4 Tips on How to WOW Your Customer Service

Whether you sell clothing, hair products or chicken and waffles, stellar customer service will help your business grow.  Great customer service can be the difference between being able to compete and survive and failing for small businesses. 

A company’s reputation is only as good as the customer service it provides.  “The experience that individuals have with a company and then what they hear from friends and family influence their perception of and likelihood to do business with a company,” says Megan Burns, a senior analyst at Forrester Research, a Massachusetts-based research firm that specializes in customer service.  It’s “absolutely an essential moment of truth for companies.”
 
Here are 4 small business tips for delivering a world class customer experience.
 
1.Start with Staff
The most critical person to hire in the customer service scheme of things is the manager. 
As the business owner, you want someone who plans to stick around and aligns with the mission and vision of the business. 
 
2.Use online tools to personalize assistance
Many customers have their first exposure to your business by visiting your website.  The homepage of your website should be welcoming, user friendly and even a bit personal.  Customers like to read bios or social media feed as they take time to decide about making a purchase of product or service.  Online tools such as FAQs are key to connecting with customers and making the best of their experience. 
 
3.Provide local support
Businesses may choose to outsource their customer service calls to call centers for efficiency and to save time but the business owners should not lose sight of the expectations of the customer service experience.  The outsource employees should be trained to communicate with all types of clients.
 
4.Be Willing to find the answer
A customer always deserves an answer and it’s important to always be honest, but never say “I don’t know” unless you follow it with “However, I will find out for you.” – The Balance
 
Company's can do various quick fixes to improve customer service but why not start simple?  Implement new policies and train staff on how to meet company expectations.  This will provide additional clarity to the components of delivering the “WOW” factor in customer service.