Most startup companies have a fairly small budget to put towards customer support, so there is a large amount of pressure on their shoulders as they have to find an affordable, yet top of the line customer service. Yes, the relationship between quality and cost is a linear one, but many of us have found ways to bend the quality curve when it comes to customer support outsourcing.
Customer service should matter to everyone, regardless of how large or small a business is – this is the secret ingredient to running a successful company. However, the biggest obstacle to amazing customer service is cost. Think about it, if you were to spend two hours with a customer that is buying a product for only $20, then it won’t be long before your company is shutting its doors. Yes, you should expect to spend a good amount of money on customer service, but it doesn’t have to close you down.
Here are 4 ways you can save on customer support, while still providing quality service.
- Outsource Your Frontline
With a high quality product in place, you’re going to receive a large amount of calls from your customers that would like to speak with someone from your company directly. In order to make sure those needs are satisfied in an affordable way, you may want to look into outsourcing your frontline customer service. The prices involved are much more affordable than in-house support. As an additional benefit of outsourcing, you can rest knowing that you will have 24/7 customer support without putting more work on your own team.
- Set Goals
Set goals and make sure your team has the resources they need. Go ahead and write your objectives down and share them with the customer support team. In order to make sure the customer support group is able to resolve issues with quality and speed, make sure you provide enough freedom and resources. You should also set standards for how quickly the group should be responding to emails, groups and social media posts.
- Make Sure Your Website is User-Friendly
Yes, this one is obvious, but you’d be surprised to learn just how many business sites aren’t exactly user-friendly. Many companies are using outdated sites that are hard to loud and merely impossible to navigate. Your company website should be designed for easy access on tablets, smartphones, laptops and PCs. Make your business site easy to navigate so that customers can find the information they need without getting frustrated. If you have a site that doesn’t load on a mobile device within three seconds, then the user is highly likely to leave. If the site is hard to use, then the customer is five times likely to push the exit button.
On an additional note, make sure you pay close attention to details that can help improve a customer’s experience. With mobile sites, this could include something like less copy and larger buttons. If you have a shopping cart on your site, then make sure it’s easy to use across all devices. If a customer isn’t able to get a quick answer to their question, then they are highly likely to walk away from their shopping cart.
- Multiply Efficiency with Technology
What we’re saying here is that you must use technology to your advantage. By going to Google and doing a quick search, you are going to stumble across a large array of programs that will support almost every single phase of your customer experience – you will find everything from automating marketing to sales.
Conclusion
Use these tips to achieve affordable quality customer service that will keep your business flowing. In the end, remember no matter how big or busy you are, it wouldn’t hurt to personally take some phone calls on your own from time to time. By doing this, customers are going to feel as if you really care, and that can go a long way.