Companies the world over and brands therein yearn for greater brand awareness and better trials, as also growth in sales, market share, and profit, as time passes by. But, before they can deserve all these elements, the companies and their brands must first serve.
My mother Asha Kapoor, a teacher of English and French and headmistress of a Jesuit school, always took the trouble to teach me: ‘First serve, then only you deserve’. And, in this brand-new marketing world, where companies compete with each other, it is important to emphasise on this aspect of business -- customer service. Service is the first step to a great brand and a great company.
I would recommend four strong ‘pr’escriptions for excellent customer service. And, if implemented in your company and for your brand, they could give great dividends and help increase customer satisfaction and delight, while also helping the company’s top line and bottom line.
The first ‘pr’escription I would recommend is ‘pr’e-empt. We must anticipate and pre-empt consumer needs, if you are to be ahead of the curve. Being proactive, rather than reactive, definitely gives you a head-start. Do anticipate consumer needs, so that you can give excellent customer service.
It is important for you to observe and listen to consumers. Sometimes the consumer expresses his or her need verbally; sometimes expresses they do so non-verbally -- through body language. If you study the trend of consumer behaviour in your own segment, or your own industry or category, you would be able to pre-empt the needs and be able to serve customers and consumers in a world-class manner.
The second ‘pr’escription I would recommend is ‘pr’omise. Good customer service, leading to customer delight, is always measured on the delivery versus the ‘pr’omise made. But, supposing the brand of a company does not promise -- then how can it define the customer’s expectations? And, if you do not define the customer’s expectations, how will you measure whether the customer service was good or bad, because you would have no promise or expectation to go by to measure the delivery against. A promise, the starting point of any good customer service, defines expectations and, against it, a delivery can be measured, leading to customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction, as the case may be.
The third ‘pr’escription I would recommend is ‘pr’ompt. Do not make the customer wait. In brand marketing and customer service, making the customer wait is an unpardonable offence. Customers are made to wait for the bill at a restaurant; for receiving a return call from a service provider; to be paid attention to by a salesperson at a counter; for a product delivery to happen, et al. Making a customer wait is disastrous for the brand and the company, because during that waiting period, not only does the customer get upset, but he/she also gets an opportunity to think of switching to another brand because of the delay and frustration one is forced to go through during the waiting period.
Prompt customer service prescription is significant in enhancing customer service standards. In my opinion, my ‘brand mantra’ is: ‘Customer standards must be set, Customer standards must be met’. Prompt customer service could vary across categories and industries. In the case of service at a restaurant after an order has been placed, one should consider if it was done in a few minutes. In the case of a consumer durable, it should be seen that the delivery takes place within the stipulated time. In the case of an industrial product or even large purchases, such as aeroplanes, service should be made in a few months or a year or two. The meaning of being prompt would thus vary across product and service categories and industries. But there is a set pattern as to what is considered prompt industry-wise and what goes beyond a point when irritation and anger set in in the mind of a customer.
The fourth ‘pr’escription I would recommend is ‘pr’ecision. Being ambiguous towards the customer and offering vague solutions is not the best way forward for excellent customer service. It is important that one should understand the ‘pr’ecise needs of the consumer or the customer, so that he/she can be served well. If you do not understand the precise and exact needs of the consumer/ customer, you could land up either serving them in an inappropriate or wrong manner or in an inadequate and insufficient manner. Understanding precisely what is needed by the customer is critical to being able to deliver top-class customer service. Getting a service or product delivered precisely is the basic need and right of every customer/consumer.
The four recommended prescriptions – pre-empt, promise, prompt and be precise -- will help you achieve world-class customer service and make consumers/ customers delighted. In order to make your company and brand grow, you must first serve then only you deserve rewards!