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Amazon. Apple. Microsoft.
It’s no secret that the world’s premier companies have all made it big off one thing: customer service. When you exhibit a higher level of service to your customers than the rest of your competition, then your product will practically sell itself. Whether it’s in person by word of mouth or virtually through viral social media posts, your customers will sing your praises from the rooftops.
In order to do customer service well in the 21st century, you have to be using customer service software. Too many companies, however, just tick the “customer service software” box, without actually paying attention to how to use the software.
If you’re not leveraging the software in the right way, then you could be leaving a lot on the table when it comes to using the software to provide a quality customer service experience to your users.
In this article, we’ll go over five critical tips that you can start implementing today to get the most out of the software that you use.
1. Set Stringent SLA’s
An SLA is a service-level agreement. It constitutes the customer service standards to which you will hold your team accountable. That includes such things as first-response time, appropriate escalation procedure, and specific language that your reps must use.
Set stringent SLA’s from within your customer service software (the best use case is a mandatory first-response time) in order to ensure that you’re providing excellent service.
2. Use “Private Notes”
Any customer service software worth its salt will come with a “private notes” feature. This feature enables employees to internally collaborate over solving a support ticket without allowing the communication to be visible to the customer.
This is necessary to ensure that your service team executes smoothly on any ticket that requires input from multiple people.
3. Leverage Live Chat
The most expensive software comes with a live chat feature. By using this feature, you can be proactive about reaching out to customers and stop customer support tickets even before they are sent in. That way, you’re able to spend more time on each customer that does have a more significant concern to be dealt with.
4. Automatic Case Assignment
An automatic case assignment is a set of rules within the software that will route tickets to the right person on your service team.
This eliminates any time that the employee must take to select and assign himself or herself a ticket.
5. Ensure You’re Using the Right Tool for Your Business
Last but certainly not least, make sure that you’re using the right customer service software for your business. Not all helpdesk software were created equally. Some are better for small startups in the technology industry, and others are tailor-made for the massive multinational conglomerates of this world. The Zendesk vs Freshdesk debate, for example, is settled when one considers company size and budget.
You’ll never get the most out of your tool if you’re not using the right one specific to your company size and industry.
Make Customer Service Software Work for You
Now that you know how to make customer service software work for you, all that remains is for you to go out and start doing it! Report back in the comments to let us know how you’re implementing these tips.
For more business and professional advice, make sure to check out the rest of the articles on our website!