When we discuss growing a business, the conversation typically focuses on finance, innovation, personnel and cost management, but a crucial factor often under-emphasised is customer service. How a business interacts with its customers is essential to its product or service offering success. Optimising customer experience should be as much a priority as any other aspect of the business.
A Great Customer Experience is Especially Important for SMEs
Big businesses tend to concentrate on what might be best described as simple professionalism. With already established reputations, they focus on the operational aspect of the business – processes and efficiencies – rather than proving themselves to their customers. Moreover, large companies often have big marketing budgets. To expand into a new market or reach new customers, they can simply invest in a marketing campaign to get the job done.
Unlike these large businesses, SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises) operate on razor-thin sales and marketing budgets, yet investing in growth is critical. Finding low-cost ways to increase revenue is often vital to survival. Investing in an improved customer experience can be an excellent solution. As the equation dictates, a satisfied customer is likely to stick around. If they’re delighted with both your product and the service you provide, they’ll become an unofficial brand ambassador – which is essentially free marketing!
3 Simple Ways to Improve Customer Experience
Excellent customer service will look slightly different for each industry. For example, the interactions between a restaurant and its patron won’t resemble a software development firm and its client. However, that doesn’t mean they aren’t working from the same customer service playbook. Different customers have different needs, an outstanding customer experience is about understanding and meeting those needs.
Understand Your Customer Needs
To provide great service, team members need to understand both the purpose of the business and the needs of its customers. In the instance of a restaurant, for example, its purpose extends beyond simply selling food. A restaurant also exists to provide an experience. From a customer perspective, however, a couple out for a romantice meal will have different needs to that of a large group out for a birthday dinner – determining and meeting the needs of each group will define their experience.
Provide a Human Face
Once customer needs are identified, the art lies in responding to them appropriately; this can often require a significant amount of experience, but for some, it comes down to instinct. More than anything else, however, it is important to interact with each customer as a person rather than a business. Take the time to communicate with your customer. A personal touch goes a long way in letting your customer know that you hear them and plan to act on what you’ve heard.
Teach Troubleshooting Skills
Inevitably, businesses will run into customer service difficulties, whether it’s a product shortage, a system error, a shipping issue, or a long line at the register. In situations like these, your team members must know how to interact with your customer. No matter what, this interaction, like any other, should be leveraged to make the client feel valued and viewed as an opportunity to strengthen your relationship.
So, to spell it out, a top-notch customer experience will help you retain customers and attract new ones. More customers mean more sales. More sales mean more revenue, and more revenue equals growth!
Working to elevate your customer experience is a low-cost option to establish your brand and accelerate business growth. What’s more, it will positively impact your experience as a business owner and that of your team members.
Customer love is a crucial ingredient to success!