5 key factors of effective customer service management

Customer service strategies should be constantly evolving. After all, new tools are appearing on the market every day – and customer expectations are not standing still, either. 

What can you do to keep up with these changes? What factors are worth paying special attention to? You can find out all about it in the article below.

1. Goals corresponding with the direction of your company’s development

It’s hard to argue with the fact that customer service is one of the most important factors that influence a company’s success.

According to a study by McKinsey, companies that work to optimize the customer experience observe:

  • 10-15% increase in company revenue,
  • increase in customer satisfaction by 20%, 
  • cost reduction by 15-20%.

So it is definitely worth putting in extra effort. But can you imagine customer service functioning at the highest possible level without clearly defined goals?

You need to remember that they should be measurable and as specific as possible. Just „reducing customer retention” is not enough. A good goal is for example: „reduce customer retention by 10%”.

When setting goals, consider how achieving them will translate into the whole company’s effectiveness. Reducing retention should obviously be reflected in an increase in profits.

→ Learn more about important metrics in customer service.

2. Continuous analysis of the customer journey

The pandemic was a great demonstration of how quickly the expectations of today’s customers and market conditions can change. Companies have no other choice but to adapt to them.

Do you know what can help you in such situations? Customer journey analysis – or rather a tool called customer journey map.

The customer journey map should include all activities that the customer and your company undertake along the purchase path. This will allow you to tailor them to consumer needs, as well as choose the right tools or even employees with specific skills.

3. People + technology

In today’s customer service departments, automation systems and agents work in perfect synergy. After all, it’s the year of 2021.

Automation relieves consultants of the burden of daily, repetitive duties, allowing them to focus on those tasks that actually require their attention and creativity. 

What’s more, artificial intelligence automatically assigns inquiries to the most competent people. It also sends requests to attach necessary files, makes answers suggestions, and even recognizes customer emotions.

Or at least that’s how the AI Busters automation engine works.

Employees, customers, and ultimately the entire company benefit from it.

Is this the case for your team?

4. Customer always first 

No one can be surprised by the customer-centric approach today.

It’s an attitude that your team must adhere to in order to deliver a top-notch customer experience. But it’s critical that it’s not limited just to your departament – it should be understood by employees in every department in the company.

Meanwhile, Harvard Business Review proves that most companies focus primarily on sales or product – not the customer. 

What can you do to prevent this from happening in your company?

  • Hire empathetic employees who have no problem recognizing customers’ emotions.
  • Find the connection between customer satisfaction and your company’s performance.
  • Share customer feedback with your entire team.
  • Encourage employees to interact with customers in person – if necessary.
  • Respond immediately to customer requests – offer 24/7 support – with the help of artificial intelligence, of course.

5. Collecting feedback

We’ve mentioned the importance of goals in customer service. However, it will be difficult for you to meet them without feedback from the source itself.

Feedback from customers will help you improve your customer service, but also your business in general.

What can help you collect and evaluate feedback?

  • Conversations with customers.
  • Surveys.
  • Analyzing their comments – for example, in online app stores. This is another feature that AI Busters offers.

Ready to take your customer service to the next level? Learn more about the capabilities of AI Busters!