It is important for companies to recognize how customer service affects their ability to grow and retain clients
Meji believes that there are 3 key characteristics that vividly capture the key contributors to a service provider’s prolonged success. They are as follows:
After ensuring that the service being offered is quality and adequate is naturally the first thing a business should set its focus on. This is the characteristic that will attract business and help the business grow. Following quality, however, is what is viewed to be the most important characteristic to prolong that success: reliance, in other words, trust.
Whether or not a company claims to offer the most standout service on the market, its reliability is what will ultimately determine how well it will be able to perform in the long term.
A fintech example
To better understand how customer service failures can negatively impact a company’s image, we’ll take the example of a fintech startup that had initially succeeded in attracting attention to its brand. The services being offered were money transfers and online payments that could additionally be utilized by other businesses for payment processing. At an affordable rate combined with a modernized system, the company had enormous potential to disrupt the existing methods that were commonplace in the associated industries.
Regardless of the initial momentum earned from successful marketing and outreach, many customers began to experience service issues. While certain issues were expected, the company was far too unprepared to handle the various issues and complaints of its clients. The customer support correspondence was uniquely done by email and social media however many days would pass before users would get a response. Subsequently, users resorted to voicing their complaints on the company’s social media posts. Negative comments and concerns were littered throughout the company’s social media which in turn affected the brand’s reputation and reliability.
The company’s failure to establish adequate channels of communication for customer relations and its failure to address these concerns quickly enough ultimately halted its momentum, harmed its reputation, and resulted in a loss of clients. Following the mishap, the proper channels were put into place and the company now had a consistent way to address the various issues their clients faced. Going forward, however, the company will need to work even harder to recover the reputation of reliability that was severely affected.
Doing things the right way
Organizing and establishing the necessary technical infrastructure to form effective channels of customer service is not as simple as most presume. Companies often face challenging decisions when deciding whether or not they should purchase more space for the personnel they plan to hire, they must also determine the cost of the software and equipment that will need to be purchased. These factors and decisions can interfere with regular business activities which is why it is common and more efficient for businesses to hire professionals to undertake the setup from A to Z.
Regardless of whether the customer service operation is small or expansive, businesses mustn’t neglect the importance and effects that positive customer service has on a business’ prolonged success. Neglecting to adequately handle clients will always hurt the business’ potential for growth but also endanger its existing client relationships.