As you approach the new year, it is worth spending some time thinking about how you can better serve your clients in the months ahead. Without customers, your business is nothing more than an idea, which is why tailoring your approach to ensure customer satisfaction is a must. It can be easy to get caught up in the day-to-day operations of your business and to miss out on the details of customer service. However, it is vital to the long-term health of your company that you attract and retain customers who remain loyal to your brand. In order to do so, you have to be paying attention to the cues your client base is giving you about your service. Check out the following four things that your customers want from you in 2019.
#1: A Personalized Touch
While the advent of chatbots and other computerized solutions for customer service are a growing trend, they shouldn’t mean that you leave your customers alone out in the cold. While chatbots and other methods can work well for solving quick problems, customers still appreciate a personalized touch. In fact, according to a study by Google, a whopping 61 percent of people still prefer to call a business and talk to a person when they are in the beginning stages of the buying cycle.
Your customer service representatives will play a huge role in what kind of an experience your clients have with your business. Make sure that you are instilling the necessity of a personalized touch with your team. If you aren’t already measuring your customer service ratings as a key performance indicator, do so going forward. Nothing can replace a human touch.
#2: To Have Their Concerns Heard
If there is one trend that is never going out of style it will be listening to what your clients have to say. Nothing will infuriate your customers quite like feeling unheard. This goes beyond just customer service too. Your marketing team should be highly attuned to the voice of your clients.
You should be listening not only to concerns or complaints but praises that your company receives as well. This can help you hone in on what it is that your clients like and what you can do to maximize those components of your business. You can also use the voice of your customers to find out what you should be offering next. Are there features or products that your clients constantly inquire about? Make sure you hear everything your customers have to say and ensure that there are easily accessible lines of communication available.
#3: Mobile Accessibility
Your customers, like all of us, are constantly on the go. If you don’t have an easy way for clients to access information about your company, make that a focus in the year ahead. You should be easy to find online, your website should be simple to utilize from a mobile device, and it shouldn’t be difficult to contact you when needed. No matter what industry you are in, there is no reason to not be accessible online. It is worth your time and effort to invest in an outstanding mobile-friendly website and digital visibility.
Mobile accessibility becomes particularly relevant if you are selling products online. When is the last time you walked through your own sales funnel? If it has been a while, take time to do so today. Do you notice any areas that are weak? Is it hard to purchase your products from a small mobile device? As people rely on their phones more and more for daily computing tasks, it is critical that you are prepared as a small business.
#4: Honest Communication
As is true with any relationship, the one you build with your clients has to be constructed on a basis of trust. Without this foundation, things are bound to go awry and it will be difficult to retain long-term clients. Honest communication is key. If something goes wrong, you need to be truthful with your clients. If you are making a big change, you need to clearly communicate that to all parties affected. A lack of honesty is absolutely detrimental to your long-term success. No amount of PR stunts can fix the damages caused by misleading your customers. From the way you market your products to how you handle any incidents that arise, be sure you are truthful and straightforward.
At the Commercial Finance Group, we have witnessed first hand how important clear and honest communication can be. We help small businesses who need access to alternative methods of funding and one solution we offer is accounts receivable factoring. When one of our clients opts to utilize this funding method, an area we always coach honestly in is the process of letting your clients know what is going on. When you are dealing with invoice factoring, honest communication with clients who are affected is crucial. Even in a situation such as this, honesty can go a long way in retaining a quality reputation as a business.
As you look towards the new year and work on improving your relationship with your clients, make sure you are prepared financially as well. Reach out to our team if you need help exploring unique funding solutions. We help clients who need a bridge to bankability by offering custom working capital solutions. Contact us for further information and spur the growth your company needs in 2019.
