Good customer service is a reflection of the golden rule. If you treat your customers well, they’re more apt to treat you with the same respect and loyalty. Unfortunately, the opposite also rings true. If a customer is treated poorly, you might lose their business and their bad review could drive potential leads away.

How you treat your customers can make or break your reputation. Protect your business by not making these 5 customer service mistakes! Click To Tweet

What are the common mistakes?

Businesses like to set high expectations so that products or services sell. If you’re a business owner and you’re able to deliver as promised, it’s intuitive that you will receive positive feedback. But what about the other times? What about the poor customer experiences and bad reviews? To make sure your business is treating your customers fairly, try to avoid making these 5 common mistakes:

1. Poor etiquette
2. Missing communication channels
3. Untrained staff
4. Impersonal representatives
5. Complicated return policy

1) Poor etiquette

Basic manners like saying “please” or “thank you” can go a long way in customer support. If a customer is reaching out to customer service, it’s likely because of an issue. Not following up or not giving clear answers will make you seem illegitimate and untrustworthy. Remember to respect your customer’s time and they’ll return the favor.

2) Missing communication channels

There’s nothing more annoying than not being able to contact customer service, and it’s even more frustrating if there’s only one form of contact. Whether it’s a phone number, email address, online chat, mailing address, or fax number, make sure there are multiple channels for your customer to be able to reach out.

Pro Tip: Never miss a call when you have a professional phone answering service on your side!

3) Untrained staff

The cons are starting to outweigh the pros of the tiered support method. This method of problem-solving focuses on arranging customer service agents by expertise, which prevents new employees from learning and elongates the solution for the customer. Instead of passing issues up the chain of command, it’s more effective to enable collaboration within the customer service team. You’ll see higher customer satisfaction and an increase in employee ownership overall.

4) Impersonal representatives

Sometimes, it’s not just about solving a customer issue. Helping customers feel validated can make a huge difference. When a customer service representative speaks with a customer, the conversation should be both professional and personal. Employees might come across as impersonal by failing to listen or refusing to bend company policy. It’s important to remember those customer relationships are just as important as selling products.

5) Complicated return policy

If you don’t have a clear return policy, you’re basically asking for customer service issues. If you’re selling a product, you’re bound to have a customer who may be dissatisfied or decide they no longer need the item. If you have a return policy that makes a customer jump through hoops, you might think you’re discouraging refunds. The reality is that not providing clear information about a return frustrates customers and inevitably leads them away from your business.

Get Prepared for the Future

If you’re a business owner or manager, you could probably verify whether your company is making any of these mistakes or not. It’s important to take heed, especially to prevent future problems with your customers. This might be a good time to explore how an answering service could benefit your business.

Has your business made any of these mistakes? Connect with us to learn more about how to provide exceptional service.