customer-service-trends

5 Brand Websites Doing Customer Service Right

By Ben Ringshall on November 21, 2019

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Zappos. Apple. Wistia. Netflix. Whatever your business or its size, the first place your customers go when seeking help is your website. And if they can’t find the information they need there, you’re going to lose them.

You don’t have to be reachable by phone 24/7, but you do have to give your customers a way to solve their problems or get in touch when they can’t help themselves.

Here, we look at some major brands that are doing customer service in all the right ways, but most especially on their websites. We take a magnifying glass to these websites and give you the means to up your website game, too.

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On the Horizon: Customer Service Trends in 2019 [Report]

By Drew Wilkinson on January 31, 2019

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We open in the year 2019.

It’s a challenging time for customer service executives. Customer expectations are higher than ever … and competition is stiff. Roughly 82% of customers are willing to leave a brand because of poor customer service.

The protagonist prepares for a long journey through the customer service galaxy. The goal is simple: To provide customer support executives with the insights they need to meet the expectations of their customers in 2019 (and beyond). This field guide will help him, and you, on your journey to this goal. In it, you’ll find the following easily-digestible sections in the report:

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10 Trends That Will Disrupt Customer Service in 2018 [White Paper]

By Daniela Puzzo on May 31, 2018

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“I feel the need, the need for speed!”

In Top Gun, the 1986 classic, Pete “Maverick” Mitchell’s famous phrase effectively summed up the future of customer service (CS). While it wasn’t intended to evoke the relationship between business and consumer, over 30 years later, it speaks directly to the state of CS today.

Speed is arguably the most significant benchmark for every single customer service interaction today. Businesses can never be too fast to reply, react, or resolve an issue. As channel choices continue to stack up, and consumers navigate through them with swift precision, the expectation to be ‘ready and waiting’ at all times of the day is now the gold standard in customer service.

Despite this, recent reports reveal that the average time to handle a customer service request is 15 hours and 17 minutes – a far cry from first-class service expectations. But of the 12 industries that improved customer satisfaction in 2016, nine of them had something in common: They each sped up First Response Time (FRT). When issues are resolved in the initial five minutes of first contact, the average customer satisfaction score is 90 (on a 100-point scale). If resolved in six to 10 minutes, the satisfaction rating drops seven points to 83, and continues dropping steadily as additional time passes. Therefore, responding quickly will help to stave off declining satisfaction.

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Twitter Still Wants to Be a Customer Service Channel

By Shai Berger on April 12, 2017

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What a strange place Twitter is in. Consider the incredible influence it holds in the daily news cycle. Newscasts and white house press briefings talk about “tweets” with a seriousness that makes it easy to forget that no one outside the early-adopter circles had even heard that word before 2008. Or consider how iOS treats “tweeting” as a system-level communication option, on par with email and text messaging.

And yet, the company continues to struggle against sluggish subscriber growth and impatient investors. There were rumours throughout last year, that a sale was imminent. Part of the problem is that Twitter, as a product is successful in a few different “roles”. It works as a PR conduit for politicians and celebrities; as a global chat system; and as a customer service channel. That last role gets the least amount of public attention, but the company’s recent actions show that it sees a real future in this direction.

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Top 10 Customer Service Trends for 2017 [Whitepaper]

By Daniela Puzzo on February 7, 2017

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The best way to predict trends in customer service is to look at patterns in consumer behaviour. As customer demographics shift and technology evolves, understanding expectations becomes a never-ending task.

It’s obvious that customer service has become increasingly complex, but it still remains a vital component to the success of every organization. The problem is, many businesses are struggling to keep up with all the changes. A study from NewVoiceMedia indicates that companies lose more than $62 billion each year due to poor customer service. Understanding trends in customer service has become a high priority for most, if not all, organizations.

This whitepaper examines 10 customer service trends that will dramatically affect the success of your support team in 2017. Continue reading →

5 Stats that Prove the Importance of Self-Service

By Daniela Puzzo on December 1, 2016

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5 Stats that Prove the Importance of Self-Service Customers today don’t want to waste time and energy calling, chatting or emailing with customer service when their answers can just as easily be found using self-service. Self-service is a win-win strategy for any service organization. It allows companies to provide online support with no agent interaction, and lets customers feel empowered to find answers in their own time.

Providing self-service options to your customers is critical for delivering a top-notch customer service experience. These stats prove why self-service will be even more important in 2017.

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Getting Customer Service Back on Track and Why it Matters

By Nicolina Savelli on August 3, 2016

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Newsflash: Only 1% of customers feel that their expectations of good customer service are always met. That factoid presents a gapping problem in the customer service industry and it’s about time we do something about it. If you’re experiencing higher than normal call volume, unbearable wait times, frustrated customers and depleting agent morale it’s time to get your customer service back on track.

Why you might ask? Other than keeping customers happy, customer service is the backbone of customer loyalty and revenue. By ignoring service and satisfaction you are ignoring up to 55% of consumers who have intended to make a purchase, but backed out because of poor customer service. In fact, 52% of consumers have made more purchases from a company after having a good customer service experience and 73 % of consumers say friendly customer service reps can make them fall in love with a brand.

So, how can you get your customer service back on track and revenue back to your business? Here are 3 tips you need to follow: Continue reading →

8 Mega Customer Service Trends for 2016 [Whitepaper]

By Daniela Puzzo on February 25, 2016

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Ambitious companies that want to thrive in today’s marketplace must focus on delivering exceptional customer service. To win and retain customers, businesses must differentiate themselves from the competition, and customer service is playing a dominant role in achieving this. In fact, 89%of marketing leaders expect to compete primarily on the basis of customer experience by 2016, as compared with 36% four years ago. This seems fitting since even a 10% improvement in CX scores can translate into more than $1 billion in revenue.

Each year it’s essential to know which trends will affect your industry, your employees, and your customers. Here’s what customer service leaders should be focussed on this year.

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Whitepaper: 10 Growing Customer Service Trends for 2015

By Daniela Puzzo on February 26, 2015

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It’s essential that your organization understands the 10 key trends currently shaping the state of customer service. Some may be familiar trends that you’ve already embraced, while others may be new. Either way, a keen eye must be kept on this important industry that continues to evolve.

Let’s take a look at 10 growing customer service trends for 2015. Continue reading →

Top 5 Customer Service Infographics for 2014

By Jason Bigue on June 4, 2014

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Want some compelling reasons to invest more in your customer service efforts? How about some great facts to help you map out your customer experience strategy? You’ve come to the right place!