There’s no overstating the importance of customer satisfaction, which is why your customer satisfaction calls should be up to the task.
You already know that the happiness of your customers is the key to a successful business. And you know it’s important to check up on them to ensure satisfaction. Now you want to find out how your customer satisfaction calls can be even better.
That’s worthy of applause. When so many businesses are content with “good enough,” that extra effort stands out. So, if nothing else, know that you’re working toward better customer service just by thinking seriously about it.
Now then, specific to customer satisfaction calls, what should you be doing? What should you avoid? And what can you learn from these calls that will help you improve?
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Let’s start with some basics, because even the best customer satisfaction calls can backfire if you aren’t careful about a few things. Then we’ll get into more advanced call techniques as we work through the list.
1. Follow compliance regulations. Since you already have a business relationship with these customers, compliance should be relatively simple. However, you still want to ensure you follow regulations. Why? Many of them are based on what you might call common courtesy. For example, don’t call before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m., and to be honest, even though it’s not a rule, you might even consider shortening those hours so as not to interrupt family or activity time.
2. Introduce yourself. This fits in with compliance regulations, as well, and, truthfully, it’s a little awkward if you don’t introduce yourself. People want to know to whom they are speaking.
3. Say “thank you.” Thank your customer for giving your business a chance or for their continued support, whichever the case may be. It’s an easy way to express appreciation.
4. Check your notes first. Ideally, all your customers will be happy and give you five stars on every ratings site and sing your praises. We also know that’s not reality. So check your notes on the customer before you call. This is super easy with Call Logic, as you get a pop-up screen with customer notes. That means you can be prepared to work toward a solution for an unhappy customer or bask in the praise of someone who adores your product or service.
5. Don’t wait too long to call. There’s no perfect timing here, but you want your customer satisfaction calls to come while your product or service is still fresh in their mind, yet far enough out that they’ve had some time to use it and have an opinion. This is also an excellent call for additional training or question-answering, as your customer may have run into some challenges.
6. Don’t be afraid to apologize. Not all of your customers will be happy. There are numerous reasons for that: the product isn’t what they expected, the service isn’t working for them, or any other reason. It’s okay to apologize for the lackluster experience. You may find ways to make things right (or give your agents the autonomy to do so).
7. Cross-sell and up-sell sparingly. Generally, your customer satisfaction calls aren’t the time to try to make a sale. There are times when it’s appropriate, and they will likely be quite obvious. However, you want your customer to know you’re thankful for their business and want them to have the best experience possible. If you’re just hoping to get another sale out of the interaction, it hurts the purpose of your call.
8. Take notes. In conjunction with reading customer notes before a call, it’s equally important to take notes during or immediately after a call. Jot down what you discussed and highlight any areas for possible improvement. Outline any training or troubleshooting you did with the customer. Be as explicit as necessary so that if someone else speaks with them at a later date, they don’t have to wonder where the customer is in all these processes. And again, this process is easy with software like Call Logic, since it’s all built right into the system.
9. Don’t get distracted by call time metrics. Metrics have an important place in business and in customer satisfaction. Call time, however, is not one of those metrics. When you’re making customer satisfaction calls, you want to give your customers the time they need to talk to you. Similarly, you want to ensure your agents don’t feel pressured to get off a call when they’re working with a customer.
Your customer satisfaction calls give you the opportunity to solidify customer loyalty and to find and resolve any issues before they are too far gone. Take advantage of what these calls have to offer and you’ll find your business improving exponentially.
Call Logic’s auto-dialer and call management software offers dozens of helpful tools to increase your success and simplify your daily tasks. Call for your free consultation today to learn more!