Customer complaints are an opportunity to learn and improve. No matter what industry you are in, you will always have to deal with customer complaints. Even if your business doesn't make a mistake, at some point one of your customers will encounter an obstacle that leads them to your customer service team.
In this article, we take a look at some of the most common customer service issues and how to resolve them.
Good customer service can make the difference between success and failure of your business. If customers are satisfied, they will come back and buy more products; if they are dissatisfied, they will spread the word, negatively impacting your sales.
6 Customer Service Problems
Too many calls at once
It's important to hire enough employees to keep up with demand. While it may seem like a worthwhile savings to have one employee working on multiple customer issues at once, you could ultimately jeopardize your customers' satisfaction with your business.
Too little knowledge of customer needs
When dealing with customer service issues, it's important for companies to look at the customer's history and understand the problems they've had in the past. This way, employees won't try to repeat the same steps that didn't work in the past. Some sort of 'knowledge database' should be established so that employees can access this information.
Length of response
The issue of customer complaints has always been a challenge for many companies. Even the smallest complaints can lead to big problems if they are not responded to quickly and appropriately. A big part of the problem is the lack of customer service representatives, especially due to the high costs associated with local employees.
If outsourcing is not an option, consider setting up an offshore team to take care of your customer service. Don't make your customers wait too long for a response, or you'll be rid of them faster than you'd like.
Time change issues
If your support team is only available during regular business hours, this poses a problem if your customers are in other time zones around the world. Their business hours will obviously not be the same as yours. The idea of an international customer service team is to cover all time zones. This means you can be available at any time of day, any day of the year.
We have a simple solution for this: we can take your support calls and emails around the clock, no matter where you are. We provide you with a team of native English speakers to help you solve problems with your website or products around the clock.
No after-sales support
A "sale" is by no means the end of the story. It's important to provide after-sales support and service. Make sure your staff is engaging with customers, meeting their needs and explaining any problems with the product or service. Reach out to customers to answer questions, ensuring that your customer will return with complete satisfaction.
Poor software
Often the problem of poor performance is not the staff at all, but the particular tool and software being used. So be sure to always be up to date and working with the right tools to deliver better results.
The best way
Just because someone complains to you, it's not time to get defensive. Try to see things from his point of view and find out what the reason for his complaint is. Ask questions that get to the heart of the problem, and make sure you learn from the customer's answers.
Our 3 tips:
Don't blame the customer for your mistakes.
Stay calm and focus on fixing the problem.
Don't deny that you made a mistake, and don't lie about the severity of the error. Instead, be honest and apologize for it.
Conclusion
Some of the above customer support issues sound familiar?
Prosupo has extensive experience in delivering projects of all sizes and complexities, and can provide you with a customized solution that meets your needs. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help.