Getting through a bad economy with better customer service

Unless you have been hiding under a rock for the past couple years, it looks like the economy has seen better days. Things are slow all over, but the good news is that in terms of the economy, what goes down must come up… sooner or later. If you can get through the rough times, the future is certainly bright.

So what do we do to get through the rough times, anyway? If you can cut costs and maintain revenues, you are probably ahead of the game. But what if you are able to increase revenues as a direct result of cutting costs? You get the best of both worlds, and relatively speaking; have a pretty easy trip through the rough times. It can be done.

It’s all about shifting your focus. If you take some of the resources you dedicate to the acquisition of new customers and redirect them to enhancing your relationship with existing customers, the benefits can be greater than you might expect. Here are some statistics that may surprise you:

• In a study conducted by Frederick F. Reichheld and W. Earl Sasser it was found that with a reduction of just 5% in customer defections in the industrial distribution business sector, the percent increase in customer value was 45%.

• In the same study by Reichheld and Sasser they suggest that "companies can boost profits by 100% by retaining just 5% more of their customers."

• It costs five to seven times more to find new customers than to retain customers you already have.

• Of dissatisfied customers, 98% will never complain-they will just leave.

• Totally satisfied customers are six times more likely to repurchase a company's products over a span of one to two years than are merely satisfied customers.

• In a recent survey, 2/3 of customers polled said they believed their suppliers either seriously or somewhat misunderstood their needs.

• Fortune Magazine says that 85% of dissatisfied customers tell 9 people, while 13% tell 20 people.

• In the next six years, 80% of your customers will leave you. 65% due to something you did.

• 75% of the reasons customers leave a company has nothing to do with the product.

• The longer a customer stays with you, the more profit you make. A 5% retention rate will increase profits from 25%-55%. However, a satisfied customer tells 5 people (Fortune).

• If companies increase their customer retention by 2%, it is the equivalent of cutting their operating expenses by 10%.

• 15% to 40% of customers who say they are satisfied defect from a company each year.

I could go on and on, but I’ll guess you get the point. Let’s look at what you can do. Here are 6 steps that can get you on your way to providing better customer service:

1. Get the knowledge
   Talk to your customers. Get their input. It is critical that you find out what their expectations are. Find out what you can do to make them feel loyal. If your service is excellent, customers will be very difficult to steal.

2. Give them what they expect, and then some
   If your customers have an expectation, they will be satisfied if it is met. It is when you go above and beyond that you really make the difference. Learn new ways to give them better service than they anticipate.

3. Keep customers in the loop
   Stay on top of issues. When there is a problem, always make sure you tell them about it, instead of waiting for them to notice. If you make a mistake, the customer will be far more receptive to your apology if it is delivered before the bad news.

4. Always hold their hand
   If you don’t have an answer, offer to get it for them… never tell them where to go. Whenever possible, end every communication with a solution.

5. Don’t be discouraged
   A very common problem with customer service is that CSRs (customer service reps) become desensitized. There will always be some unhappy customers. It is not about 100% customer satisfaction; it is about making as many customers happy as possible. Simply do your best, while realizing that a few people will fall through the cracks. Don’t try to eliminate it… try to minimize it.

6. Be Happy
   Always be pleasant. Your mood tends to be transferred to your customer. If you are disturbed, your customer is more likely to feel the same way. If you are friendly, your customer is more likely to think of you as a friend. Don’t just do it… be it.

7. Measure Often
   When you fix a problem, there will always be another one waiting to be fixed. It may not seem apparent now, but that is merely because it is being overshadowed by other problems. If you regularly ask your customers for their input, you will always be ahead of the game.

A side effect of happy customers is a happy and relaxed staff. You will certainly find that the service runs more smoothly, and costs can easily go down.

Now, read over those statistics again and ask yourself what your company could be doing to reduce costs and increase revenues. Consider that if you only realized a 10% gain from increased customer loyalty, what would that mean to your bottom line?

In closing, it is certainly clear that this article is a veiled ad for our ServiceTraq product. Having said that, it is no longer veiled. Take a few moments and look at ServiceTraq. It is truly designed to greatly reduce your costs and increase your company’s customer satisfaction. It works and it is very affordable. You might consider this: Most of you own AddWeb in an effort to boost sales. Have you considered ServiceTraq for the same reason? You may decide to try the free 30 day trial.

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