by Silva Payne

Created on: June 17, 2009   Last Updated: July 22, 2010

There is very little middle ground when it comes to delivering great customer service. Even if you are selling a unique product or opportunity, the level of customer service you provide must be high in today's consumer-savvy world. Bad customer service is a sure way to lose repeat sales or leads, so keeping your customers happy is crucial.

Customer service does not start when a customer has a complaint. If you think that this is the only time to provide it then you have almost certainly lost a high number of potential clients already. Customer service starts the moment the client or stakeholder first interacts with the company. This could be face to face, over the telephone, online or via some other form of advertising.

From that very first moment the client has to believe that you are reputable, responsible and that you are offering a good deal, not just in what you are selling but also in how you value the customer. Trust is the key to establishing a good relationship with the client and maintaining it for future sales and recommendations.

However you wish to draw customers in, you need to be approachable. Web sites should be simple to navigate, with the right balance of technology and ease of use. Three clicks is the maximum that any customer should need to get to where they either hand over the money or find the information they are looking for.

Keep the contact information on your web site up-to-date. If the phone number or email address on the web site stops working for whatever reason, you will lose customers. No one is going to hunt down the right details, they will just move on to the next company. If your business depends largely on postal mail, do not leave letters unanswered for more than two or three days.

Interacting with potential customers by telephone is possibly the quickest way to either draw in a sale, or put someone off wanting to deal with you for life. If you have a customer in front of you, and the phone starts ringing, naturally the person in front of you takes precedence. However, to leave a ringing phone unanswered is poor customer service.

Invest in equipment that allows the answering machine to be switched on by discretely hitting just one button, and then call the client back as soon as possible. When talking on the telephone, your staff should be aware of the way they are representing the company. To answer the phone with a smile is important; the caller can hear that smile and will often respond accordingly.

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