Brick-and-mortar businesses seeking to expand their clientele are always on the lookout for new methods to accomplish this goal. In addition to providing excellent face-to-face customer service to the client, businesses strive to improve customer service from every aspect. Many businesses are offering online services and stores as an alternative to, or in addition to, face-to-face customer service. Online outlets such as email, Web forms or live chat software and–increasingly–social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook, offer customers a more efficient means to resolving customer complaints.
In order to encourage customers to shop online, businesses often offer consumers discounts. This drives business to websites and alleviates the need for excessive contact with customer service, unless there is a major issue or return. While phone and email resolves issues within several minutes to hours, Twitter may yield responses in very little time. Some companies have integrated this new social networking tool into their platform in order to resolve customer complaints efficiently.
Since Twitter responses are now logged in the Library of Congress, companies are paying extra attention to customers who select to resolve customer complaints in this manner. Customers are utilizing their expansive networks to yield power and results. Companies are apologizing to customers and making resolutions to improve their company’s practices. Twitter has become a tool to assure prompt customer service, and companies must be vigilant in order to remain viable in their industry.
Companies no longer have an excuse to provide poor customer service—if they ever did. It’s easier to do it right now, and it’s also more important than ever. Businesses must strive to give the best customer service possible. Those who do not will soon find that they may not have customers to provide service to.
Practical Application:
Las Vegas’s Luxor Hotel and Casino uses Twitter for several reasons, including promotions, customer service, and guest education on new services at Luxor. Sometimes the hotel will give away tickets to a special event to encourage increased sales. A customer receiving free gifts is always a happier customer, as is a customer who receives a discount—another tweet sent by Luxor offered a guest $20 off a $100 bill at its steakhouse. Luxor’s official Twitterer also takes the time to connect with customers personally, wishing them luck in the casino or offering them suggestions on where to go in Las Vegas. This might seem insignificant, but the little touches like getting a personalized reply on Twitter can really mean a lot to a customer—and can translate into customer loyalty, good word-of-mouth publicity, and increased business.
It’s not hard to know what customers want—reasonable prices, flexible return policies, friendly and efficient customer service and an easy-to-navigate system or store. Whether the transaction occurs online or within a store, customers respond well to good treatment. Customers who do not feel their needs are being met become irate. Most customer service agents can attest that it takes twice as long to deal with an irate customer as it does a satisfied customer. Therefore, it is in the company’s best interest to provide the best service possible or lose business.
Businesses that use Twitter and other social media tools, customer relationship management tools run through cloud computing platform, and smart solutions on their Web sites like live chat software are building a roster of satisfied customers—which is just good for their bottom line.
