The right guidance to help you grow
How to Improve your Customer Service
Customer service is a HUGE deal. It’s not something you want to toss in a corner somewhere and it’s not something you think about only once a month when you start sending payment notices to your users. If you have this attitude towards customer service, then you should prepare for losing a few customers, a few more customers to be exact.
Customer service is much like a science of its own. And it brings important benefits in numerous areas. It’s no wonder that there’s such a huge fuss regarding the various techniques and strategies meant to improve this segment.
In the SaaS sphere, we could say that developers are pretty much obsessed with innovation and it’s understandable, we dare say. Given the level of competition and the number of choices, your customer is exposed to, constantly working on improving your product is a must. However, what do you plan on doing with a highly successful product, if you totally ignore customer service and you have no one to sell it to? What good will all your updates and innovations do if your customer has absolutely no knowledge about them?
You need customer services just as much as you need innovations, sometimes even more. Plus, you need to remind yourself that customer service is an ongoing endeavor that allows you to grow and develop in more ways than you could possibly imagine.
So, enough chit-chat, as by now, we’re pretty sure you’ve got the big picture. Now, let’s strategize, monetize and pretty much enjoy what we’ve accomplished.
Sometimes, we undervalue our work
Create experiences, not purchases
One of the greatest lessons of our time is the unquestionable difference between purchase and customer experiences. For you, the SaaS developer, the purchase is the goal you are aiming at. For the customer, the purchase is the result of something greater, the result of fantastic customer experience. Yes, customer experience should go beyond satisfying. This lesson has not been kept hidden from prying eyes. It’s been here all this time for developers willing to listen and learn. And with this overwhelming level of competition, you can imagine that this lesson is far from being a matter of state. Therefore, reach for the stars instead of the last floor of a skyscraper. Go for extraordinary customer experiences, which will come very much in handy in aspects such as customer acquisition and retention. Start with the very first aspect they come into contact with, your website. This is where the experience starts, so your work needs to be impeccable. While you cannot obtain a rewarding customer experience instantly, as this is often enough regarded as a work in progress kind of project, your website represents the first instance. Users may decide to give up on your product altogether if the website is not friendly or not promising enough. So, easy, straightforward, user-friendly websites encourage customers to join the party.Customer Interaction
Crucial in obtaining the desired results
Interacting with SaaS users used to be rather cold and impersonal, but that was all before this new age of customer service settled in. Now, interaction needs to be carefully realized, with one focus, obtaining the user’s satisfaction. Respond to the customers’ requests fast, without keeping them waiting for too long. Customer service is nothing like dating. It is expected of you to respond quickly, preferably within the first 24 hours. Also, present your users with multiple ways to reach you. A phone number, an email address, social media channels, put them all there where everyone can see. Don’t hold back because it’s your interest to allow customers to reach out.Customer Support
The jewel in the tiara
You can create a Sci-Fi website, offer dozens of contact options and have Usain Bolt’s speed when it comes to replying to messages and still lose the customer service battle simply for not offering the requested support. Customer support is the sure way to success in terms of building strong, long-lasting and healthy relationships with your users. Offering support to your customers goes way beyond solving issues in terms of benefits. It could very easily open the doors to collecting feedback which can be later used in different strategies meant to retain and acquire customers. And here is another secret. Customer support doesn’t simply refer to immediate issues which need assistance. It is also about prevention. Because it is crucial in terms of customer handling, as support really has the power to either break or make a company, start-ups and well-established businesses need to offer the customer support section its highly deserved attention. However, this can be expansive, especially for a business that’s just preparing to go up the ladder. So, going for a prevention model really simplifies things and you get to enjoy those extra benefits just swimming around. Creating the now greatly popular video corner may be your best tool yet. This helps you get the word around, it allows you to announce updates and innovations regarding your products, it educates audiences, it helps your customers get better acquainted with your solution, allowing them to properly and fully discover it. Plus, if you do encounter certain repetitive errors you can easily treat them by means of a tutorial. In terms of offering support when requested, social media channels seem to work the fastest. When offering support the goal is to provide the right answers/solutions in real time. While emails are still the most used and elegant options, it is no denying that social media does function the fastest. Another idea you could put into practice is the FAQ page which is of great help in solving repetitive issues. And so are chatbots, giving the customer the peace of mind that he has where to turn to when in need of help.Special gifts to special customers
The idea of customer services seems to be designed to fit in all stages of the life of time customer. While you have your initial interaction that has a crucial role in gaining customers, you have also the phases that fit in perfectly to any retention strategy. And one must not forget that monetizing existing customers through various upsells and cross-sales is possible once again using customer service. Indeed this tool can be highly rewarding for the business developer who is ready to put some muscle into the entire affair. Personalized customer service is the new kid on the block, even though it’s not really that new, and quite frankly, it is pretty rewarding, to say the least.
Personalized customer service basically tells the user that you do know who he is and that’s what he wants to hear. Special offers give the receiver the sense that he belongs to a closed group and that he is one step above the average consumer. It may be so in your eyes, true, but it’s really a game of impressions. So why not use it in your best interest? eBooks, guides, tutorials, special discounts, maybe free trials on products that have not been launched yet (get your user feedback in this manner), all are regarded as special gifts and all are appreciated.
Turn customer service into a tool of its own, a tool with multiple purposes and uses. Invest time and effort into building a sector that can address all the issues customers may be faced with and enjoy the rewards. Enjoy the strong customer relationships, the high retention rates, a fast acquisition, and build a positive online presence as a strong support giver.
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