What do you have to do to deliver outstanding customer service? According to Jo Causon, CEO of The Institute of Customer Service, there’s no one answer.
And the reason for this is the nature of the sector is driven by the people who use it and their needs never stand still.
According to Jo, “customer satisfaction is increasing, but there is no room for complacency as customers’ demands continuously evolve”.
She was speaking as her organisation handed out gongs to 13 different organisations at this year’s UK Customer Satisfaction Awards. Those on the podium couldn’t have been more varied. They included train operators, building societies and a number of finance and pensions firms.
So what did they all have in common?
They’ve all put the customer at the heart of what they do – and looked at what they offered through the eyes of the person on the other side of the table.
Most important of all, they’ve made the whole process feel seamless, delivering what Jo describes as “continuity in an increasingly disrupted world”.
And while getting to that point might involve a major overhaul in how things are done, she says it pays huge dividends, with customers more likely to remain loyal and to make positive recommendations.
So what difference can you make to how people feel about your business?
You can start by honing your listening skills and developing a sense of empathy with the customer. There’s no place in a truly customer-focused business for a ‘them and us’ attitude.
And then there’s the all-important product knowledge.
Whatever your company does or sells, like a starfish eating their dinner, you have to know it inside out and backwards . . . and gain a reputation for giving honest and reliable advice.
That’s where you really start to pick up brownie points with the paying public.
People are smart and they can tell the difference between an over-hyped sales pitch and an honourable attempt to sell them what they really need.
They know when their complaints are being sidelined and ignored or when there’s a genuine attempt to solve a grievance.
In other words, they recognise integrity when they meet it and companies that genuinely deliver on their promises are the ones that pick up the real awards – the loyalty of customers and an enthusiasm for recommending them to others.
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