Four Strategies for Providing Outstanding Customer Service
The businesses which survive and prosper in the long term are those which realise that their customers are their most valuable asset. It can be easy, particularly in financially challenging times, for companies to focus on the bottom line and expend energy on cutting costs and achieving savings to the detriment of customer service. Yet the simple truth is that customers equal revenue and the better you care for your business customers, the more loyal they will become, the more they will spend with you and the more they will recommend you to others.
Almost every business, whether small or large, can benefit from improving customer service. Specialist sales training provider Maguire Training can equip business owners and sales managers with everything they need to ensure that their company provides peerless customer service. Delegates attending the Customer Service Excellence course will learn how to become customer-focused, to recognise their customers' needs and desires and to implement strategies that will delight the customer, strengthen relationships and increase customer loyalty.
There are numerous ways in which a business might approach improving its customer service, but here Maguire Training suggests four strategies that can help any businesses to provide outstanding customer service from the word go.
- Recruit employees who are geared toward providing customer great service
When recruiting customer-facing employees it's important to focus not only upon a candidate's skills and experience but also upon their personality. Businesses that can recruit staff who are naturally cheerful, friendly and outgoing when dealing with customers are setting a foundation for excellent customer service provision.
- Make customer service training a journey, not a destination
Customer needs, desires and attitudes change over time and maintaining outstanding customer service levels is an ongoing challenge. Investing in regular developmental or refresher courses for customer-facing employees ensures that they stay ahead of the curve and can continue to deliver a service that delights customers and thereby generates revenue.
- Align every aspect of the business around customer service delivery
The businesses that have the greatest reputation for customer service excellence examine every area of their operation and question every aspect by asking 'how does this affect the customer experience'? Building a business culture around delighting the customer and removing or improving any process which undermines customer satisfaction is fundamental to building customer loyalty and a reputation which will attract new customers. - Make staff eager to provide outstanding customer service
Both the working environment and business culture should motivate employees to provide great customer service. An informal working atmosphere in which customer-facing staff can relax and enjoy their work, combined with an incentive scheme which rewards outstanding contributions to achieving customer service excellence demonstrates to employees that they are valued and that their efforts are recognised.
No business which aspires to success and profitability can afford to sacrifice high standards of customer service, even when times are tough. In addition to their classroom-based Customer Service Excellence course, Maguire Training also offers an online training version 'Excellent Customer Service'. Delivered via Maguire Training's convenient E-learning platform, delegates can acquire all of the benefits of this essential training whilst studying when and where they choose from any internet-connected computer or device.
