What Is Customer Service? [Defined & Explained]
Customer service is gaining popularity. In a digital-first, highly competitive world, giving customers timely and helpful service is more important than ever. Companies used to compete with each other on price and product quality. Gartner’s data shows that “89% of businesses expect to compete primarily based on the customer experience.”
Customer service is vital for creating exceptional customer experiences and boosting revenue. Being where your customers are—and helping them solve their problems—should be a top focus for every organization, whether via email, texting, social media, or the telephone. But what exactly is customer service? What does the term “customer service” mean?
Here are the essentials for getting started:
- Customer service definition
- What’s the difference between customer service and customer support?
- Why is customer service necessary for your business?
- What are some tips for providing good customer service?
About us: FCS builds 7/24 communication bridges between your brand and your customers by offering customized and cost-effective call center services to businesses in many different industries.
What Is Customer Service?
Customer service is the help you give your customers before and after they buy and use your products or services to make their interactions with your business easy and pleasant.
But customer service is about more than just solving a client’s problems and fulfilling their requests. Today, customer service means helping customers right away and proactively through the method of their choice, such as phone, email, text message, chat, and more.
Because of its importance, customer service is now seen as a critical role for businesses in all fields. Most retailers see this direct interaction as an important way to keep customers happy and encourage them to buy from them again. Three-quarters of agents said their employers consider them customer representatives and brand ambassadors.
Even though automated self-service platforms now handle most customer service, most firms still view the opportunity to talk with a human as essential.
Customer Service And Customer Support: What’s The Difference?
Some businesses use the terms “customer service” and “customer support” similarly. So, what is the difference between customer service and customer support?
Customer support is only one part of customer service, which involves agents’ and customers’ communications across various channels.
Customer service is a way to build relationships with customers and earn their loyalty throughout their lifecycles. This transactional approach gives helpful solutions and direction during the buyer’s journey.
On the other hand, customer support provides hands-on help and follow-up care that improves the customer experience instead of just completing a transaction.
Let’s see why customer service is important for your business.
Why Is Customer Service Important?
Simply put, loyalty. More satisfied customers are more inclined to continue doing business with you, which improves your net profit. It is less costly to retain existing customers than to acquire new ones.
Customer service is a differentiator that distinguishes your brand from rivals offering comparable items or services. In addition to answering inquiries, service personnel tailors each interaction to the individual consumer. 80% of customers think how a company makes them feel is just as important as the products or services it sells.
Meanwhile, negative customer experiences add to consumer attrition. For example, after three negative experiences, 80% of buyers will leave a business. The quality of your customer service is crucial to your brand’s reputation, and customers are ready to share negative experiences with the world via the Internet.
What Are Some Tips For Providing Good Customer Service?
If you are wondering how to improve a company’s customer service, we’ve compiled a list of five ways your business can provide better support for its customers.
Exceed the Expectations of Your Customers
Customers prefer self-service options that allow them to fix their problems quickly and easily. Still, if that isn’t an option or the problem is too complicated, they’d rather speak with a customer care agent with expertise in their area of concern. Although it may seem obvious, many businesses fail to satisfy their customers’ needs in this area, much to their chagrin.
Provide a Simple Way for People to Provide Feedback and Take Action
An overwhelming majority of customers (90%) want to offer feedback. However, over half (48%) of those polled believe that businesses don’t take their suggestions seriously. This trend is quite concerning, and its root reason is likely just as consequential.
Respond on Time
Channel-specific optimal reaction times should be determined. If it’s a website chat, the response time should be almost quick, but an email might take up to two days. Research shows that over half of customers (53%) want a response to a tweet from a company within an hour. Regarding customer complaints, 73% of people anticipate the same response time.
Take the Initiative
Forget about waiting for consumers to contact you with their concerns and inquiries. On the contrary, you should make the first move by reaching out and asking for clarification.
Self-Service and Contactless Payment Options
In reality, 66% of consumers try self-service before contacting a customer care agent. Still, they often need help to resolve their issue because either insufficient information is offered or there is too much information without the means to go through and do an effective search.
Provide Exceptional Customer Service with First Contact Service
These days, customers have the upper hand in interactions with companies that provide customer care. That’s why it’s the responsibility of customer service agents to ensure their success. It’s essential to remember that boosting your customers’ success will benefit your business’s growth and profitability. By outsourcing your answering services, you can accelerate the growth of your business.
First Contact Service (FCS) is here to help you!
First Contact Service is a bridge between you and your customers on behalf of your brand. You can keep your customers pleased and save money with First Contact Service’s business call center services.
With the help of our expert solutions, we can gather and monitor customer service data to enhance analytical procedures and convert them into market prospects. We can analyze customer behavior and provide innovative strategies to help your company grow. Get in touch with us now!