10 Customer Service Tools That Will Make Your Job Easier
About 96% of customers stay loyal to brands that have great customer service. Companies that are known for excellent customer service have a way to distinguish themselves from the competition and tend to be more profitable.
That’s how important customer service is to your business. Yet, many businesses are failing because they don’t have the customer service tools and systems in place to let customers get the answers they need when they need them.
The right tools will also lower your staff time, which can save your company in the end. Read on to find out what useful customer service technologies and tools are worth your time and investment.
1. Chatbots
Chatbots are customer service tools that you can use to provide general information to customers if they have a question while visiting your site.
It’s also a way to screen customers to get them to the right live chat agent. A chatbot uses a small pop-up window that welcomes a customer and asks if they need help with specific issues. The customer that engages with the chatbot will have an automated response that solves their problem.
The customer can move on with their purchase without having to contact a customer service rep. There are a variety of chatbot platforms. Some are free or open-source platforms. Other packages have a monthly subscription.
2. Facebook Messenger
The reason why chatbots are so helpful in providing customer service is that they allow customers to reach companies at their own convenience.
They may find your company’s Facebook page and have questions about your products or services. Facebook Messenger has become a popular customer service tool because you can use chatbots through Messenger.
Since you’re creating the chatbot yourself, you have limitless ways to connect with your customers. They can submit orders, schedule appointments, and so much more.
3. Video Hosting
How many times have you had to walk customers through a process? That could be what happens in a legal proceeding or how someone assembles a product they purchased from you.
Sometimes, the best way to provide support is to visually walk your customers through a process. That’s why video hosting is so handy.
You can put the videos on YouTube as unpublished videos, or you can use other platforms like Wistia or Vimeo.
4. Dedicated Phone Numbers
Customer service technologies are great for convenience, but your customers still want the option to speak with a live person. That increases the level of trust that someone has in your business.
Instead of relying on your main number for customer service issues, have dedicated phone lines just for customer service. You don’t need to add to customers’ frustrations by transferring them to the right department, then transfer them again to reach the right customer service specialist.
You don’t need to contact your phone company to get new numbers, just get a GBPN phone number. This is a virtual phone number that offers your company more flexibility.
5. Customer Self-Service
Your customers may have a DIY type of personality. They want to do everything they can to find their own answers before contacting customer service.
You can make their lives easier by providing a self-service platform. Your customers have the ability to change passwords, manage their accounts, request repairs or services, and search a knowledge base for answers.
6. Customer Surveys
How can you be sure that you’re providing your customers with excellent service? You have to ask them! You can take care of that by creating surveys that are sent to your customers.
At the high end, Qualtrics is a survey provider for many of the top brands. For businesses that have smaller budgets, you can implement your own surveys using Survey Monkey, Type Form, or Google Forms.
You can send these surveys to customers after each interaction with your customer service team to make sure they’re satisfied with the help they received. Another option is to send out surveys to a select group of customers on a monthly basis.
7. Help Desk Software
If your business handles many customer service requests in the course of the day, help desk software will help you manage all of those support tickets.
Customers can open a ticket by filling out a form online. The support ticket is routed to a customer service specialist who responds to the query. That speeds up the response time for your company, which can greatly improve customer relations.
8. Customer Service Training
How often do you hold training sessions for your customer service team? You can always find ways to improve the level of service you provide customers.
There are a variety of training platforms that are flexible because reps can train online when it’s convenient for them. These platforms also minimize your training costs and reduce the time your reps are away from their work.
9. Customer Support Tracking
You need to have analytics tools in place that will track how many requests are handled and how long those requests take. You can use these numbers to make your team more efficient and effective.
You can also use this information to track how your customers behave, too. For example, you can find out which methods customers prefer to find assistance.
10. Internal Communications
As companies are turning to remote workers to provide customer support, you need to find a way to keep your team on the same page. This is necessary to handle escalations and to keep your customer service consistent.
Communications tools like Slack, Zoom, Trello, and Basecamp will help you manage customer service projects and allow your team members to communicate with each other.
The Top Customer Service Tools
The customer service tools listed here cover all aspects of providing outstanding customer service. When your company becomes known for quality service, you’ll notice an increase in revenue.
A tool is only as good as the company using it. You want to make sure that for every tool you use, you have a standard operating procedure to ensure communication is consistent. You’ll also get the most out of those tools.
Are you ready for more great business insights? Be sure to check out all of the small business tools you can implement in your business.
