When designing and planning a marketing strategy, we usually tend to pay more attention to what is visible to the naked eye, such as the logo, the brand, the product design. However, the truth is that there exist other complementary elements that the client perceives and that we sometimes overlook, but that can be fundamental to transmit the message that we want to convey in an advertising campaign.
In this sense, customer service is one of those aspects that perhaps we do not usually pay too much attention to. Having a good product that everyone wants to have is not enough to increase sales, and we need to get the right message across at the right time. In addition, if we do not want the relationship between our company and clients to be affected, it is essential to take care of our public with small details that make them feel that they can trust us.
There are several ways to convert consumers into followers of our company and thus ensure that our product meets the needs of our customers. Therefore, today we bring you a series of tips to make customer service the perfect ally of your marketing strategy. Read on if you want to know what they are!
What Is Customer Service?
Before knowing how to use customer service within your marketing plan, it is essential to understand what we mean by this term. Many people believe that customer service refers only to the assistance and advice provided by a company to consumers when they have a problem.
However, this is a minimal part of the process since this service is a marketing tool that allows us to establish a relationship with the buyers of our products through different channels. In this way, it is a fundamental piece in our strategy, and as such, it must accompany clients throughout the entire purchase process and even after completing the sale.
Therefore, we must be clear that serving and caring for our customers is not only about providing help when they have a question or problem. We must pay attention to the small details from the first contact with them. Using appropriate technology or encouraging them to contact us can be critical to the success of a business.
Tips To Improve Your Company’s Customer Service
As we mentioned before, the first contact with the client is essential since it will be what motivates his decision to stay with us or go to our competitors. However, the truth is that we must think that every time consumers communicate with our company, the circumstances are different, and therefore, it generates a new impact on them. Consequently, we must take utmost care of every aspect of our service and know everything we can to take the user experience to the next level.
Identify The Needs of Your Customers.
Before designing and implementing a marketing strategy, it is essential to know what our target audience wants and what they expect when they come to us. Thus, to respond as closely as possible to what you are looking for, it is essential to know the needs you intend to satisfy with the product or service in question.
Listening carefully, understanding, and knowing the user in-depth is a critical aspect that any customer service team must carry out. Highlighting the characteristics of the product that best suit what the consumer is looking for and identifying other complementary needs can make the difference between our service and that of our competitors.
Combine Humane Treatment With Technology
Employees are the visible face of your company, and as such, they must offer immediate and personalized treatment to each client. In turn, the latter hope to receive a quick response to what they raise. Now, what happens when workers have to answer many calls and messages?
In these cases, the time that passes from the first contact until the request is resolved is increased, in many cases leading to despair on the part of consumers, abandonment of the interaction, and consequently, a negative impact on the company’s image. To avoid this, combining the humane treatment offered by agents with the efficiency of new technologies is undoubtedly the most appropriate option.
At present, Artificial Intelligence systems have been developed that, implemented in our customer service processes, represent a great advantage. For example, having a virtual agent in the IP telephony service of our company can be an excellent way to establish a bond with our clients. These tools can be easily integrated with other systems by operating through the Internet. In addition to answering calls and messages anywhere, they also allow the automation of specific tasks. It is true that there are more sophisticated virtual agents than others and that they will be able to serve users in a more similar way to how a human would. Still, in general, the most common virtual agents attend the most straightforward requests, transferring those that are more qualified or most that have no response to an agent.
In this way, we will ensure that our client is taken care of and even solve their doubts in a short period, preventing them from abandoning their attempt to speak with us. In addition, current or potential consumers will stay for the quality and speed of our service, increasing our sales and making one of the fundamental objectives of any marketing strategy a reality.
Establish Fluent Communication
For a client to feel cared for and listened to, they must know that they can count on you at any time. This does not mean that you should be available 24 hours a day, although if that is what you want, you always have the option of having the Artificial Intelligence systems that we talked about previously.
However, as long as you decide that you will be there for your consumers, you should let them know and encourage them to contact you when they need it. An excellent way to do this is to take advantage of omnichannel communication opportunities. With this term, we refer to a model that companies use to interact with their customers through different channels (instant messaging applications, calls, email …) simultaneously.
Today, calls are no longer the only means of contact available. Applications such as WhatsApp, Telegram, or even LiveChat have become the favorite option of many users. These tools allow fluid and instantaneous communication between two parties and favor the image of a company committed to users who want to make it easy for them by offering a comfortable environment. If you want more information about how you can provide new communication channels in your company, we will tell you about it at this link.
Define Your Customer Service Policy
There are essential and common elements in any job facing the public: be polite, listen carefully, remain calm … However, for a marketing strategy to be successful, our agents must follow standard guidelines so that customer service is the same and there is no confusion. In this sense, it is essential to define the message to be transmitted, the characteristics to be promoted, how they can react to possible problems …
Of course, each employee will have a different style when communicating with clients. Still, by establishing a series of essential elements, we will ensure that the attention received will be the same for everyone, orderly and without errors.
Know The Degree of Consumer Satisfaction
Finally, it is essential to know if the actions we are carrying out within our marketing strategy are working. We must not forget that the client is the center of all our efforts, and as such, we must know how satisfied they are with our service. Thus, it is essential to measure the different aspects influencing it to identify our strengths and weaknesses.
Using a system that allows us to obtain any feedback can be very interesting to improve customer service. For example, an evaluation system or a telephone survey to leave their opinion after the interaction can become our best ally.
Nobody said that the beginnings were easy, but you can make your customer service the perfect ally of your marketing strategy to increase your sales if you follow these tips.
Also Read: New Customer Service Techniques And Tools