4 Little Things That Are Ruining Your Customers’ Experiences

At the top of any retail manager’s list of priorities is the company’s bottom line. Without adequate profits, your business will go to the trenches and in some instances, so will your livelihood. Customer service is a major player here — customers are, after all, the reason you’re still in business. If their experiences with you are poor, they’ll take their business elsewhere and tell all their friends to follow suit. Avoid these customer service mistakes:

1. Call Center Woes

Does your retail establishment rely on the use of a call center to address customer questions or concerns? If so, have you confirmed callers are properly routed to the right representative in a timely manner? It’s not uncommon for customers to call in, get the runaround, wait an excessive amount of time and wind up getting disconnected. Chances are they may take their business elsewhere shortly after this type of experience.

Ensure your call center is adequately staffed with properly trained representatives. Consider transitioning to a cloud contact center to ensure your company’s equipped with the most up-to-date technology to properly route customers. This way, company representatives can focus on what matters most, which is providing exceptional customer service.

2. Untimely Responses

If a retail establishment strongly urges customers to give feedback on their experiences via survey or social media, how will they know that their opinion is valued? Offer some type of incentive and be diligent about your follow-up actions. Failing to do could appear like your company lacks in follow-through. Customers want their voices to be heard by management, and they want to feel like you actually care about their input as a valued customer of your retail establishment.

3. ‘The Customer’s Always Wrong!’

Yes, you read that correctly. And unfortunately, that may be the perspective of argumentative employees. This is not to say that the customer is always right, but make sure your employees’ customer service skills are up to par. It’s important they do whatever it takes to resolve conflict, so you will continue to earn business.

Another element of the equation you must also consider are the motives of the employee involved. Is their attitude a reflection of how they feel about the company, and is the job simply a way to pass time while earning money until the next thing comes along? You definitely don’t want employees who are punching the clock and sitting around totally disengaged in what’s going on around them. If they aren’t willing to properly serve customers, why should customers be willing to spend their hard earned cash?

4. Hidden Information

Whether you’re selling merchandise online or at a physical location, important policies should be easily accessible to customers. Consider adding a comprehensive Frequently Asked Questions page to your website that addresses potential customer concerns about returns, shipping, or any other pertinent matters. This information can be displayed at the checkout counter in a brick and mortar establishment or on the receipt. Also, prices should be clearly displayed on merchandise so customers won’t have to play the guessing game and get into a shouting match with your staff about a misinterpretation on their behalf.

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