Customer support is simply the provision of assistance to customers prior, during, and even after a sale. In business, customer service is crucial to customer satisfaction because it ensures that transactions go smoothly and customers receive exactly what they ordered. The perception of successful completion of these transactions depends on employees exhibiting “the right attitude” towards customers. According to The Learning Channel’s “5 qualities of a Great Customer Support Representative” program, employee attitudes toward customers is more important than other characteristics that many people assume are critical to customer satisfaction. Let’s look at three important customer attitude factors that employee training can remedy.
When there are problems with a product or service, customers want an accurate answer or quick action to their problems. A person who is highly trained in technical support but has poor customer support attitude will be unable to provide this type of assistance because his attitude simply does not align with how customers think. According to the same study, employees who are able to provide technical support with a good attitude are likely to have more customers that are satisfied with their purchases. Therefore, training technical support personnel to have a good attitude will not only improve customer satisfaction but also make sales.
Studies have shown that customer satisfaction improves drastically when automated tools are employed. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software is considered one of the best automation tools to help improve customer retention and increase productivity. According to the same study, an organization that uses four or more CRM tools has an edge over its counterparts when it comes to increasing the number of customers it has each year. However, most businesses still do not fully utilize the potential of CRM automation and have yet to see its full potential.
According to The Learning Channel’s “5 qualities of a Great Customer Support Representative” program, a representative must be skilled in providing assistance to customers within a timely manner. Therefore, a company should not hesitate to implement customer relationship management software, if it truly believes that improving customer satisfaction is a top priority. The representatives must also be skilled in using the tools effectively. Ideally, they should have soft skills, both verbal and non-verbal, as well as technical skills.
As a part of customer success, empathy is also an important trait to possess. According to a study published by The Learning Channel, a representative’s ability to successfully interact with a customer plays a vital role in helping them resolve a problem. According to the same study, the more skilled a customer support representative is, the more likely that he or she will be able to influence and change a customer’s decision. Therefore, a business that wants to increase its customers’ satisfaction must invest on its team by deploying the right personnel with the appropriate skill sets.
A customer support representative’s knowledge base is what makes or breaks his or her career. The Learning Channel further explained that a knowledge base is comprised of both knowledge and soft skills. With the latter, it enables employees to effectively communicate with their peers.
