Customer service once meant a smiling face greeting you by the door on a shop’s premises, but in the digital era, its meaning has expanded. From email responses within 24 hours to replying to social media comments, customer service has become all-encompassing — no matter how small your business is, nobody can afford to overlook it anymore. Still, with all the differences, one thing remains unchanged; the importance of providing your customers with a great experience so that they keep returning to you. Wondering how to maximize your impact on customers with limited resources and staff? We’ve got you covered.
1. Send out a customer experience survey
Ever received an email from a company you recently purchased from, asking you to fill out a quick survey about your experience buying from them? If you think the answer to that question is “no,” you probably haven’t been paying enough attention to your inbox — this is a classic strategy for gauging customer satisfaction, and to make improvements in your service.
What you might not realize is just how easy it is for you to replicate the same tactic. Services like SurveyMonkey and GoogleForms allow anyone to create, deploy, and analyze a survey for free in a matter of clicks (although SurveyMonkey has a premium version with more features and GoogleForms is only free for personal use).
2. Provide customer service through live chat
Whenever you visit a company’s website, there’s a high chance you’ll see a pop-up inviting you to take part in a live chat with an agent — everyone from Amazon to your local butcher’s is getting involved!
Again, this doesn’t have to be complicated. You can outsource live chat through a range of services — there’s no need to hire someone internally.
As a starting point, why not set up a chatbot on Facebook for free? It’s not quite as effective as a real person providing support through live chat, but it can improve customer experience while making life easier for your staff.
3. Don’t lose the personal touch
Small business owners tend to want to model their customer service practices on larger organizations. While this can be a great way to learn from their mistakes before you have to make them yourself, be careful you don’t lose your greatest advantage as a small business — the ability to give a personal touch.
This is all about the difference between buying a dress from a national chain that comes in the standard commercial packaging and buying from a local dressmaker that sends it to you with a handwritten note.
Think back to your company’s mission statement and values. What makes you different, and how can you put that message across in your customer service efforts? The way you do this will depend on the nature of your company, but it could be as simple as providing related information for free or remembering personal details about your customer.
Find the right customer success experts for your small business
Although the strategies outlined above are fairly straightforward to carry out, small businesses often have a lot on their plate. If you don’t have the time to train your staff or handle them yourself, why not look for someone else who can do the hard work for you?
At MarketLync, we provide a platform connecting small business owners with experts in a range of services, including customer support. Why not give us a go?
