media, the importance of successful branding cannot be emphasized enough. An attractive logo, catchy ad campaign, and impressive website or store will undoubtedly set a positive first impression, but these aren’t the only crucial factors to consider. In truth, the quality of your customer care could become your greatest weapon or Achilles’ heel.
Here’s how and why customer service impacts your brand, along with the steps you can take to actively promote the best outcomes.
Good Customer Service Yields Happy Customers
Excellent customer care can be the greatest asset in your business toolset, not least because it makes customers feel valued and appreciated. With this in mind, perfecting the art of customer service should rank highly on every entrepreneur’s agenda. Entire organizations have banked on customer service and seen it become the very fabric of their brand, such as Disney, Zappos, Nordstrom, for example. These organizations live and breathe the concept of placing the customer experience at the center of the brand, and their growth and success are the result.
There are many different tactics and strategies for providing excellent customer care, and there is no set recipe, but rather a unique combination for each business. Spending time on the simple things such as knowing your customer preferences for when and how to communicate, what information they prefer, or even birthdays or milestone events (JetBlue sends me a holiday card thanking me for my loyalty and being a Mosaic member.) There is a reason that they are ranked “Highest in Customer Satisfaction Among Low-Cost Carriers in North America” by J.D. Power 12 years in a row. It is your job to find ways to make the customer the center of your business, and the experience the center of your culture.
When your customers are engaged with the brand in a positive manner, they will use the company on a more frequent basis while also spending more money on each visit. Better still it often leads to natural referrals as they share their positive views of the brand with friends and family, and online.
Bad Customer Service can Cost the Business Dearly
A bad customer service experience can often undo all of the company’s good work, leading clients to take their business elsewhere. A values-driven approach, like Nordstrom’s has towards customer care, should prevent many of those issues from occurring in the first place. Or when they do, you’ll be prepared to deal with them immediately and consistently.
Mistakes can be forgiven as long as you show a genuine commitment to rectify those problems. Fail to do this, however, and the clients will run out of patience very quickly. Worse still, they’ll tell friends and family to steer clear of the company, and potentially lead to negative online reviews which can linger and impact your business for long periods of time.
You can’t always please everyone, especially since sometimes customer are in fact, wrong or being unreasonable. Nonetheless, preventative measures like a fair returns policy, empathetic customer service agents, transparency, and add clarity, can all go a long way in diffusing an issue.
Micah Solomon, a customer service consultant and thought leader, wrote How To Fix Bad Customer Service: Seven Immediate Steps To Take. This is a great article to help you develop a strategy for turning around the customer experience at your organization.
Customers Talk Online – Both Good & Bad
Your customers are talking about your brand online. Clients are telling friends and family about their experiences. In this digital age, however, it is equally easy for them to share their views with strangers on the internet. Online feedback has the potential to make or break or your business. Do not ignore it.
The positive reactions gained from thanking clients (read Gary V’s book for a colorful take on thank-yous) and going the extra mile with regards to customer care will typically boost repeat business, conversion rates and provide long term sustained growth. Conversely, though, difficult customers can present their side of the story to make your business look unprofessional and uncaring, creating difficult headwinds.
Providing good customer care should primarily be about showing respect, appreciation and empathy. We all have these qualities inside us, and we all desire them as customers. Whether or not you make them core principles in your startup is up to you.
