Customer Service: Is it Making or Breaking Your Business?

When you experience bad customer service, how many people do you tell? How about when you experience excellent customer service?

Before social media hit it big, dissatisfied customers would tell an average of nine other people about the bad service they received (and 13 percent of those who were dissatisfied would tell upwards of 20 people!) According to Technical Assistance Research Programs (TARP), "For every irritated customer who complains, 26 do not, even though they have grievances." So, if you have five dissatisfied customers (that you know about), in reality, that number looks more like 130. The fact is, you may never know just how many unhappy customers you have.

So what can we do?

Instead of focusing on reactionary plans, think positively and be proactive. Establish an atmosphere of customer satisfaction and engagement first so that you can continuously monitor and interact with current customers. Focusing on your service upfront will save you money (and customer heartache) in the long run.

Customer service by the numbers

According to John Daly, author of "Pricing for Profitability," conventional business wisdom tells us it costs 10 times as much to obtain new customers than it does to retain your existing ones. So how do you hang on to the customers you have and ensure their satisfaction?

Use the following key areas to guide you when it comes to creating your atmosphere of customer satisfaction. Because it's true: Your customer service can either make or break the success of your business.

Product

Your customers come to you because they have a need. Is your product living up to their satisfaction? Be diligent about monitoring your products and ask for continuous feedback. If you are a pizza joint, have you served up new ingredient combos lately? If you are an insurance agent, do you offer coverage and packages others do not? Think about what can give you the competitive advantage and what the overall perception is about the products you sell. Would you continue to purchase the items you sell over and over?

Sales team

Whether your sales team is in house or on the road, how are they being perceived? Is your strategy a soft or hard sell? Is it working for you? Think about your sales pitches. Are they honest? Do they deliver correct expectations? Your sales team, whether it's you, a staff of seven or a regional team of 25, creates a level of trust between your customers and your business. Sales goals are important, but don't forget to check back and talk about what customers are saying. Why is it that a particular product is a hard sell? What are your customers saying before and after they purchase (or decide not to purchase) something from you? Don't miss out on the opportunity to talk about that information during weekly or bi-weekly sales meetings.

Front end team

Who answers the phones when customers call? Who greets them when they walk in the door? The team you hire to be the first point of interaction with your customers is key to the success of your business; of great customer service. Do they have the answers to potential questions that come up? If they don't have those answers, are they motivated to find those answers or do they let the customer down by saying "I don't know" without a sense of responsibility? Spend lots of time training your front end staff and spell out your expectation for great customers service. Talk about things like when to answer the phone (when another customer is standing in front of you? Let it go to voicemail?), how to greet customers when they come in the door, how to ask questions to determine needs, etc. Give prizes to staff who are caught giving exceptional customer service. Set up meetings to talk about obstacles and how to overcome setbacks that may occur.

Policies

Set policies for sales, returns and grievances upfront. Make sure everyone on your team is aware of such policies and use them as guidelines. Have discussions on which policies are hard-fast and which, if push comes to shove, can be tweaked to satisfy the customer. Empower your staff to make executive decisions about such policies during times where other managers may not be on site or available to help. And if you have policies that you will not budge on, make sure they are written down and accessible in multiple media formats (backs of receipts, signs in the store, on the website, etc.) for your customers to be aware of. Do not hide behind policies; the goal is not to trick your customers or appear shady. Be open and honest and customers will respect you for your open attitude.

The bottom line is that everyone plays a role in customer service and it is important to set clear expectations and talk about those responsibilities as an organization. A little extra effort goes a long way in retaining existing customers and in turn, showing the new customers just what kind of business you truly are. 

Melissa Harrison is principal at Allée, a strategic communications consulting and design firm. Follow her on Twitter or connect with Allée on Facebook for business marketing and communication tips.