Customer service

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search Customer service is the provision of service to customers before, during and after a purchase. According to Turban et al. (2002),[1] "Customer service is a series of activities designed to enhance the level of customer satisfaction that is, the feeling that a product or service has met the customer expectation." Its importance varies by products, industry and customer; defective or broken merchandise can be exchanged, often only with a receipt and within a specified time frame. Retail stores often have a desk or counter devoted to dealing with returns, exchanges and complaints, or will perform related functions at the point of sale; the perceived success of such interactions being dependent on employees "who can adjust themselves to the personality of the guest,"[2] according to Micah Solomon From the point of view of an overall sales process engineering effort, customer service plays an important role in an organization's ability to generate income and revenue.[3] From that perspective, customer service should be included as part of an overall approach to systematic improvement. A customer service experience can change the entire perception a customer has of the organization. Some have argued[4] that the quality and level of customer service has decreased in recent years, and that this can be attributed to a lack of support or understanding at the executive and middle management levels of a corporation and/or a customer service policy. To address this argument, many organizations have employed a variety of methods to improve their customer satisfaction levels, and other KPIs.[citation needed]

Contents

1 Customer support 2 Automated customer service 3 Instant feedback 4 Standardization 5 See also 6 References

Customer support
Main article: Customer support Customer support is a range of customer services to assist customers in making cost effective and correct use of a product.[5] It includes assistance in planning,

installation, training, trouble shooting, maintenance, upgrading, and disposal of a product.[5] Regarding technology products such as mobile phones, televisions, computers, software products or other electronic or mechanical goods, it is termed technical support.

Automated customer service

Customer service may be provided by a person (e.g., sales and service representative), or by automated means. Examples of automated means are Internet sites. An advantage with automated means is an increased ability to provide service 24-hours a day, which can, at least, be a complement to customer service by persons.[6] Another example of automated customer service is by touch-tone phone, which usually involves a main menu, and the use of the keypad as options (i.e. "Press 1 for English, Press 2 for Spanish", etc.) However, in the Internet era, a challenge has been to maintain and/or enhance the personal experience while making use of the efficiencies of online commerce. Writing in Fast Company, entrepreneur and customer systems innovator Micah Solomon has made the point that "Online customers are literally invisible to you (and you to them), so it's easy to shortchange them emotionally. But this lack of visual and tactile presence makes it even more crucial to create a sense of personal, human-to-human connection in the online arena."[7] Automated means can be based entirely on self service, but may also be based on service by more or less means of artificial intelligence.

An automated online assistant with avatar providing automated customer service on a web page. Examples of customer service by artificial means are automated online assistants that can be seen as avatars on websites.[6] It can avail for enterprises

to reduce their operating and training cost.[6] These are driven by chatterbots, and a major underlying technology to such systems is natural language processing.[6]

Instant feedback
Recently, many organizations have implemented feedback loops that allow them to capture feedback at the point of experience. For example, National Express, one of the UK's leading travel companies invites passengers to send text messages whilst riding the bus. This has been shown to be useful as it allows companies to improve their customer service before the customer defects, thus making it far more likely that the customer will return next time.[8] Technology has made it increasingly easier for companies to obtain feedback from customers. Community blogs and forums give customers to give detailed explanations of both negative and positive experiences with an organization. A challenge working with customer service is to ensure that you have focused your attention on the right key areas, measured by the right Key Performance Indicator. There is no challenge to come up with a lot of meaningful KPIs, but the challenge is to select a few which reflects your overall strategy. In addition to reflecting your strategy it should also enable staff to limit their focus to the areas that really matter. The focus must be of those KPIs, which will deliver the most value to the overall objective, e.g. cost saving, service improving etc. It must also be done in such a way that staff sincerely believe that they can make a difference with the effort. One of the most important aspects of a customer service KPI is that of what is often referred to as the "Feel Good Factor." Basically the goal is to not only help the customer have a good experience, but to offer them an experience that exceeds their expectations. Several key points are listed as follows: 1. Know your product Know what products/service you are offering back to front. In other words be an information expert. It is okay to say "I don't know," but it should always be followed up by "but let me find out" or possibly "but my friend knows!" Whatever the situation may be, make sure that you don't leave your customer with an unanswered question. 2. Body Language/Communication Most of the communication that we relay to others is done through body language. If we have a negative body language when we interact with others it can show our lack of care. Two of the most important parts of positive body language are smiling and eye contact. Make sure to look your customers in the eye. It shows that we are listening to them, not at them. And then of course smiling is just more inviting than someone who has a blank look on their face. 3. Anticipate Guest Needs Nothing surprises your customer more than an employee going the extra mile to help them. Always look for ways to serve

your customer more than they expect. In doing so it helps them to know that you care and it will leave them with the "Feel Good Factor" that we are searching for.

Standardization
There are few standards on this topic. ISO and The International Customer Service Institute (TICSI) have published the following ones:

ISO 9004:2000, on performance improvement ISO 10001:2007, on customer service conduct ISO 10002:2004, on quality management in handling customer complaints ISO 10003:2007, on dispute resolution The International Customer Service Standard (TICSS)

There is also an Information Technology service management standard: ISO/IEC 20000:2005. Its first part concerns specifications and its second part the code of practice.

See also

Customer experience management Customer experience transformation Customer relationship management Customer service advisor Customer service representative Customer service training Demand chain Institute of Customer Service (UK) Privacy policy GBPs Public Services Sales Sales process engineering Service system Society of Consumer Affairs Professionals in Europe (SOCAPiE) Support automation Technical support Sales Territory

References

1. 2. 3. 4.

Small Business Business Technology & Customer Support Customer Service Why Is Customer Service Important to an Organization?

Why Is Customer Service Important to an Organization?

by Rick Suttle, Demand Media

Share RSS Email

Customer service is important because these reps deal directly with the public.

Related Articles

Customer Service Organization Structure Skills Important to Customer Service Important Qualities of Customer Service How Do I Motivate Employees to Have Good Customer Service Skills?

How to Improve Customer Service in a Call Center The Top Five Customer Service Skills

Customer service handles company issues in stores, over the phone and even by email. Companies that produce highly technical products, such as software or satellite television, often have technical support staffs to resolve problems. Customer service is important to an organization for a number of reasons. Foremost, it would be difficult for a company to survive without customer service, as there would be no one available to handle payments or answer questions from prospective customers. Sponsored Link The Customer Experience Improving business with better customer experiences and service www.customerexperience.uk.com

Significance
Customer service is important to an organization because it is often the only contact a customer has with a company. Customers are vital to an organization. Some customers spend hundreds and even thousands of dollars per year with a company. Consequently, when they have a question or product issue, they expect a company's customer service department to resolve their issues.

Identification
Customer service is also important to an organization because it can help differentiate a company from it competitors, according to the article titled "The Importance of Customer Service" at Drew Stevens Consulting website. For example, it may be difficult to tell the difference between two small-town drug stores, especially if their prices are similar. Therefore, putting extra efforts into customer service may be thing that gives one drug store a competitive advantage.

Function
A company with excellent customer service is more likely to get repeat business from customers. Consequently, the company will benefit with greater sales and profits. Contrarily, companies with poor customer service may lose customers, which will have a negative impact on business. It costs a lot more money for a company to acquire a customer than to retain them, due to advertising costs and the expense of sales calls. Therefore, the efforts that go into maintaining quality customer service can really pay dividends over time.

Publicity

People that have a positive experience with a company's customer service department will likely tell two or three others about their experience, according to Consumer Affairs website. Therefore, quality customer service can be a source of promotion for organizations. Contrarily, a person who has a bad customer service experience will likely tell between nine and 20 people.

Prevention/Solution
Customer service is important to an organization because of potential complaints. Consumers can file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau, Consumer Affairs or even a class action attorney if they are dissatisfied with a company's customer service. As long as a customer owns a product, they expect to be able to service it. Otherwise, they have certain rights to sue the company, as consumers are protected by the Federal Trade Commission. Sponsored Links

The Importance of Customer Care to an Organization

By Arnold Anderson, eHow Contributor

Customer care helps your business to improve. Customer care means attending to your customer's needs and making sure you retain customers. Focusing on good customer-care habits is important in bad economic times as well as good times, according to the HP Large Enterprise

Business website. When you understand the importance of customer care to an organization then you can begin to apply the appropriate resources to your customer service department.

Other People Are Reading

Customer Service Week Games How to Find a Utilization Review Organization

Print this article

Maintaining Revenue in a Down Economy

o

It is easy to make an general statement about customer care when it comes to retaining customers. But in order to appreciate the importance of good customer care to an organization it is helpful to understand customer retention in a bad economy, according to the HP Large Enterprise Business website. When the economy goes bad, customers know that they have a choice when it comes to vendors. If you have a good customer-care policy in place, and you have been working hard to keep your associates trained and customers happy, then you will be able to retain more revenue during bad times.

Improves the Organization

o

One of the more important aspects of good customer care is receiving customer feedback, according to business expert Angela Ly writing on the Gaebler website. A business cannot initiate customer-friendly improvements or changes unless it first knows what the customer wants. By taking the time to listen to customers, and by encouraging customers to give their input through quality customer service, you can learn how to improve the way your organization does business and what product improvements you need to make to sell more product. Sponsored Links Customer retention How global consumers differ in their insurance decisions. ey.com/global-insurance-survey-2012

Network of Trusted Customers

o

When you take the time to develop positive relationships with customers, you begin to develop a valuable network of valuable marketing subjects. Trusted customers are ones that you test out new products with and get their input for changes and improvements. Without a network of trusted customers to test your products, you would have to invest in extensive market research in order to learn how to better target your products. Through an effective customer-care program, you have your market research subjects ready to give you important product input.

Improves Sales Processes

o

Good customer service can help you determine what kinds of information is important to your clients. The complaints and concerns fielded by the customer-care associates can be used by the sales department to better focus sales pitches and presentations. A good customer-care program takes the time to better understand the likes and dislikes of your clients, and that is valuable sales information.

Read more: The Importance of Customer Care to an Organization | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/info_7735598_importance-customer-careorganization.html#ixzz20oZ2ZlNx