We know that customer service is important. It’s what differentiates your brand from your competitors and where customers decide to become authentic brand ambassadors. While we live and breathe interactions with customers every day, we sought out consumers to understand how perceptions and opinions about customer service have evolved over time. To do so, we recently conducted a survey of 2,000 Americans. The bottom line is this. Excellent service is still critical in building trust and authentic connections with your customers.
Consumer standards are higher than ever.
If you think today’s shoppers are apt to forgive and forget a sub-par customer service experience, think again. The average American consumer will give a retailer only three mistakes with their purchase before deciding to never shop with them again, upholding the “three strikes and you’re out” mentality. Nearly eight in ten Americans also say that they wouldn’t shop with a retailer ever again if they encountered bad customer service. In fact, 70 percent of survey respondents said they would abandon their purchase if they had a bad customer service experience. What does this mean for your brand? Customer service impacts the top line and cannot be viewed as a cost center. If you don’t already have a well-designed customer service strategy in place, now is the time.
Response rates matter.
From social media to old fashioned emails, Americans contact retailers 125 times a year– that’s once every three days. But, how long does it take for retailers to respond? Today’s consumers demand an almost instant response and when it doesn’t happen consumers will jump ship faster than you may think. On average, it only takes 3.5 minutes on hold with customer service before Americans start getting slightly annoyed.
And after 10.9 minutes, people tend to lose all hope and hang up before being helped. Providing a variety of channels for communicating with customers and having the right solution in place to handle the high volume of customer requests across channels is critical. Many retailers are turning to omnichannel platforms that include artificial intelligence and machine learning to help brands automate their business processes, while making it easier for their agents to take action on customer information promptly and correctly.
Millennials expect personalized interactions.
Digitization has transformed what the modern day consumer expects from retailers, especially among millennials. Younger shoppers not only want instant resolution to their problems, they also demand personalized interactions and availability across all channels. Of those age 25 to 34, three-quarters said they expect this personalized communication from retailers, whereas only 36% of those 55 and older agreed with this notion. This demand for personalized service may explain why 66 percent of those aged 25 to 34 agree that “the customer is always right” while only 48 percent of those 55+ agree with the age-old expression. These generational differences highlight how expectations of retailers will continue to increase in the future, making it even more important to understand each individual customer and deliver seamless service. Again, the right customer service solutions can significantly help brands customize their interactions according to individual demographics and preferences.
Bad customer service can be a PR nightmare.
Less than stellar customer service can have repercussions that extend beyond losing an individual customer. Over half of respondents said they would post an online review after a bad customer service experience, with a similar percentage stating they would take to social media to complain. Since bad reviews and negative social media stay in the cyber-universe forever, one bad experience can create a major ripple effect. If you want to flip the switch and create loyal ambassadors who will spread love for your brand to help you acquire new customers, free of charge, you need to focus on opportunities to create positive service experiences. One way of creating positive word of mouth buzz is by proactively communicating with customers and providing solutions to issues before they’re even aware a problem might exist.
Consumers will pay for quality and convenience.
Convenience is a top priority for consumers, with over three-quarters of respondents saying they expect more convenient customer service. In order to avoid the hassles of bad customer service experiences, 74 percent said they would spend more money to get improved customer service. This is important because it means that the better and more convenient your customer service is, the more willing customers are to spend time and money with your brand, which hopefully translates into increased brand loyalty and customer lifetime value.
What Next?
In an era where more and more brands are prioritizing customer service, a solid strategy is a must-have. Stellar customer service practices can positively impact your bottom line and build significant loyalty for your brand. If a customer has a positive interaction with your brand, there’s no reason for them to look elsewhere. Plus, it’s a lot cheaper to retain an existing customer than to acquire a new one. Understanding how your existing and potential customers view and prioritize customer service is a critical first step in making sure you’re meeting (and hopefully exceeding) expectations. Of course, having the right technology and tools in place to manage today’s 24/7 demands could be a major way to differentiate yourself from the competition.
