Customer Service Key To Business Success
Going holiday shopping at the mall used to be as
traditional as hanging mistletoe and drinking eggnog. But
the abundance of easy-to-use catalog and online shopping
options has many consumers picking out the perfect gift from
the comfort of their own homes. So what does this mean for
retailers?
Well, if their contact centers make Santa's "nice" list
instead of his "naughty" one, it's likely to mean less coal
and more revenue in their stockings. That's because, in what
is predicted to be a slow shopping season, consumers will
opt to do more business with retailers that provide the
highest levels of service.
As consumers holiday shop this year-particularly online or
through catalogs-there are certain traits that can be found
with retailers providing exceptional service. According to a
recent Contact Center Satisfaction Index of European and
North American consumers conducted by market research firm,
Leo J. Shapiro and Associates, consumers who have an
exceptional experience are 33 percent more likely to do more
business with that company in the future.
Yet the survey found that company interactions are generally
failing to meet consumers' expectations. So how will this
affect retailers during the holiday season? By potentially
impacting profitability. Nearly 75 percent of consumers who
had a bad experience say they will conduct less business
with a company and 60 percent say they will do much less
business.
The good news is, retailers' contact centers can do a number
of things to significantly improve satisfaction. Consumers
should be demanding that retailers:
- Quickly respond to inquiries or issues;
- Provide accurate and detailed product and service
information;
- Set expectations for what will transpire after an
interaction; and
- Transfer knowledge to consumers to enable them to make
informed decisions.
Retailers can easily improve their tools and training
processes, send consumers to self-service systems only when
they can address their issues and, when the time is right,
provide the most appropriate customer service representative
with the right skills and resources to help consumers meet
their shopping objectives.
If consumers only do business with retailers that provide
high levels of customer service, retailers will need to sit
up and take notice or else they will potentially risk losing
valuable business. And who can afford to do that?
For many consumers, the choice of where to shop is decided
based on retailers who provide exceptional customer service.
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