2023 saw 5.5 million new business applications, maintaining the surge in entrepreneurship that has been ongoing since 2020. While this boom in business is a good sign economically, it also means that as a small business owner, you now have to face additional competition.

However, excellent customer service is a huge differentiator that can set your business apart.

Your customers are your biggest stakeholders, and they hold the keys to your success. The quality of your customer service—the assistance your company provides customers before, during, and after a sale—is essential to build trust with customers and keep them coming back. 

Here are some customer service best practices to incorporate into your list of daily priorities that will drive revenue and strengthen relationships with your customers.

Foster a customer-centric culture.

A customer-centric culture doesn’t simply equate to “the customer is always right” and similar generic platitudes. It means your business prioritizes high-quality customer service at every level and interaction.

All staff members, from leadership to front-line employees, should be expected to treat customers with respect and offer the most helpful and professional service possible. However, baking this concept into core business values starts with leadership modeling customer-first behavior. This may look like communicating the value of customer satisfaction and including satisfaction in key performance indicators.

Then, train and empower employees to deliver top-tier experiences. Ensure they have the confidence to make decisions that will boost customer satisfaction. Maintain clear communication with staff and customers by implementing feedback mechanisms such as regular surveys or one-on-one meetings with staff. Frequently evaluate this feedback and use the best suggestions to improve your processes.

Maintain transparency and consistency.

Just as transparency can translate to successful leadership, it’s also crucial in creating a positive customer experience. Transparency promotes open communication and deepens relationships with customers by increasing their confidence in your organization.

Similarly, customers value consistency because it shows that your business is reliable and trustworthy—two factors that foster loyalty. In fact, 69% of consumers tend to shop more with businesses that offer consistent experiences. Plus, they’ll know what to expect each time they walk through your doors or visit your website.

To promote transparency and consistent experiences, your business must:

• Clearly explain company policies. Detail when to show up, how to pay, and any conditions of being served so customers are prepared. If you provide services by appointment, disclose and explain late policies or fees and what happens if a customer misses an appointment.
• Outline offerings and pricing on your website. List your services and/or products, what they include, and how much they cost. Even if service prices vary according to customer needs and project size, consider posting a general price range. For example, a dog grooming business might estimate prices and create tiered packages but note that final prices may vary based on the dog’s coat condition, size, and behavior.
• Set internal service standards. Work with other members of leadership to create and document standards, and then share them with your staff members. Clarify how staff should speak to customers in person and online, words or phrases they should or shouldn’t use, and strategies for de-escalating conflicts. Cover these standards in onboarding and host regular refresher sessions with sample scenarios.

If your business doesn’t already practice some of these steps, this may feel overwhelming. Consider working with an executive coach to see how to coordinate this process with your core business objectives and fit it into your busy schedule.

Engage customers online.

Many of your most impactful customer service interactions will take place via email, social media, or your website. Take proactive steps to meet your customers’ needs in their preferred digital settings while keeping these communications true to your brand and its values. 

Engage with customers on the following digital channels:

• Your website. This is the first place customers will go to engage with your business. Make the website accessible, comprehensive, and easy to navigate. To address customer questions or concerns, include a “Contact Us” page, a messaging system in your customer portal, or a pop-up that allows users to chat with a customer service representative.
• Social media. Use social media platforms to engage with potential and existing customers and develop deeper relationships. Ask and reply to questions, post engaging photos and videos, and share regular, informative updates to keep your customers in the loop. 
• Review sites. Your customers will post reviews of your business—both good and bad—on public sites like Yelp and Google. Show that you’re paying attention by responding to positive reviews with gratitude and critical ones with productive, solution-oriented language.
• Email. Send targeted emails to your customers with tailored product recommendations, announcements, and discounts. Gingr’s marketing guide recommends drafting email copy for these campaigns in advance and ensuring it aligns with your unique value proposition (UVP) and campaign goals to promote consistent messaging. Choose one or two employees to respond to emails from customers as quickly and professionally as possible.

Streamline your responses with software that allows you to direct and track your marketing, sales, and feedback communications to specific customer segments and individuals from a single hub.

Make your website mobile-friendly.

Customers visit your website for many reasons—to schedule appointments, make purchases, ask questions, explore industry tips and recommendations, state their concerns, and find your location and hours of operation. And they’re often doing it all on the go from a phone or tablet.

To keep customers happy and invested in your business, optimize your site for mobile use by including the following features:

• Adaptable screen size. Customers shouldn’t have to squint or zoom in to view your site from their phones. Your website should automatically scale to any device’s screen size. 
• Properly size buttons and menus. When customers are visiting your website on mobile, they’re using their fingers to navigate the page—adjust accordingly by resizing mentions and buttons to be tap-friendly. Create a tappable drop-down menu containing important links like your blog roll, FAQ page, and product and/or service pages.
• Compress images. Limit the file size of visual elements to allow your website to load quickly on mobile devices. However, make sure any graphics with text are still legible on smaller screens.
• Integrated, industry-specific payment and scheduling tools. For example, you might integrate your scheduling software with your website so customers can easily book appointments from their phones.

In addition to these tips, remember to regularly view top pages and navigation tools on your website.As Kanopi’s guide to website maintenance explains, a lot can change with user expectations, performance, and web design standards in just a month. It’s best to complete maintenance and support tasks like backups, updates to your CMS, security scans, accessibility audits, and more on a monthly basis to accommodate these shifts.

Offer a loyalty program.

One of the most important points of the customer service cycle is the period directly after a customer makes a purchase. To retain the customer, you need to show them that you appreciate their support.

While there are many different ways to express gratitude for your customers, a customer loyalty program directly ties your gratitude to your customers’ ongoing patronage. When they spend more money with your business, they’ll earn more points and, in turn, more rewards. For example, a dog daycare might tally up “Pet Points” each time owners bring their dogs in. Over time, these points will add up and earn owners credit for discounted services or free products.

To offer top-tier customer services, make sure you have a simple and accurate way to track the points. You could modernize the concept of a punch card and use your graphic design skills to create scannable, high-quality membership cards. Or, simply choose business management software that tracks customers’ transactions with just a name or phone number.

As you implement these strategies, keep in mind that leveraging an all-in-one, robust customer management software will streamline these practices. Plus, a leadership coach will help you find the best ways to factor these strategies into your business priorities. This way, you can focus your attention on keeping your employees engaged and building your customer relationships.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Casey Dorman

Hi, I’m Casey! I’m the Director of Business Development at Gingr software. Originally from Indianapolis, I live in Colorado with my wife, our son, and two mini Goldendoodles. With a decade of experience in sales, I assist our pet business clients in finding and effectively leveraging solutions that streamline their operations, boosting their revenue, customer satisfaction, productivity, and more.