How to Ensure Strong Customer Service

Blog post; would include header and title page, but removed for blog.

Tracy Meyer

How to Ensure Strong Customer Service and Customer Satisfaction

By Barb Lyon from Management Help.org.

Everyone is a consumer and everyone experiences customer service on a daily basis. As a manager or an employee that works with the public it is very important  to ensure strong customer service and customer satisfaction. Lyon’s article is written to train managers on the basics of how to handle mistakes and customer complaints, customer service metrics and how to know if your customers are satisfied.

According to Lyon, if a customer is complaining about a mistake that’s been made it is important to act fast to contact the customer whether face to face, a phone call or an email. Let the customer know that you are aware of the mistake and that you are working on a solution to fix the mistake. Even if you do not have an answer yet, the customer will be happy that you contacted them right away and will respect you for doing that.

Keeping in contact with your customers after their purchase to show you appreciate their business will help build customer return and retention. A lot of retail stores will send you mailers with coupons or upcoming sales or will ask for your email at the time of purchase to email discounts and promotions, this will keep them coming back and know that they are appreciated as a customer.

Customer satisfaction is another factor in the customer service experience. You have to ask your customers if they are satisfied. If you are not asking them you are missing an opportunity to improve or to grow your business. If you are losing customers, you need to find out why. You ask your customers to fill out surveys about their experience, or even just ask them face to face. This can be as simple as asking when they are checking out if they have any questions or if there is anything else you can help them with.

Most of these suggestions in the article are common sense but it is amazing how many businesses do not practice any of this. It is surprising with competition being so tough, that they would not want to go above and beyond for their customers. I agree with everything in the article and I really like all of the links to go deeper into the suggestions and elaborate. Customer service and satisfaction are the biggest part to any purchase or service and should be a top priority for every business.