As we observe the recent market trend it’s not difficult to figure out that businesses around the world are in dire conditions. The main reason is that almost all world governments are struggling to make the ends meet, the economy is in constant recession, the biggest one since the economic crisis of 2008. All this has happened due to the pandemic we are going through today, which has forced humanity to cease all major economic activities due to the quarantine protocols in place. Since the virus was contagious and spread from person to person it forced governments and health agencies around the world to shut the places where there were huge numbers of people in close vicinity. This led to the closure of businesses, offices, corporate firms, workplaces, restaurants, cafes, cinemas, and even schools. So not only business and economic activities were affected but the entertainment and education industry also faced a huge blow.
Many people were facing unemployment, businesses were struggling hard to remain afloat and some were even on the verge of bankruptcy. To add more fuel to this fire, consumers became even more conscious to spend their hard-earned money on products and services. Since the buying power of consumers was greatly reduced it compelled them to make better decisions and research thoroughly about a company and their product before conducting any kind of business. This research was majorly dependent on the online reviews and word of mouth about a company so those firms with poor customer service were out of the game. Since customer service has become such a key component on which the survival of an entire business depends. But the unfortunate fact of the current business landscape is that many firms have put customer service on the back burner because some don’t have enough revenue to pull it off and others simply don’t care.
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Importance of Customer Service in a Business
Customer service is a key component for a business since employee satisfaction is the key to growing any business. An example of this can be seen in Cox communication, a service provider that has become the third-largest cable company in the USA only because consumers praise the Cox customer service. And, positive word of mouth is the most effective form to show good customer service. Happy customers are the most economical and powerful marketing tool since their positive word of mouth not only brings in revenue but also helps strengthen the loyal customer base and the brand image of a business. The importance of customer service has also skyrocketed during the pandemic where people have become extra conscious and aware to carefully spend their money, and the only thing that draws a customer is good customer service.
The unfortunate fact is that as important as customer service is today many businesses still don’t realize its potential and consider customer service teams a burden and that’s why most customer service teams are underpaid and undertrained which greatly hampers the overall customer experience and can cause customer frustration. However, providing good customer service is not that expensive in the current technological world, as technology has helped us overcome countless challenges in the past the same is the case with customer service. Integration of technology in current customer service techniques can do wonders for any business. This is not a farfetched statement as many firms are currently utilizing these technological techniques to reduce the cost and manpower of their customer service department as well as produce great results. Plus everyone is connected with each other through technology since the pandemic so these platforms are a great way to connect businesses to their target customer base and provide a seamless interaction.
Technological Trends to Provide Good Customer Service
Technological revolutions have been a key to providing various solutions in our daily lives. Technology has always worked towards providing ease and convenience to mankind by providing automation and assistance in various walks of life. Take an example of the internet a single technological marvel that has been immensely helpful in so many ways. Similarly, many other technologies are present which can be utilized to provide an unmatched customer service experience to consumers of a business and that too at a very nominal cost. Here we have discussed some of those technologies that are allowing businesses to provide remarkable customer service.
Social Media and Omnichannel Communication
Social media has been a technological milestone in itself regarding communication mediums. The ability to get your word across the world and that too without spending practically nothing is a feat in itself. Plus millennials prefer social media platforms for their day-to-day communications and happenings, it is also the major source of their information. This is why many businesses have tapped into the infinite potential of social media to build a strong customer service experience. As social media allows companies to directly interact with their consumers and positively address their concerns and all these interactions are available on the web for anyone to see. So in this companies have strengthened their brand image and attracted new customers just through positive interaction on social media, and we see that many multinational companies have now millions of followers on these platforms.
Live Chat and Chat Bots
Gone are those days when customers used to stay on long calls with customer service reps in order to get a simple issue fixed or for a regular query. In this fast-paced nobody has time to call customer service, now customers want quick and efficient assistance and Chat Bots is a technology that provides them with that. Based on the concept of machine learning and AI Chat Bots has a database of the most commonly asked queries and pre-fed answers to those queries. In this way, customers can get quick solutions from these chatbots without any involvement of a third person. If there is something that the chatbot can’t assist with users can switch to live chat and directly talk to a customer service rep for detailed assistance.
AI and Machine Learning
Concepts like artificial intelligence were a thing that was only restricted to sci-fi films a couple of decades ago but now we see the active involvement of AI and Machine learning in various walks of life. These are precisely the technologies that have a huge potential to make a difference in the field of customer service. Since data gathering on consumer trends and behaviors can better prepare firms to prepare a good customer service team beforehand and equip them with necessary tools and information to better assist the customer queries even before they arise. The use of AI has not become mainstream but many huge corporate firms are exploring the possibilities of integrating AI in customer service.
Conclusion
Technological advancements have always proved to be for the betterment of society and considering the dire state of the current business landscape, it’s the need of the hour that businesses should implement these new technologies like the ones mentioned above to improve their customer service experience while reducing the cost as well if they want to stay relevant in the market.