The 6 Best Practices in Omnichannel Customer Service

The way in which companies manage customer service has changed dramatically in recent years. More than a decade ago, there were only two ways to contact a company: by phone or fax. However, at present there are multiple online contact tools: email, online chat, SMS or social networks, among others. In this sense, SuperOffice highlights that the challenge for many companies is that omnichannel offers a consistent, quality service and integrated to customers.

According to Aberdeen Group, companies that offer quality customer service through multiple channels retain 89% of their customers, while companies that do not provide omnichannel service can only retain 33%.

What is omnichannel customer service?

The omnichannel customer service integrates text, social networks, email and instant messaging to provide a unified brand experience, so that the customer can contact the company through various channels and, at the same time, experience the quality from service.

According to a study by Accenture, 89% of consumers experience frustration when having to repeat their questions to several agents of customer service. Frustration that can now be avoided thanks to the omnichannel customer service.

The 6 best practices in omnichannel customer service

1.- Have responsive websites

90% of customers say that their experience in contacting customer service through mobile devices has been negative. Thus, the main complaint of users in this aspect is the incorrect display and difficult navigation. Added to this is the slow loading time of certain websites. Therefore, it is essential that companies that want to offer an omnichannel service to the client have their websites optimized for mobile use.

2.- Improve response times in social networks

Social media can be an excellent tool for customer service, obtaining high rates of customer satisfaction. However, many brands do not meet the expectations of customers when answering their questions through social networks.

According to an NM Incite survey, slow responses are more negative for customers than when a company does not respond at all. Therefore, the reduction of response times in social networks and the training of employees to provide quick and effective solutions can significantly improve relationships with customers.

3.- Enhance self-service

Almost three-quarters of consumers prefer to use a company’s website to find a solution to other service channels. There are many ways to help clients find solutions, for example, with a complete FAQ page that is the most widely implemented self-service channel. This reduces the amount of time it takes the agent to resolve the problem and the number of times a customer needs to contact customer service. The result: greater customer satisfaction and lower overall costs for the company.

4.- Increase satisfaction with an SMS sending service

Sending SMS is really effective for companies in certain sectors such as health to send appointment reminders, or banking to send alerts to customers immediately. A Single Point study confirmed that 99% of all text messages are read. Therefore, if companies want to reach their customers the use of SMS is extremely effective. Especially the Millennial Generation, which rejects telephone calls and voicemails, is the one that most enthusiastically embraces SMS as a channel of customer service.

5.- Improve sales through online chat

Online chat is a very popular form of customer service, since the ability to access help quickly and conveniently alleviates customer frustration. In addition to being an effective channel for customer service, online chat can improve sales. As customer service agents guide customers through a particular problem, they may be able to identify products or services that are useful to them.

6.- Use email marketing

Sending emails still works and works very well. In fact, email earns the most effective digital marketing strategy for customer retention with 56% effectiveness. In addition, 38% of consumers prefer to communicate online or by email about simple customer service problems. The most important thing in this customer service is to always respond to users when they raise a question or problem through an email, giving them a certain response time.

In conclusion, omnichannel customer service is the solution for companies with a vision of the future. Regardless of the channels a company chooses to contact customer service, its priority must always be to provide a useful and honest experience that enables the growth of its relationship with its customers.