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5 Customer Service Must-Do’s That Boost Customer Loyalty

5 Customer Service Must-Do’s That Boost Customer Loyalty

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One of the biggest blocks to a company building a successful customer base is a lack of transparency.

If people don’t know what’s going on when they deal with a business, there is a very good chance that they won’t be coming back for more.

Instead, they will go and use a competitor that is open about how they work and, therefore, can offer a better service.

Here are some customer service must-dos that can help create the sort of business that attracts customer loyalty.

1. Let Customers Know What They’re Getting

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Transparency is something that can really make a product better for companies. It used to be that customers used to stick to one brand out of habit as much as anything else, but nowadays, that doesn’t happen because people have access to more information and, perhaps more importantly, more choices. As a result, it is important to let people know not only what they can have, but precisely what it will cost them and, if anything goes wrong, how it can be fixed.

As an example, companies that set expectations, like precise prices, delivery times and service terms, can be trusted more than those that don’t, providing they keep to them, of course. The same goes for special offers for new customers. Welcome bonuses, for instance, are a crucial part of the online casino strategy used to attract more users. Players can read more on Card Player to learn about these bonuses and how they can be used as part of a gameplay strategy to increase the chance of a win.

Similarly, if something goes wrong, whether it’s an issue with delivery or the system going down, a company should be able to explain what happened, why it happened, and how it’s going to be sorted. The same goes for if there are any changes to policies, prices or products. And giving people a chance to look at the process by, for example, offering real-time delivery tracking won’t hurt, either. The most important thing, too, is that these things have to be done consistently, because if they aren’t, companies will lose customer goodwill.

2. Personalisation Without Intrusion

Back in the day, customers were more likely to accept a one-size-fits-all approach because, basically, that’s what was on offer and there wasn’t really any way for businesses to do anything different. Now, though, the power of the internet means that people expect personalisation as standard. However, there are times when personalisation can feel like it goes beyond making a product better for people and enters the realm of over-intrusiveness, which customers, understandably, don’t like.

For example, a 2019 survey by security company RSA, cited by Forbes, found that 83 per cent of consumers thought targeted adverts were unethical. While features such as Netflix recommendations based on in-app viewing habits are generally seen as being OK, things where it feels like people are being targeted based on random web searches aren’t.

So, what can companies do about it? Well, they can give customers control over their updates and recommendations. This means that, since they have some kind of say over what they see, they can be more open to personalisation. Businesses could also do with being a lot more transparent about how people’s data is collected, what is done with it and why it can help the customer. If people know, for instance, that the business is asking for their location so it can show them what they’ve got in stock nearby, that is a lot more likely to be accepted than a random location request. Basically, personalisation should feel like a useful feature, rather than a scary intrusion.

3. Keep Things At A High Standard

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A crucial part of how a good customer experience shapes longer-term success is how a company can create loyal customers. If people know they are going to get great services and products, then they are going to keep coming back when they need something.

There are, luckily, ways to do this. Whether it’s affordability, speed, a premium product or reliability, customers need to know what a business is all about fast, and the business needs to deliver on that promise. Once the company has done that, it needs to do it again and again so the customer knows that they haven’t got lucky once but, instead, they are getting something that comes as standard.

As the great artist Andy Warhol once put it, “All Cokes are the same and all Cokes are good”.

4. Consistency Is King

Whenever someone deals with a business, they should have the same standard advice and messaging. It isn’t much use to anyone if a marketing email says one thing and customer service says another, for instance. Policies also need to be the same across different retail channels, so people who buy online can do things the same way they can if they buy things in person. One great way to do this is to have so-called BORIS (buy online, return in store) policies, so shopping can be flexible and easy.

This is particularly important, considering that returning something by post can be annoying, but, according to a survey from warehousing company Meteor Space, 30 per cent of online purchases are returned compared to 8.89 per cent of in-store ones.

5. Happy Staff Means Happy Customers

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It isn’t just company bosses who can make things clear for customers, either. Members of staff, who are often the people customers have dealings with, can also do their bit for business clarity. For instance, if they know what the company’s customer experience ethos is, they can apply it in their daily work. And it helps if different departments know what other parts of the company are doing.

For example, if there’s a special offer on, then the finance team needs to know about it. Likewise, if you are using social media to help drive sales, then people in the company need to be aware of what it is you are doing and how you are doing it so they, in turn, can help customers more easily.

Bosses can also use transparency to give their workers more power. For instance, letting them make their own decisions as long as they stick to the company’s ethos, proper training, recognition when things are going well, and some consistency can create internal transparency and give staff the encouragement needed to go above and beyond.

Author Profile

Manuela WillboldOnline Media & PR Strategist
Blogger and Educator by Passion | Contributor to many Business Blogs in the United Kingdom | Fascinated to Write Blogs in News & Education I have completed a journalism summer course at the London School of Journalism and manage various blogs.