What is Customer Service? And, how do I make mine better?

What is Customer Service? And, how do I make mine better? 

"Customer Service is the provision of service to customers before, during and after a purchase" 

If you keep this definition in mind, the following is easier to concentrate on.

Customer Service is the backbone of any business. It is possibly, in fact probably, the main factor in keeping your existing customers and gaining new ones!

Below are a few tips to help make you better at Customer Service:

1. Have a complaints procedure available to your customers. Use it when your customers have an issue. Every business makes mistakes, but it's how you deal with them which sets you apart! If you resolve it quickly and to the customer's satisfaction, you may end up with a customer for life and someone who will evangelise your business for you!
2. Treat each and every customer as an individual. They are not just a sale and you know it. When you go into a shop, do you wish to be treated as a sale opportunity? I thought not! Don't be robotic, don't sound like you're going from a script. We've all been annoyed by some call centre staff at some point when they're going through the script that they have to follow. Don't appear to your customers like that.
3. Be friendly. We're professionals in what we do, but we can be friendly without losing the profesionalism.
4. Get regular feedback from your customers. You can run a prize draw with the customers who fill in the feedback forms being those who are entered. It's a nice incentive for them to fill in the form.
5. Smile! Smile at your customers even if they're on the phone or you're reading their email or the text they sent. It might sound daft, but you can tell when someone is smiling even over the phone. You've received a phone call from someone with great news and you can tell even before they tell you the news that they're happy just from the tone of their voice. Remember the time you went shopping and the sales staff were sullen and miserable? Did you spend lots of money with those assistants? Just a thought.

Finally, remember one of the important mantra of business:

A good salesperson can sell anything once. Good Customer Service will keep that person buying!

Understanding the 4 Kinds of customer

Understanding Your Customers

So here is my contribution to helping you. As you can see from the above pictures I currently work in a Service Centre so I am going to try and transfer my skills from my day job to help convert more enquiries into sales. Elaine there showing her skill at bubble shooter.

So here goes topic one understanding your customers. From the moment your customer starts calling or typing a email your service starts and its crucial to understand what kind of client you are dealing with. This is important as you need to change your approach to most appeal to your customer. There is 4 main groups that the customers fall into these define the customer your dealing with and its crucial you identify which one your client falls into as soon as possible.

The personality groups are Analytical, Driver, Amiable and Expressive and these apply if the customer is on the phone, with you in person or via email. Here is some More information into each type of customer.

Analytical - Analytical people are known for being systematic, well organized and deliberate. These individuals appreciate facts and information presented in a logical manner as documentation of truth. They enjoy organization and completion of detailed tasks. Others may see him at times as being too cautious, overly structured, someone who does things too much 'by the book'.

controlled

orderly

precise

disciplined

deliberate

cautious

diplomatic

systematic

logical

conventional

Driver - They thrive on the thrill of the challenge and the internal motivation to succeed. Drivers are practical folks who focus on getting results. They can do a lot in a very short time. They usually talk fast, direct and to the point. Often viewed as decisive, direct and pragmatic.

• action-orientated
• decisive
• problem solver
• direct
• assertive
• demanding
• risk taker
• forceful
• competitive
• independent
• determined
• results-orientated

Amiable - They are dependable, loyal and easygoing. They like things that are non-threatening and friendly. They hate dealing with impersonal details and cold hard facts. They are usually quick to reach a decision. Often described as a warm person and sensitive to the feelings of others but at the same time wishy-washy.

• patient
• loyal
• sympathetic
• team person
• relaxed
• mature
• supportive
• stable
• considerate
• empathetic
• persevering
• trusting
• congenial

Expressive - Very outgoing and enthusiastic, with a high energy level. They are also great idea generators, but usually do not have the ability to see the idea through to completion. They enjoy helping others and are particularly fond of socializing. They are usually slow to reach a decision. Often thought of as a talker, overly dramatic, impulsive, and manipulative.

• verbal
• motivating
• enthusiastic
• convincing
• impulsive
• influential
• charming
• confident
• dramatic
• optimistic
• animated

Once you have identified the customer type you need to adapt your approach to that customer. This will ease the customer and make them feel more comfortable with you, give them information in the way that they can easily understand and in the way that will make them feel good.

Quick tips

When dealing with the customer in email the customer will sign the email with there name (always use this as the name you address the customer with) so if the customer signs it Mrs Customer address the customer as this. if the customer signs it as Jayne, address her as Jayne.

Make your email reflect a similar standard and personalise to the customer. If the customer asks about packages dont send a email back saying "we offer a range of packages ........." personalise it make the customer feel that the packages are for them "For you I have....." Use I instead of We and make it seem as if your telling the customer directly and not everyone.

Dont use a standard reply to your emails write each one individually, customers will look at several different photographers, they may forget they already sent you a email and send you a second that very same night, if you respond to each email with the exact same standard reply the customer will be put off. .

More to follow tomorrow

Welcome to my Customer service in photography blog site.

Welcome in this year long blog series I am aiming to show how customer service will improve your business with new clients and existing clients.

well lets get started firstly what is customer service? I see a lot of different answers to this and to a extent most are right below is the defination of what customer service is.

Customer service is the provision of service to customers before, during and after a purchase!

My level of service that I aim for is to make sure that the customer leaves me thinking "I really enjoyed that" and that they talk about the "experience" of me and my service levels. I want my customers to leave smiling and when someone mentions photos, photography or photographer they think of me over anything else. I want them to walk out even after a initial chat and if they haven't bought anything to think that it was a enjoyable service they had from me. The main reason is that this leads onto the single most powerful local advertisement tool "Word of Mouth."

My service to a customer starts before they even know about me with what ever method they find me, and word of mouth is the best way to show you how this works. A client has a good experience and service with you, then they recommend you. The new clients already have a impresion of your business before even contacting you themselves.

Through the course of this blog I will be going into tricks, tips, hints and some golden rules on what you can do to improve your relations with new and existing clients.

I look forward to speaking with you all soon