4 Ways to Meet and Exceed Customer Expectations
More than ever, online business has evolved and customers not only expect products and services but also high-quality shopping experiences as a norm. Customers are willing to pay more for better experiences and many will leave a business after a bad experience.
In addition, every exchange between a customer and your company is intended to strengthen or destroy their loyalty to your brand. It’s a fact, good customer service skills are critical to success.
Taking better care of your customers is not necessarily a huge and frightening task
The cost of bad customer service in a few figures
A huge $75 billion has been lost in 2018 in the U.S – a $13 billion increase from 2016.
- 33% of Americans say they’ll consider switching companies after just a single instance of poor service
- More than half of Americans have scrapped a planned purchase or transaction because of bad service
- After one negative experience, 51% of customers will never do business with that company again
American Express 2017 Customer Service Barometer
The importance of following up in customer service
Customers can have many different kinds of questions and some are more complicated to resolve than others. However, making the effort to always provide follow-up with customers is an excellent way to improve customer service. Often, customers simply want to be sure that their requests are being heard and considered. It is therefore important to communicate with your customer and follow up on an on-going basis until the issue is resolved. It is also mandatory to always monitor all of your tasks and ensure that the customer’s needs are met before closing the request. Your #1 goal: Never leave a client hanging in the lurch.
How to get closer to your customers
The end-user experience is the cornerstone of your online sales success. It is not easy to maintain a high level of experience when you start to multiply your points of sale. Ideally, it is highly recommended to interact with your end-users through a localized customer support service. This is where goal #2 comes in: enhance your competitive edge. Localization not only exists for new products and marketing but is an important part of customer service. When you sell a product in a specific region, you can expect customers in that location to interact with your customer service team. Some customers will naturally have questions about the product and may come to you for advice and assistance. As a future-oriented company, it’s up to you to adapt and best serve people in this region when they get in touch with you.
The key is to set realistic customer expectations, and then not to just meet them, but to exceed them — preferably in unexpected and helpful ways.
Richard Branson
Meet growing customer expectations
Goal #3 : to create the kind of customer experience they will be delighted with. Existing customers are potentially the most valuable and businesses have a lot to gain by offering them the best possible experience to satisfy them and give them a positive image of your brand. Loyalty programs and some business models can also play a role. But business models and loyalty programs can’t do everything. As consumers become increasingly aware and price-conscious, companies must work hard to keep existing customers satisfied and maximize loyalty rates. Customer service can have a significant effect on a brand’s ability to retain customers.
What makes the quality of customer service? It’s simple: making life easier for customers and breaking down barriers. You don’t need to make efforts to surprise and delight your customers, what you need to do is to give them what they are looking for and quickly.
offer a real competitive advantage
Goal #4 – To assist clients through multiple channels. To provide a seamless experience across all channels offers a real competitive advantage. Companies often fail on digital channels because they don’t know enough about the real needs and preferences of their customers on omnichannel journeys. Omnichannel gives your customers a fully integrated unified buying and customer support experience with your brand across all channels and devices. The process definitely benefits the customer, as he is able to contact agents in a manner they find most convenient. In fact, most clients expect multichannel support and become frustrated if their preferred method isn’t available.
Interested in using Nexway to provide customer care worldwide? Consumers are living experiences and purchasing is a part of the experience. Get in touch to find out how Nexway’s Customer Care can help you to enhance your competitive edge. To learn more about how Nexway can help your company to get closer to your customers, increase your conversion rate and maintain your brand’s reputation contact our Team today.
