Improving customer support can seem impossible without increasing costs, but it doesn't have to be. Below are a few ways to optimize your customer support and decrease the money you spend while doing it.
Be Proactive
Whether your customers are seeking help through social media, email, or over the phone, you will be able to identify and solve their problems quickly. This may mean hiring a small team to address issues before escalating into more significant issues. The first step is understanding your customers and what they can do on their own. Take the time to learn about your consumer base so you can create a plan for handling requests in advance.
Use Automation
There are many tools on the market today that automate customer support. The best of these are free, simple, and scalable.
Keep a list handy with free or low-cost tools that fit your company’s needs. Great examples of automation tools include:
Zapier for integrating your favorite apps,
Typeform for creating forms to generate leads and collect customer feedback, and
SurveyMonkey for gathering customer insight and feedback from users to make better product decisions later down the road
Outsource When Possible
The most effective way to save money on customer support is by outsourcing to companies like Super Virtuals. When you outsource, you don't have to pay for benefits or overhead costs in addition to the service itself. Other ways outsourcing can help cut down costs include:
Access to a global talent pool of highly skilled support reps from around the world and flexible pricing
Increased focus on core business processes, as well as the ability to scale cost-effectively when demand spikes and dips
Leveraging technologies and service models that are best suited for your unique business needs
Other Ways To Save On Customer Support
In addition to the three main ways to save on customer support, there are several other practices you can adopt to help cut costs while still providing excellent service. Some examples include:
Train your employees in the best way to deal with customers and handle issues. The interaction with an employee is often the most essential part of a customer’s experience, so it is vital that this interaction goes well. In addition, having high-value employees will cause less churn and mean more repeat business for your company.
Be transparent with your customers about why you are making changes to your service or product offering. If a customer feels they have been taken advantage of or misled, they are far more likely to complain. Having happy customers will reduce complaints and make it easier for your company to manage complaints when they occur because you’ll be able to discuss the issues together rather than each side simply complaining about the other.
"Make every interaction count, even the small ones. They are all relevant." - Shep Hyken