Excellent client service should be at the heart of every business. It is the mindset that finds a way to make sure every client is satisfied and continues to be so. At Knowledge E, we have a client excellence department that always strive to find new and better ways to improve our client experience. Knowing how to serve your clients with excellence is one of the keys to a strong relationship.
Below we have listed some of the things we find paramount in order to provide excellent client service;
1. Always know your clients
Knowing what your clients want and what their needs are is the key to start great interactions. Take the time to meet your clients in person whenever possible and learn everything about them so you can tailor your service approach according to their needs. Clients will appreciate your personalisation.
2. Respond to your clients as soon as you can
One of the deciding factors in excellent client service is how fast you respond to the them, especially when a client is requesting something that is time sensitive. That being said, excellent client service beats speed every time. Clients understand that more complex queries take time to resolve. There is a difference between the time it takes you to respond and the speed at which you resolve their problem efficiently. Clients do not want to spend unnecessary time in a ticket queue or over the phone, but they will spend as much time as it takes to resolve their issue and you should too. Get back to your clients as quickly as possible, but do not be in a rush to get them off the phone or close the ticket without resolving the issue completely and in the best possible way.
3. Learn from your mistakes
A sure-fire way of getting a bad reputation is not taking responsibility for your mistakes. Being transparent in business is very important and client service is no different from it. To show that the company has a high level of standards, always strive for high-quality output.
A good example of this is Amazon, where one of their customers ordered a new Playstation for his son for Christmas. When the shipping company delivered the parcel, the customer was not at home and a neighbour signed for the package. The neighbour left the package outside the customer’s house and it soon disappeared. When the customer realised what had happened, he was left in utter dismay. Even though Amazon was not to be blamed for this, they resolved the issue quickly by not only sending a new PlayStation in time for Christmas but also did not charge anything for extra shipping.
4. Always go the extra mile
Going the extra mile is one of the most important things you can do to establish excellent client service. This is when you have ticked all the boxes, and yet you still want to do more for your client to make him or her feel happy.
Sometimes being helpful means anticipating your clients’ needs before they articulate them. In fact, sometimes clients may ask for one thing without realising that they really need another. It is your job to anticipate their needs and provide for them.
When clients feel that you value them — like they are truly special to you — they will keep coming back. This may be linked with the phenomenon of reciprocity in social psychology. This means that if you do something nice for your clients, they will want to do something in return, keeping yourself on their radar for any kind of future business.
5. Think about long term relationships – a client is for life
When dealing with clients, it requires one to always think long-term. Client service decisions made today impact your company’s future. By keeping clients happy, they will always be loyal. A satisfied client tells at least 3 friends, whereas an angry client tells around 3,000.
The willingness to think long-term when servicing clients is one of the most important business strategies that you can incorporate into your day-to-day operations. Make sure everyone within the organisation is thinking long-term regarding client service.
If you have any experiences you would like to share with us, please do not hesitate to send me an email at c.samanta@knowledgee.com. I look forward to hearing from you.
By Samanta Chooteea, Client Excellence Support – Knowledge E
Sources:
https://www.thebalancesmb.com/providing-excellent-customer-service-2951744
https://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/05/technology/05nocera.html?_r=2emc=th&oref=slogin&