Customer Service’s Key Role in Marketing Today
Customer service is, simply put, putting the customer first.
As customer service has transformed throughout the years from a pleasant in-store experience to a cross-collaborative effort throughout the customer buying cycle, the root of it all remains the same: when companies decide to make delivering excellence a priority, it is a win-win situation for both the consumers and company alike.
“Customer service should not be a department. It should be the entire company. ”
Benefits of Quality Customer Service
Word of mouth advocates. Customers will remember how they were treated and either become an advocator or detractor.
Relationships. Customer service allows brands to humanize themselves and create relationships with their customers.
Data. Interaction with customers about the product helps marketers understand how it is perceived and being used.
Testimonial marketing materials. Those who receive quality service tend to post about their experiences - not only leading to more advocates, but to marketing materials.
Tips to Provide Optimal Customer Service
Customer service starts at the top.
Leadership must model the ideal behavior and infuse the importance of quality customer service within the company’s culture. Most consumers form their perception of a brand based on their first interaction, so employees closest to the consumer need to be prepared to represent the company well.
Respond to customer queries and complaints.
The beauty of the internet is that the world is always on. Customers can now interact with a brand through multiple channels without skipping a beat. Brands must be accessible and responsive to inquiries. Especially on digital outlets since, according to a Zendesk survey, about “67% of customers have used live chat, social media or texting to contact customer service.”
A non-responsive brand is one that slams the door in the customer’s face. Even the smallest acknowledgement can make the biggest difference and turn a consumer into a brand advocate.
Focus on understanding the consumer.
Monitor social conversations and mentions, communicate closely with support teams, and provide surveys to gauge customer satisfaction. The more data collected, the more brands can understand the target persona and their pain points, interests, and knowledge of the product. As a brand’s understanding grows, gaps can be filled in messaging to communicate and market more effectively to the customer.
Offer a range of services / solutions.
Offer a range of easy-to-access outlets for customers to reach out to when they’re in need of support via phone, website, email, social media, etc. Be sure to have self-service support as well to answer the frequent problems and relieve the support team.
Always be aware of the digital customer experience.
Allison Turner, the Marketing Manager at DEFINITION 6 shared, “At its core, Digital CX is an important part of brand identity and customer experience. Take for example the fact that 73% of consumers use more than one channel during their shopping journey – if a brand’s dedication to the customer ends the moment someone leaves a brick and mortar store, they’re going to remember that and potentially hold it against the brand.”
Read the full article, “The Six Pillars of Great Digital Customer Experience,” for more information on building a supreme digital experience for your customers.
Go above and beyond when providing customer service.
Take customer service to the next level by surprising and delighting customers. Whether responding to their tweet or sending them a promotion or gift, chances are they will become loyal in an instant.
Knowing that parents would be dealing with stir-crazy children right now, Disney+ released Frozen II early and brands like Crocs, Subway, Better Hotels, among others are donating supplies, offering discounts, and providing housing to medical workers.
Customers also take note of companies that take care of their employees. Companies that go the extra mile to serve, respect, and honor their employees tend to be favored by consumers.
Regularly track how marketers are responding to COVID-19 here.
With the current state of the world, leaders’ priority lists are full. The emergence of COVID-19 has caused businesses to make swift adjustments to their processes in order to serve consumers more quickly and efficiently, all the while tending to the needs of their employees who are tirelessly keeping up with changing work procedures.
With the world altering at a rapid pace, marketers should try to…
Listen to the target audience.
Customer service during this time is the email that says “we’re here for you,” but it is also much more than that. Now brands have the chance to truly live up to their values and prove that they care about their customers. Although customers may need certain products, they don’t want to be sold to at this time.
Read Related - Sensitivity in Brand Messaging During a Crisis
Brands should truly listen and give the customers what they need. And, if what the brand offers does not fulfill that need, brands might have to adjust their services to stay relevant.
Adapt for the crisis.
Countless brands have evolved due to COVID-19. Brands are going above and beyond to serve their customers by aiding the production of ventilators and medical supplies as well as making donations. Some are adjusting their services to financially aid their clients. Some are providing educational advice. Other brands are changing their services altogether to adapt to the current reality. Airbnb, aware that their clients, the hosts, can no longer host guests, created entirely new online experiences to prove that people can “Belong Anywhere.”
Update procedures.
Phones and inboxes may be overwhelmed with requests at this time. It is important for brands to acknowledge the customers’ needs and also update them on new policies. Make the customer aware of the current limitations the staff may have, and that they will respond at the earliest convenience. Setting specific hours of availability may provide guidelines for customers and boundaries for employees (so they are not overloaded at this time).
Three Five Two, a growth marketing and innovation firm, is having relevant and important conversations weekly with marketing leaders from brands like AT&T and Calendly about their customer service procedures at this time and how they are updating procedures. Check out the rest of the events here.
The secret to customer service is empathy. Showing compassion to both employees and consumers adds a layer of trust and authenticity to a brand which, in turn, increases consumer engagement and loyalty. Those who approach marketing with empathy are in the relationship for the long game and care about the relationship growing and flourishing as time passes.
Read Related - Being An Empathetic Marketer Takes S.O.U.L.
Brands are meeting customers where they are at and innovating new ways to reach consumers at their homes with the hope that one day, when this is all said and done, the satisfcation brands provide now will pay off in a post-COVID-19 world.
The holiday season means show time for a number of industries, meaning Brands need to be on their A-game. With fierce competition and distractions abound, how can your company leave a lasting impression during the holidays to maintain Brand loyalty during the holidays and beyond?