• Crucial for Business Success: A positive or negative customer service experience significantly impacts a business.

• Influences Customer Loyalty: 94% of customers are more likely to repurchase after a positive service experience, and 80% are willing to forgive a company's mistake if the service is excellent.

• Essential for Growth: As a business expands, robust customer service processes and systems are vital.

• Managing Customer Relationships: It’s about supporting customers before and after purchase to enhance their experience with the company.

• Integral to CRM: Fast and easy access to customer information helps improve loyalty, retention, and service quality.

Customer Service Management (CSM) refers to the systematic approach a company takes to handle customer interactions, ensuring a smooth and satisfactory experience throughout the entire customer journey.

Customer service is the support you offer your customers — both before and after they buy and use your products or services — that helps them have an easy and enjoyable experience with you. Offering amazing customer service is important if you want to retain customers and grow your business. Today’s customer service goes far beyond the traditional telephone support agent. It’s available via email, web, text message, and social media. Many companies also provide self-service support, so customers can find their own answers at any time day or night. Customer support is more than just providing answers — it’s an important part of the promise your brand makes to its customers.

These touchpoints are crucial to ensure buyer satisfaction, encourage return business, and, ideally, get customers to spread the word about your business in person and online. And make no mistake, it’s not just dissatisfied customers who make their voices heard — Salesforce research shows 82% of customers say they will recommend a company based on excellent customer service. This figure is all the more compelling given how willing people are to walk away from a brand or a company that’s not meeting their needs. The same research found 71% of consumers have switched brands at least once in the last year, and 48% of those who switched did so for better customer service.

Careful planning, using the right automated systems, and constantly measuring results are the key ingredients of improving the quality of customer service management. Here’s how to apply them:

1. Make it easy for your customer service team to deal with different types of customers by creating a customer service management playbook they can follow. Include guidelines, best practices, and customer insights.

2. If you’re a small business or just starting to provide customer support, be realistic when planning your customer service structure. Build service capabilities gradually by constantly monitoring what does and doesn’t work for your customers. 

3. Set goals and identify strategies for achieving them. To improve your customer satisfaction score, for instance, use surveys or chatbots to understand what customers need from your products and listen to what they’re saying about your brand on social media. 

4. Automate your systems for maximum efficiency and predictability. A solution like Service Cloud can gather tickets from all touchpoints and automatically distribute them to the best agents based on their issue and urgency for fast resolution. With access to a 360-degree view of the customer, service agents can provide smarter, more relevant solutions.

5. Measure customer service metrics like customer satisfaction, effort score, and case resolution rates to help you analyse what is working well and where improvements are required. Tracking these metrics also helps customer service manage set targeted goals. 

You have a picture of how to improve customer service management and the ways in which technology can help do that. But how does customer service management play out in real life scenarios? Here is a picture of how customer service could look in action:

1. File a ticket

   When a customer reaches out to your customer service team, the first step is to create a ticket that documents their issue. It might be a complaint, a request for more assistance, a request for an exchange or repair, notification of a service outage — any number of issues can be covered by the initial filing of a ticket and the type of issue will govern how a service even is then processed. An automated customer service ticketing system, for instance, will use specific keywords to direct particular tickets to particular service reps.

   Sometimes, a ticket is generated without the customer having to reach out. For example, at appliance brand Fisher & Paykel, customers receive a feedback form after a technician visit so they can rate the service provided. If the rating is less than ideal, a new case is triggered, allowing the business to find out what happened and resolve any issues.

2. Update the customer

   Once the ticket has been created and assigned, the next step is to update the customer on case progress. This can be done through automated messages or by assigning a customer service rep to personally handle the case. The State of Service report found 81% of  service professionals say the phone is still the preferred channel for complex issues — up from 76% in 2020.

3. Escalate the ticket

   If the issue is particularly complex or requires specialised expertise, the ticket can be escalated to a higher-level support team or manager so the customer receives the best possible assistance. Customer service management software can automate the ticket escalation process according to clear and consistent guidelines.

4. Triage and resolve

   Triaging helps route the right tasks to the right agents. Then, with all the relevant information about the issue and the customer immediately at hand, the customer service rep can work towards a resolution. This may involve troubleshooting, offering alternative or replacement products or services, or providing additional resources.

   Tickets raised by multiple users or on recurring issues can be collated for analysis and to identify the root cause of the problem.

5. Close the ticket

   Once the issue has been resolved to the customer’s satisfaction, the ticket can be closed and any relevant data or insights recorded to further improve the customer service experience.

1. Define your customer service management goals and team roles

Defining your customer service management goal and how it aligns with your company values is the first crucial step.

Every business will have a particular customer service philosophy that they want to enact through their customer service management. At GE Appliances, for example, it’s about making the gap between the company and its customers (whom it calls “owners”) as tiny as possible. The aim is “zero distance”. That closeness puts the company in the best possible position to understand their customer and deliver products and experiences that make them feel good about the brand. 

After defining your goals, it’s equally important to define the scope of roles and teams. Who will address general enquiries, who will deal with technical queries, who will spend time on more complex cases? Structure your teams with clear role boundaries for maximum efficiency so no one is having to guess where a support ticket should be directed. 

2. Understand what kinds of support your customers need

Analyse your customer data to figure out what kind of service they need and on what channels. Straightforward FAQs? Refunds and exchanges? Home visits and field service? One-on-one phone conversations for complex issues? Chatbots for simple use cases? Video walkthroughs of new products?

This will help you establish what kind of digital solutions you need and the skills required by your customer service agents.

3. Don’t underestimate the need for “soft skills”

The State of the Connected Customer report found 73% of customers expect companies to understand their unique needs and expectations, but 56% say most companies treat them like numbers.

So yes, self-service, chatbots and FAQs are all critical. But remember to deliver  a human touch when it matters. This means hiring not only for digital skills but for empathy, patience, communication and understanding. The State of Service report found that 69% of high performing service agents feel empowered to treat customers with empathy. 

4. Empower your employees with opportunities for growth

Setting your service agents up with the right tools to do their jobs with maximum efficiency is critical. But so too is empowering your employees with opportunities to upskill and develop their careers. Training and mentoring can play an important role in boosting staff retention and tackling any skills gaps.

Give your customer service management team the best chance at success by clearly defining the scope of their roles.

Triage agent

The triage agent categorises customer service tickets so they can be correctly prioritised and routed to the agent best positioned to resolve the matter. 

Phone coordinator agent

The phone coordinator ensures the phone queue is flowing and directs other agents to help on the phones when necessary.

Ticket tank agent

A ticket tank agent handles more complex customer service issues that are likely to take some time.

Live chat/message/social media agent

This agent engages with customers via the various social media platforms like Twitter and Instagram or via chat.

Sick days, holidays, product launches — they all can add more layers of stress to an already busy job. So when your team is battling to get through the queue and stay on top of their tickets, here are some key ways to support them. 

Be upfront with your team

If you know it’s going to be a tough day, give your team a heads up so they know what’s coming and can prepare. Keep them motivated with rewards throughout a shift and pay attention to when they need breaks. An exhausted customer service agent doesn’t make for a positive customer service experience.

Focus on the essential tasks

Ditch whatever isn’t urgent for that day so everyone can focus on the task at hand. Support your triage agents to prioritise effectively and use other resources (including other staff if possible) to respond to simple use cases.

Reduce the pressure with customer-self-service

The State of the Connected Customer report found 59% of customers prefer self-service tools for simple use cases. Chatbots and self-service portals can go a long way to reducing pressure on service agents by dealing efficiently with straightforward enquiries.

Set achievable goals

Set clear and achievable goals so service agents can track their own success and understand which areas need improvement. Empower them with automated tools that boost efficiency and allow them to concentrate on higher value tasks to give them the best chance at meeting their goals.

Reward your employees

Don’t hold back on celebrating your customer service agents’ achievements especially when they’ve excelled to meet a milestone or to resolve a particularly challenging issue. Even a simple shout out on Slack can go a long way to boosting employee morale.  

Encourage your staff to praise each other, too

It shouldn’t just be the boss delivering good feedback. Let your team know they can always acknowledge each other’s achievements. If agents are working from home or are in different locations, give them the tools and opportunities to make their shout-outs heard. 

Personalise rewards and recognition

Respect people’s personal preference when it comes to recognition. A public celebration is some people’s worst nightmare while others respond to the whole team being in on it. You know your employees — acknowledge them in the way that is most meaningful to them.

Adopt a flexible schedule

Where and when do your team do their most productive work? Once you know that, you can adapt the schedule to create an environment most conducive to productivity and successful delivery of outstanding customer service. 

Meet with agents regularly

Maintain a sense of connectedness by checking in with your agents and holding regular meetings. But don’t hold meetings for meetings’ sake. Make sure any get together has a purpose or you’ll end up frustrating your employees and putting them on the backfoot with their work.  

Experiment with communication tools and channels

Today’s more distributed workforces need a wider variety of tools and channels on which to work. Consult with your team about what best works for them and don’t assume that in-office tools will translate to work-from-home environments.  

Hold virtual team-building activities

Team-building activities are more important than ever given teams are often not in one place at one time anymore. Use VC tools to connect for happy hour, birthdays, talent quests, cook-offs or any other activity that you know will give your team a boost and a laugh.

Customer service work can be monotonous and stressful. Mixing up your service agents’ roles from time to time will keep them interested and engaged as well as develop their skills set. Pick appropriate times to give your triage agent a go on live chat or let your tank ticket agent coordinate the phone queue for a while. Or let your agents loose on other departments altogether. Here are three ways your service agents apply their skills to other roles:

1. Customer training

Customer service agents know your products and services better than anyone and have the experience to anticipate issues and questions. Let them pass that knowledge back to your customers.

2. Employee training

Colleagues can learn from each other or share fresh feedback on issues that might have become stale to those dealing with them every day. Service agents may also have useful insights for product engineers from their time spent dealing with customer complaints and other issues.

3. Knowledge manager

Again, few people have as much unique insight into a company’s products and services as their customer service agents. Let them write up knowledge articles or review FAQs for the company website so they can share those insights.

Just as customers crave transparency from the companies they deal with, so too do employees. Clear and open communication is key to both the customer service experience and the customer service agent experience. 

The importance of being present as a customer service leader

Managing from afar will guarantee one thing: you’ll miss out on valuable insights from your employees. And this absence of input could lead to poor decision-making, for instance, around investing in the tools agents use to do their jobs. So create opportunities to keep information flowing and stay connected with your team. Be clear about why decisions are made and what feedback contributed to the decision so service agents feel heard. 

Ensuring alignment on meeting agendas as a customer service leader

Creating meaningful agendas can be a great way to achieve alignment with your team and reassure them that their voices will be heard. For important meetings, circulate a draft agenda for feedback and be specific about how much time is allocated for each item. 

The value of requesting 360-degree feedback as a customer service leader

Your team will be used to receiving feedback and evaluations on their performance. It’s important that you too are willing to take on input — not only from your agents and colleagues, but also through self evaluation — with a view to becoming a better leader. In your 360-degree feedback, ask for insights on your strengths and weaknesses, figure out strategies to act on those insights, and put them into practice so your teams know you take them seriously.

Whether you have one customer or 1,000, meeting customer needs is critical. While technology can help you implement or improve customer service, putting the right strategies in place is important. Today’s customers aren’t afraid to share their opinions online, from social media to review sites, or offline with their family or friends. The reality is, you must care about customer service because others, including your customers and competition, care about it — and they are vocal about sharing their opinions.

As always, you want to be in control of your company’s reputation. A happy customer is the most important asset your company has.