Do you want to take your company to the next level? If so, you must resolve to provide excellent customer service. How you support your customers will play a crucial role in whether they decide to return to your company in the future, which in turn will affect the amount of profit that you turnover going forward.

If you want to forge a loyal customer base that brings you business time and time again, you simply must optimize your customer service. To find out how that can be achieved by your team, be sure to read on.

Be friendly

First impressions are critical in every part of your business, no matter who the first point of contact for a customer is, they must feel like your business and employees value them.

You must attend to customers in a friendly, polite, and courteous manner. If you do not, nobody is going to feel comfortable doing business with you. It really is as simple as that.

If you are guilty of sometimes not being as friendly as you can be with your customers, be sure to put this advice into practice:

• Greet each customer with a smile
• Introduce yourself using your name
• Actively listen to your customers
• Do not make promises you cannot keep

Provide a quick response

Your customers do not want to be kept waiting whenever they ask you an urgent question; they want and prompt response every time they make an inquiry with you. It is for this reason why you must go above and beyond to respond to your customers quickly and succinctly at all times.

Of course, your busy schedule means that you cannot be on the phone and/or responding to emails all day long. You can, however, take advantage of a live chat software tool. With this type of technological solution embedded in your company website, you will be allowed to engage with your customers via real-time automated messages at all points in the day. This will provide your customers with the answers they need, and it will allow you to carry on with the rest of your essential day-to-day tasks.

Know your product

You need to be able to answer all the questions that your customers ask about your business. This means that you must know your product inside and out. There is no room for complacency in this instance — you need to study your range of products and services to ensure that you know every intricate detail of them!

Thank your customers

Your customers will value sincere appreciation, which is why you should go out of your way to thank them for their custom. This will go a long way in encouraging them that you respect them and that you want them to return to your company in the future.

To thank your customers, you should:

• Send a handwritten note that expresses your gratitude
• Provide your customers with free samples and gifts
• Make special discounts available to your most loyal customers