Offering impeccable customer service is no longer a choice. It has become a prerequisite for companies to offer excellent customer service to stay in the rat race.

Did you ever consider rating your own company’s customer service? What does Google review say about your company? How many stars do you see?

All of these have a lot to do with the customer service you offer. Obviously, the quality of product/service is also important and that is primary. Customer service comes next.

It has become more than important to have a skilled customer service team in place. If you are seeing that your customers are not making frequent purchases or turning towards your competitors, in spite of your products being of high quality, then it has something to do with your customer service.

Remember, your customer service team is the face of your brand and it can never go wrong. Customer relationships can go a long way in helping your company survive and even stay ahead in the competition. You need customer service executives who will listen to your customers’ problems and find solutions for them. It is also important to constantly improve customer service, so that the customer relationships do not get stagnated.

Here are four important things that you can do to take your customer service up a notch:

1. Hone your Customer Service Skills

What makes a customer service executive special? Obviously, his or her skills!

It is important that your customer service team has the right set of skills required to manage the needs of the customers. No customer service software can serve as a replacement for this.

The main work of a customer service executive is to communicate with the customers. They need to clearly communicate whatever is meant to be communicated to the customers. There is a difference between 50% discount on the price and 50% extra product. They need always to sound positive and cheerful. They also need to ensure that every conversation with a customer is ending on a good note.

2. Hire the Right People

Here are some of the important skills that you need to be on the lookout for a while hiring customer service employees:

• Patience and empathy: Talking to frustrated customers is not easy and that is why having empathy is important. Some of the customers will have too many questions to ask and this where having patience becomes a virtue. Ensure your customer service team is capable of handling all kinds of customers.

• Understanding: Customers are always comfortable in talking to customer service representatives who understand their problems. The rep also should not spend too much time in finding solutions to their problems. If that is the case, it should be clearly communicated. Customers often need someone to listen to their problems. The representative can always get back with the resolution. However, at that moment what is more important is to listen to the customer’s problem and assure a solution to it.

• Be thick skinned: Customer is always right and this is something that your entire customer service team needs to believe in. Every situation needs to be handled with a cool head. Your representatives should be able to accept negative feedback in the right stride. Even when it is a mistake on the part of the customer, the representatives have to ignore it and offer a solution, keeping the customer’s happiness in mind.

3. Be Consistent

While it is important to have a customer service team with the right skills, it is also important to ensure that these skills are demonstrated consistently.

A single bad customer experience can ruin your company’s image. Be in control of the customer experiences by paying attention to all the key touch points.

4. Improve your Customer Service Strategy

Having skilled customer representatives is not enough. What about the strategy that you are following. Is it giving you the desired results?

Here are some of the things that you need to consider:

• Offer personalised services: Customers feel more connected to real people than software programs and FAQs. Sending automated emails is not enough. Have your representatives talk to them over the phone. They can also interact via the various social media channels.

• Be available: Offering excellent customer service has a lot to do with being available. Make sure your customer service team is available during the business hours, if not 24×7.

5. Have a Customer Service Team that is Knowledgeable

Regardless of the product or service you sell, you need to have a team of people who understand your company and its product. The customers will ask questions and your customer service teams need to answer them. They should have ready answers to any queries that the customers have.

Train the reps regarding the products you sell, so that your customers are not forced to wait for long hours.

6. Allow Customers to Give Feedback

Customer feedback is a great way to improve. It is not possible to keep track of every customer interaction your team makes. Take feedback in the right stride to know where areas you need to work on.

Use these six tips to ensure good customer service to your customers.