10 Simple Ways to Wow Your Customers Every Day - Help ...

It's a delight to come to a support experience expecting a pretty low bar and getting preferential treatment instead. Buffer is an excellent example of this: ... Growth&CultureLatestArticlesCustomerServiceGrowth&CultureInsideHelpScoutSearchIconIllustrationbyGenevieveAshley10SimpleWaystoWowYourCustomersEveryDayWrittenby MercerSmithEverytimeItraveltoBoston,Istayinthesamehotel.It’snotfancyandthelocationisn’tgreat,buttheyknowhowtowowacustomer.ThewaythatI’mtreatedwhenIgotherehasalwaysleftanimpressiononme.ThefirsttimeIstayedthere,Iarrivedinthedeadofwinter.Myfacewaschapped,andmyhandswererawasIcheckedin.TenminutesafterIgottomyroom,guestservicesshowedupatmydoorwithsomecookiesandhotchocolate.TheyalsoletmeknowthatifIneededanything—phonecharger,blowdryer,earplugs,toothpaste,Tylenol—allIhadtodowasreachoutandthey’dsupplyitforme.Itestedthistheory,andeverytimetheydelivered.Itblewmeaway.Hotelsareadimeadozen.Icouldprobablyfindacheaperhotelwithinafive-minutewalkfromtheoneIalwaysstayin,soit’snotaboutpriceorconvenience.It’sthesmallthings,theminordetailsandalmostinvisibletouches,thatkeepmecomingback.Whatseemsinsignificantandprobablydidn’tcostalottoexecutehashadameaningfulimpactonmyperceptionofthebusiness—andsinceI’vestayedatthishotelmanytimes,I’dsaythesesmallgestureshavehadatremendousreturnoninvestment.Whywowyourcustomers?Wowingyourcustomerscreatesdeeperloyaltyanddelightandpromotesmeaningfulusageforyearstocome.Inmycase,thehotelstaffhadotherthingstheycouldbedoingbesidesbakingcookies.Theyhaveroomstokeepclean,bookingstomanage,andother,morepressingthingsthatneedtogettakencareof.Thatsaid,theycaredenoughtogooutoftheirwaytomakemyexperienceexcellent.Theywantedtowowmeandshowmetheycared.Similarly,yoursupportdepartment’smainjobprobablyisn’tsendingoutfreeswagtoneworvaluablecustomers.Ifyouaskedthem,they’dsaytheirjobwastosupportcustomersandtokeepthemashappyaspossiblewhiledoingso.Butyoursupportteamshoulddeliverdelightfulexperiencesjustasoftenasthehotelstaffdoes.Thelongechoedsentimentthat“it’sthethoughtthatcounts”comestomind.Isittheirjobtosendoutswag?No.Butwouldthecustomerbedelightedtoknowthatyourteamwasthinkingofthem?Yes.Increatingreciprocityandpositivefeelingsinotherpeople,itisthethoughtthatcounts.PsychologistNorbertSchwarzfirstmadethisapparentyearsagoinhisfamous”dimeexperiment,”inwhichfoundthataslittleas10centscouldhaveameaningfulimpactonone’sattitude.AccordingtoSchwarz:“It’snotthevalueofwhatyoufind.It’sthatsomethingpositivehappenedtoyou.”OneimportantthingtonoteabouttheexperimentandSchwarz’sconclusionsonsmall,joyousmomentsandanimprovedmoodisthatsurpriseisacrucialcomponent.Incustomerservice,“surprisereciprocity”isthenameofthegame.Figureoutwhatcustomersdon’texpect,andthendoit.RecommendedReadingCustomerAppreciationIdeas:17WaystoThankCustomersHowtowowyourcustomersYoudon’tneedtobreakthebanktocreatemeaningfulexperiences.Afterall,mypersonalexperienceandthedimeexperimentshowthatsomethingassmallasadimeoracookiecanhaveaconsiderableimpact.Towowyourcustomers,allyouneedisthedrivetodoso.Hereareafewwaystoputthatdrivetowork.1.SticktoyourwordWhenyoupromisesomethingtoacustomer,makesurethatyoucankeepyourword.Stickingtoyourwordisn’tjustaboutunder-promisingandover-delivering;it’saboutmakingsurethateveryoneinyourcompanyknowsyourpromisesandiscommittedtoachievingthem: Customer-facingteamsshouldbeonthesamepagewithcustomerexpectations. YourCRMshouldbeuptodateoncustomerinformation. Yourproductteammuststayontrackwiththeirtimelines. Thefirststeptowowingyourcustomerbykeepingyourwordistosetappropriateandclearexpectations.Yourcustomershouldknowwhattheyaregoingtoreceive,whentheywillreceiveit,andwhatitwilltakeontheirparttodoso.Forinstance,inarestaurant,yourwaitertypicallysetsyourexpectationsforthetimeline(“I’llbebacktotakeyourorderinjustafewminutes”),returnstotakeyourorderandthenbringsyourfood,andthemenutellsyouhowmuchmoneyyouwillspend.Ifanyofthosethingsdon’thappen—ifyourwaiternevercomestoyourtableorthemenudoesn’thaveaccuratepricing—youmightbeconfusedorfrustrated.Thesamethinggoesforanyotherproductorsoftware.Stateyourpromisestoyourcustomersandmakesurethateveryoneisonboardinternallysonoballsgetdropped.2.GivethemmorethantheyexpectForthemostpart,humanslovesmallsurprises.We’renottalkingfireworksandatriptoCancun,butofferingadiscountorasmallgiftcardcanreallywowyourcustomers.Ifyouareabusinesswithaphysicalproduct,oneofthebestwaystodothisistoincludeasmallerproductforfreewiththeproducttheyordered.Forotherbusinesses,offeringanextramightlooklikesendingoutafreeebook,acouponforafreeconsultation,orameetingasacoachorconsultant.Thesethingscostrelativelylittleforabusinessbutgoalongwaywithcustomers.3.RespondquicklyInarecentstudybyForrester,45%ofconsumersreportedthattheywouldabandonapurchaseiftheirquestionsweren’taddressedbythecompanyquickly.So,ifyourespondslowly,notonlyareyounotwowingyourcustomers,butyou’reactivelylosingthem.Quicknessisrelative,ofcourse.Aslowresponseviachatmightstillseemsuperspeedyviaemail.Analyzeyouranswers’speedforeachchannelandsetagoalbasedonwhereyouarecurrently.Forinstance,youmayalreadyhaveafantasticchatresponsetime,butyourphoneresolutiontimeslookrough.Byunderstandinghowyou’representlydoingacrosschannels,you’llknowwheretofocusongettingthemostwowforyourwork.MonitorandbenchmarkyoursupportHelpScout’sreportsareaneasywaytotrackproductivityandsetexpectationsforeverymetricinyourcustomerconversations.Tryforfree4.MakethingseasyItusedtobethatittookover25stepstoorderapizzafromDomino’s.Then,theyrealizedthatthebestwaytoearncustomerswastomakethingseasy.Theyrevampedtheirwebsite,shortenedtheirorderingprocesses,andevenmadeintegrationswithtoolslikeGoogleHomeandAlexatomakeiteveneasiertoorder.Customerswereexcitedaboutit!Thecompany’sconversionratesshotthroughtheroof,andthey’vecontinuedtobeabletoputthatrevenueintomakingtheexperienceeveneasier.Therearetonsofpizzaplacestoorderfrom,butDomino’swonoverthecompetitionbywowingtheircustomerswitheaseofuse.5.GettoknowthemItfeelsgoodforyourcustomerstobeknownandunderstood.Beyondthat,gettingtoknowthemcanbetterpositionyourproductstomeettheirneeds.Bytakingthetimetogettoknowyourcustomers,youbuildrapportandtrust.Youlearnabouttheirinterestsandwhattheycareaboutwhenitcomestobusiness.Youcanthenusethattocustomdesigntheirexperiencetowowthem.Knowingacustomermeansthatyou’llalsoknowalloftheirpainpointsandwhatyoucanrecommendtoaddressthem.Ifyoucomefromaplaceofserviceandhelpthemresolvealloftheirproblemareasinonefellswoop,you’llearnacustomerforlife.Withadditionalinformationaboutyourcustomersandtheirjourney,youcanalsobemoreproactivewithyoursalesandsupportoutreach.Whenyoureachoutbeforethecustomerevenrealizestheyneedhelp,itfeelslikemagic.RecommendedReadingHowtoGetStartedDeliveringProactiveCustomerService6.EmpoweryouragentsOneofthefoundersoftheRitz-CarltonHotelCompanysaidthatthecompany’semployees“havetotalpower,andalltheresourcesofourorganization,tocreatethesemoments,thesestories,ontheirown,withoutneedingtoaskpermission,withoutneedingtoinvolvemanagement,withoutneedingtoworrythatthey’regoingtoofar.Thetimespentcreatingthesestoriesisn’ttimetakenoutoftheirjob;thistimespentistheirjob.”Asyouprobablyknow,theRitzisroyaltywhenitcomestocustomerloyalty,andit’sbecausetheyempowertheirteammemberstowowtheircustomersdaily.Letyouragentsbethearbitersoftheirdestiny.Theyshouldbeallowedtodeterminethingslikerefundsandpoliciesandhavepermissiontobendorbreaktheruleseveryonceinawhile.Noteveryinteractionisgoingtobebythebook.Youwillrunintosituationswhereyourteamjustwon’tbeabletofindtherightanswer.Insteadofmakingthecustomerwaituntilyourteammembercanaskpermission,givethempermissiontosolvetheissuerightthenandthereinthewaythattheythinkisbest.7.Doregularcheck-insfornoreasonItdoesn’ttakemuchtoreachoutwhensomeonecrossesyourmind.Encourageyouragentsandcustomersuccessmanagerstoreachouttocustomersthatthey’rethinkingaboutandjustcheckin.Youcansettheexpectationthatyoudon’twantanythingfromthecustomerandthatyourcompanygenuinelycares.Considercreatingabudgettosend“justbecause”gifts.Keepthefocusentirelyonthecustomer—don’tuseitasanopportunitytoupsellortalkaboutyournewestfeature.8.ExpressgratitudeThankthecustomerasoftenasyoucan:atthestartofemails,attheendofemails,justbecause.Inparticular,ifacustomerleavesapositivereview,that’sagreatreasontosaythankyou,andit’sagreatopportunitytobuildanevendeeperrelationship.Consideritfromthecustomer’sperspective:Theydon’texpectyoutoreachoutaftertheyleaveareview,sodotheunexpected.RecommendedReadingWritingthePerfectCustomerThank-YouNote[+Examples]9.TreatallofyourusersthesameManycompaniestiersupport—trialorfreeuserscangetsupportviacommunitiesorforums,andpaidcustomersgethelpfroman“actual”supportteam,sometimesviaemail,butalsooverchatorphone.Canyouimaginehowmuchitwowscustomerswhenthat’snotthecase?It’sadelighttocometoasupportexperienceexpectingaprettylowbarandgettingpreferentialtreatmentinstead.Bufferisanexcellentexampleofthis:Theyoffersupport,nomatterwhatthetier.And,despitewhatyoumightthink,itscalesprettywell.Here’sachartfromBuffer’sgrowth,bothinsupportandusers,overtheyears:Ifeveryothercompanyofferslow-barsupportandyoursisexcellent,you’llseetremendousresults,andit’snotgoingtoskyrocketyoursupportcosts,either.Notonlydoesitbuildloyaltyandrespectfromyourcustomers,butitalsoservestogeneratewordofmouthmarketing—morecustomerstowow!10.GiveyouremployeespropsWhenitcomesto“howtowowyourcustomers,”youremployeesareresponsibleforwritingthebook.Rewardthemwhentheydoanexcellentjob,andyou’llcontinuetokeepthehypetrainrolling.Peoplerespondwelltopraise,andifyoucommendthemforexceptionalservice,they’llcontinuetoraisethebarhigherandhigher.Beyondthat,hirepeoplewhohavethedrivetodothework.Makealistofthetraitsthatcreateafantasticemployeeonyourteam: Dotheyneedtobetechnical? Howmuchpatienceisessential? Doeshumorplayaroleinwowingyourcustomers? Makeyourlistandstarthiringfortherawtalent.Then,onceyou’vehiredthemandtheyarebattingathousand,makesureyoupraiseandencouragethemfortheirexcellentwork.Toooften,companiesfailtorecognizethevalueofthosesoftskills—buttheyarethelandscapethatexcellenceisgrownon.RecommendedReadingHowtoHireforCustomerService:AStep-by-StepGuideGetwowing!Youdon’tneedatonofmoneyortimetowowyourcustomers.Sometimes,evensomethingassmallasa“thankyou”cangetthejobdone.Practicethesamethingsthatyouwoulddoinameaningfulrelationship: Sticktoyourword. Keepthingssimpleandeasy. Empowerthepeoplearoundyou. Treatothersequallyandwithrespect. Thesmallthings—cookiesratherthanfireworks—arewhatmakethemostsignificantimpactonpeople.MercerSmithMerceristheVPofCustomerSuccessatVenafi,ayogafanatic,andstrivestomaketheworldalittlebithappieronecustomeratatime.Youcanfindheratmercenator.comandonTwitter.Join251,101readerswhoareobsessedwith deliveringgreatcustomerserviceExpertlycuratedemailsthat’llhelpyoudeliveranexceptionalcustomerexperience.