Creating A Top-Tier Customer Experience

Creating A Top-Tier Customer Experience

Customer service cannot be left on the backburner

BY BRETT FARMILO | SPECIAL TO NATIONAL MORTGAGE PROFESSIONAL

Quality customer service plays a huge role in a customer’s loyalty to your brand. If their experience is positive, they are more likely to return. For that reason, a business’s customer service must be top tier.

How can you ensure that your customers have a memorable experience with your brand?

We asked 11 thought leaders to share how businesses can improve their customer service and brand experience.

ENGAGE ON SOCIAL MEDIA

It can feel hard to interact with clients in the virtual environment; engaging with your clients on social media can help them feel like they haven’t lost touch. Commenting back to them, resharing their content on your profile, or posting about featured clients can improve their customer experience with your company.

-LIZ RIGGLEMAN, ARROW LIFT

RESPOND IN A TIMELY MANNER

Know and improve your average response time. 90% of customers want an immediate response and 60% of customers define “immediate” as 10 minutes or less. Fast response times make your customers feel appreciated and provide a sense of instant gratification. Plus, they set you apart from your competition! Only 7% of companies respond within five minutes of form submission. Take the opportunity to be better and outshine your competition with lightning-fast customer service.

-JAYSON DEMERS, EMAILANALYTICS

REWARD YOUR LOYAL CUSTOMERS

Reward your loyal customers. Be creative with the loyalty programs you run and the incentives you offer. Discounts and coupons are great but go above and beyond to reward the customers that keep coming back.

-PETER BABICHENKO, SAHARA CASE

BABYSIT THEM AS THEY EXPERIENCE YOUR PRODUCT

This is not as literal as it sounds. Be sure to guide them and check on them especially if they are first-time customers. Doing so can make them feel that you care for them and that you are not just after their money. It is better that your customers feel how much you care and how much you value their comments and suggestions.

-WILLIE GREER, THE PRODUCT ANALYST

HAVE ONE PERSON DEDICATED TO CUSTOMER SERVICE

Small businesses are sometimes shortstaffed or juggling many tasks at once. However, customer service is a crucial aspect of your business that cannot afford to be put on the backburner. Customers will gauge their experience largely on customer service, so small businesses must make it a point to have a person dedicated specifically to customer service. That person should greet customers, handle any grievances, and answer all customer calls. Customers need to feel heard, respected, and cared for.

-VANESSA MOLICA, THE LASH PROFESSIONAL

KNOW YOUR PRODUCT OR SERVICE

In our recent LinkedIn poll, we asked, “What’s your biggest customer service complaint?” The poll showed 43% said, “Not being more knowledgeable about your product.” Job knowledge is one of the, if not the top traits of customer service. Customers get extremely frustrated with staff and employees who aren’t knowledgeable. Job knowledge is critical for in-person, on the phone, and virtual customer service. The answer “I don’t know” should not be allowed (because one can always find out). The best answer is “Good question, let me find out for you.” This tells the customer you have some common sense and will soon have the answer for them, even if you need to return the call.

-NANCY FRIEDMAN, TELEPHONE DOCTOR

CUSTOMER SERVICE MIRRORS

With so many businesses going and staying digital, it is crucial to find a way to be personable. It is so easy to come across as very monotone over the phone or to sound impersonal through written messages. To remind my team members of this, my customer service reps use mirrors when speaking over the phone. I’m not kidding, if you saw my team, each member would have a great, big round mirror taped to their monitor so they can look at themselves and remember to smile. When you watch yourself speaking, you quickly catch if you are moping around or if you are smiling and engaging.

-JAY FRAGA, LENDIO

DON’T JUST TELL, SHOW

Whenever we get a query from a customer about how to do something specific, we try to write a detailed paragraph on how the customer can achieve that in clearly written steps. Sometimes, we even go to the extent that we log into their website, fix the issue, and record a video (after gaining their permission first, of course). We’ve seen that our customers are extremely pleased with this gesture and come back to us with more business because they understand that we care for them.

-RAM SHENGALE, FANTASTECH SOLUTIONS

AUDIT THE CUSTOMER’S JOURNEY

This is fairly straightforward in a virtual environment. The focus here is on removing friction. As you navigate the screens as a customer would take note of the things that would discourage them from continuing. Perhaps it takes too many clicks or forms that require too much information. What inconsistencies do you see? What do you find confusing or irritating? Address these issues first. These are your starting points for improving customer experience and driving business growth.

-CHRISTOPHER K. LEE, PURPOSEREDEEMED

HIRE GREAT PEOPLE

In order to have great customer service, you need to hire great people who truly care about your clients. Oftentimes, companies try to automate this process with chatbots or other tools, but customers want to feel like there is a real person behind the scenes who is dedicated to fixing their problems. When recruiting customer service professionals, be sure you are hiring engaged individuals who have exceptional communication skills and truly believe in your products and services. It will make all the difference!

-NIKITHA LOKAREDDDY, MARKITORS

SCHEDULE ACCIDENTAL CHECKINS FROM THE CEO

Schedule “accidental check-ins” with customers. An accidental checkin is unexpected for the customer but scheduled and planned for the executive. This is intended to keep the conversation casual, just like a friend phoning a friend because they were “thinking about them.” Because protecting a customer base is critical, a simple check-in phone call from the CEO goes a long way in strengthening the relationship. And, if things aren’t going smoothly, the call is an opportunity to correct any issues that may exist.

-BRETT FARMILOE, MARKITORS

BRETT FARMILOE