There was a time when customer service only existed for resolving complaints, which was its main function. But that is no longer true.

Today, customer service is important, even crucial to the survival of a business. It has indeed been transformed into the backbone of a business. It can also become one of the key deal makers or deal breakers for an organization’s customers.

Competition in today’s business world is so fierce that customer expectations have risen by leaps and bounds. A customer can easily switch to your competitor if you don’t meet their expectations.

Customer support always means giving your customers the highest priority and ensuring their happiness with an enjoyable, recognizable and smooth customer experience. Several customer success managers and brand owners today claim that a positive customer experience is the most powerful marketing tool in the hands of a brand.

Customer Service – Now and Then

Previously, customer support or customer service was seen as a department that guides customers through the entire purchase process from start to finish. In addition, some companies felt that the customer service department was dormant or reactive. It means that the department would only take a position after the customer made a complaint or had problems with a company.

Today, however, it is much more than just providing traditional customer support through phone calls. Companies today have countless communication channels. A company’s customer service executives can be reached through so many channels. Some of these channels are live chat, email, text messaging and social media platforms.

In addition, organizations that are serious about increasing their revenues are discovering that customer support has a much bigger role to play in addition to solving customer problems and answering their questions. It is also about the association and the experience that customers have with a brand.

Today, as customer experience is a team effort, many more departments have become an essential part of customer service. Also, from logistics to marketing, different customer questions require the collaboration of multiple departments and that extra step.

The role of customer service in business success

It is a well-known fact that companies today are more competitive than they used to be. Previously, customers decided to buy a product based on locations or prices. However, with the growth of the Internet, today’s customers are focusing more than ever on their experience with the organization or brand.

Research shows that 90 percent of people in the US view quality of customer service as a key factor in buying from that organization. When a company provides excellent customer service, it can reduce churn and boost customer retention. In addition, companies with a great customer service culture can also enjoy the support of their loyal customers as their brand ambassadors. All these customers will be happy to recommend your services or products to their colleagues, friends and families. Customer advocacy and word of mouth is the most valuable marketing tool, although it costs very little.

Poor customer service has a significant impact on the customer experience

A survey conducted by Microsoft claimed that more than 1/5 of a company’s customers don’t believe their feedback will be noticed. Avoid being one of those companies, especially since the association between customer experience and customer service is very strong. Any bad or good customer service action can reflect on many customer experiences.

It is true that customer service has always been a critical part of any business. Today, however, it has the highest priority. Companies are launched every other day and it is normal that they need to stand out from the crowd to be successful.

When a company has excellent customer service, it helps a company achieve this goal. It has loyal and satisfied customers who vouch for them. Plus, there are now social platforms, so even a single negative review can be detrimental to the growth of your business. If you always put your best foot forward, customers will definitely stay by your side.

On the other hand, customer experience is a journey, summarizing the entire customer interaction that takes place with your organization or brand. A customer’s journey begins with the first interaction with the company and is a never-ending one. Customer experience starts from purchase to product delivery and beyond. It is a measure of a customer’s feelings about a company. Such feelings usually have different connections such as emotional, psychological and physical connections.

It is imperative to note that poor or substandard customer service can put a dent in your reputation in the marketplace. However, positive customer service can help boost your brand’s reputation. One of the most negative side effects of subpar customer service is high customer churn.

Apart from high customer churn, other side effects and indicators of poor customer service are as follows:

The best support managers leave your organization Customer lifetime value can drop quickly Lead conversion rate drops sharply Bad news usually spreads faster than good news

However, there is no one-size-fits-all formula for great customer service that can help grow your business. That’s because every industry and business has its own unique issues and customer requirements. An entrepreneur should follow the most appropriate solutions and come up with solutions without compromising the quality of customer service and customer experience.

Some popular examples of poor customer service include delaying customer demands and ignoring the voice of the customer.

Customer service builds customer relationship

We all agree that customer service refers to creating successful customer relationships and to achieve that goal, teamwork is crucial. It has a tiered department for a simple reason – it’s not just about providing assistance to a company’s customers. Customer service also contributes significantly to a company’s overall strategic plan.

The customer service team not only helps customers solve a particular problem, but also exchange ideas and collect customer feedback, in addition to increasing service or product value. Such a relationship is more customer-oriented and less business-oriented. For example, customer support primarily focuses on customer satisfaction and needs.

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