The True Cost Of Customer Service

Possibly you’ve been through this situation yourself. The sales assistant who glares towards your face as if you think of as an interruption to the important phone conversation she’s having together with their friend. The checkout dude who asks robotically, “Hi how are you” in a monotone voice, looking down, shoulders dropped, looking like their face will collapse without warning at any instant. The waitress who gets irritated and even agitated when you ask if a specific ingredient happened to be in the dish that you are considering ordering.

Have you detected the possible lack of this too? Can it be there? Or as a society, have we just simply come to put up with apathy as normal?

Now I understand  I’m probably more sensitive to it than most. The majority of my IT career has been in computer services or customer service in some form, so I have high expectations!

It’s The Simple Ideas

Personally, customer care is not only “assistance that has a smile”. It involves basic conventional courtesy, just like remembering your customer’s name… getting them the right information as soon as possible, and that you assume responsibilty to get back to them…really tuning in to their issue or complaint, without defending yourself or butting in with advice… in essence, the famous “do unto others”.

Why then do we hear a growing amount of grievances from customers, in general?

Well, I believe a substantial factor in the decline of Customer Service can be credited to business leaders simply not understanding the benefit that it may deliver their company. A person might argue that it’s got more to do with management – company management – not making this as a priority in their companies, than it is about their staff members! Until senior management begin prioritising “customer service”, we’re un{likely to~it’s unlikely we’ll~we’re not likely to} see any substantial change for better inside the rank-and-file.

[Out Of Sight Out Of Mind?]

Have a look at offshore outsourcing, as an example. When you call with a complaint or issue about your cellular phone monthly bill. Do you find that you are handled as an individual? Do you truly feel heard? Empathised with? Maybe you get the overwhelming feeling you’re merely a number, somebody else who has to be “treated” in accordance with a predefined script… hurried off the phone to fulfill some in house statistic? The problem, you see, would be that the organisation who chose to outsource “customer service” was driven solely by the business earnings. Now, as a business, there is certainly no doubt that financial cost savings are important – however what’s the real expense of such a move?

How Much Can Inadequate Customer Service Actually Cost?

Angry clients. Aggravated customers. Clients who hate needing to call, simply because they “know” they will get the run-around and not be understood. Clients who tell 19 mates about their very poor experience. Clients who don’t endorse their buddies to the company. Customers who craft blogs, post harmful responses on Facebook & Twitter. Main point here – much less clients… present customers who can’t be “up-sold” or “cross-sold” to new services or products… and a boost in cancellation / unsubscribe volumes. Fundamentally, you end up with  a business where you need to work 2 times as difficult to acquire new clients – and keep obtaining brand new customers – in an effort to constantly gain more customers than you shed each month. And that’s just madness. Any real business or marketing pro deserving of their sky-high rates will explain that it costs anywhere from 5-9 times as much to sell to a new client, than it costs to sell to a current customer.

So let’s say you were only armed with this most base bit of datawouldn’t you do everything within your power to always keep your clients satisfied, loyal, wanting more of what your business sell, and wanting to tell their mates about your business? And wouldn’t that be well worth the investment in quality Customer Service? In the old times, an unhappy client would tell his or her best friends and the household. Maybe over lunch, or in a telephone chat or two.

However nowadays, one poor experience might be rapidly shared with thousands of people. YouTube. Facebook. Twitter. Forums. Web sites assembled exclusively for complaints to be lodged!

{If there was ever any truth real truth in “any publicity is good publicity”, there’s certainly absolutely no truth remaining today}! The customer who complains is not highly likely to buy yet again, and you’ve lost an immeasurable quantity of new customers (money!) in the process.

“But That’s Not In My Job Description!”

Unfortunately, until companies wake up to the importance of customer service – realise that customer service (and tech support, for the same reasons) doesn’t have to be a “cost centre”, but can in fact be a “profit centre” when handled correctly – the employees of those businesses will not likely get the message. And if the employees don’t get this message from their leaders, and they are not measured or motivated to provide exceptional (or perhaps “decent”!) customer service, they really are not going to provide it. These days, customer service seems to be at the base of the concern list of the majority of corporations. At least, that has been my personal past experience, with few exceptions. So is customer service dead? I’d claim no. It is still with us, but yes, it truly is on the way out.

Unless “customer service” gets to be a metric that can be measured – a piece of someone’s KPI reporting – chances are we shall carry on to see the similar low quality customer service that we are experiencing now. After all, where is the incentive for personnel to change their approach? Why would they create extra work for themselves?

Learn How To Take Advantage Of This

The excellent thing is, however if you’re a business proprietor, you possess a amazing opportunity. A silver lining, if you will. And that opportunity is this: Treat your clients well. See the world through their eyes. Take care of all of them by using care as well as reverence. Do more than expected. Perform what you say you are going to do, without excuse. Maintain connection with them , ensuring they don’t have to follow you up you or your organisation. Simply do these kinds of straightforward tasks, and you will position your corporation so very far above your competition, that I would nearly guarantee you will see an improvement in your bottom line profits within 3-12 months.

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