Good customer service is the fuel of any business. Offering promotions and slashing prices could bring in lots of new customers, but it’s the customer service that brings them back again. Businesses will never be profitable in the long run unless the business has efficient customer service.
Customer service is a phrase that is used to describe the process of taking care of customers in a positive manner. When the customers are taken care of in a positive manner, the customer usually leave happy. When the customer leaves happy they usually return. When the customer is sent away happy this is probably the biggest reward for the business. The customer most likely passes the positive feedback about the business to others, who might also come to try the product or service for themselves and in turn become repeat customers as well.
Customer service is the ability to provide a service or product in the way that it has been promised. In other words, don’t say it unless it can be done. This happens all the time in most businesses. Customers get false hope from an employee whom even knows what they are promising can’t be done and yet offers it anyway. Everyone has been in some sort of situation like this. Whether it is a cable salesman who promises free movie channels for a month or a restaurant employee who offers a free meal on your next visit. There are many ways to keep a customer without offering free stuff, promising to do something and not following through is a sure proof way to lose a customer for good along with many others.
Customer service is about treating others as you would like to be treated yourself. Regardless of their age, sex, marital status, economic status, national origin, ethnic background, sexual orientation, political beliefs, religion, race, or any other category whatsoever, all customers shall be treated equal. If they are discriminated or are handled inappropriate the customer and friends and family of the customer will never return. It all comes back to the golden rule; treat others as you would like to be treated.
Customer service is a businesses ability to supply their customers’ wants and needs. The customer comes to the business with expectations. The customer may ask themselves if the food is good or not. He or she may ask what the service will be like. The most important question he or she may ask is when they have had the overall experience, will I ever return? The most important answer for the business of course is yes. When that customer enjoys their overall experience, whether it is from a phone call, face to face, or even technical support online, the business has achieved their goal in customer service. The customer will always remember the way he or she was treated and now they can be considered a customer.
According to an online article on about.com customer service can be broken down into 8 good rules: 1) Answer your phone, make sure that someone is picking up the phone when someone calls your business. 2) Don’t make promises unless you will keep them, Reliability is one of the keys to any good relationship, and good customer service is no exception. 3) Listen to your customers, Let your customer talk and show them that you are listening by making the appropriate responses, such as suggesting how to solve the problem. 4) Deal with complaints, if you give the complaint your attention, you may be able to please this one person this one time. 5) Be helpful-even if there’s no immediate profit in it, the customer will always remember your graciousness. 6) Train your staff (if you have any) to be always helpful, courteous, and knowledgeable, talk to them about good customer service and what it is. 7)Take the extra step, people notice when people make an extra effort and will tell other people. 8) Throw in something extra, whether it’s a coupon for a future discount, additional information on how to use the product, or a genuine smile, people love to get more than they thought they were getting.
It all comes back to taking care of the customers in a positive manner. If you aren’t taking care of your customers, your competition will. The customer should always be taken care of for the business to ever profit. Good customer service is the first and last step for assuring this happens.