It’s A Shame Why So Many Businesses Get Telephone Customer Service Wrong!

While many businesses feverishly search for that latest techie customer service gadget like a mobile app, live chat support at their website and other technologies, they seem to overlook the largest channel of customer service interactions – the telephone!

What a shame, that so many of them are getting it wrong.

Recent studies show that even in this fast-paced, always-on-the-go society we live in — 71% of customers still prefer to use the telephone for support. In fact, 92% of almost all support interactions are still made in this way. This means brands need to make greater efforts in their telephone customer service experience to show that they care. 

According to Five9, a leading contact center software provider, call centers handle over 45.4 billion customer service calls every year. However 85% of callers are dissatisfied with their telephone service experience. Confusing automated phone messages, long wait times to speak to a live person and poor telephone on-hold experiences are contributing factors.

Customer Service is becoming a lot more than an ‘industry buzzword’ as companies who treat customers poorly are losing customers left and right. No part of your company’s image is more important than how people think about your customer service.  

Have you made customer service a top priority at your company? If not, these stats will make you think twice:  

1)  26% of consumers have experienced being transferred from agent to agent without any resolution of their problem. (2012 Global Customer Service Barometer)

2)   89% of consumers have stopped doing business with a company after experiencing poor customer service. (RightNow Customer Experience Impact Report)

3)   A customer is 4 times more likely to buy from a competitor if the problem is service related vs. price or product related.  (Bain & Co.)

So what happens when you get telephone customer service experience right? You create happy, satisfied and loyal customers, as well as raving fans that help spread the word of your good service. It makes you the “go-to” brand in your industry.

In fact, when polled — 60% of customers are willing to pay more for a better experience.

But wait, it gets even better. Surveys show that 73% of consumers also spent more money with companies that provide good customer service. Ideally, when you master that personal touch and deliver a better experience for customers the rewards are huge and the profits are too! You’re able to reduce customer service costs, and decrease customer churn. 

Your telephone customer service experience is responsible for the integrity of your brand, fostering happy customer service interactions and is critical to customer retention. Before you can improve your telephone customer service, you need to find out what it’s like at this point in time for customers/clients to do business with you. Call your business and see for yourself whether you’re doing the telephone customer service experience right or wrong!