It’s no secret that one of the best ways to boost your business is to improve customer relations. If customers like what you offer and are pleased with the service, they’re more likely to become repeat clients, opening up a lucrative revenue stream. In fact, it’s five times cheaper to maintain good relations with your existing customer base than to attract new ones.
Smartphones and the internet have tilted the retail balance towards consumers since they can easily check product reviews and information online. This has made comparison shopping more convenient, which can chip away at a brand’s differentiation strategy. If all brands start to look the same, you have to look for ways to set your business apart.
Businesses that fail to adapt to the new digital landscape are at risk of falling behind. If you can’t compete on price, quality, or brand recognition, then one way to differentiate your brand is to invest in improving customer service. Customer service encompasses the entire shopping experience, from the moment the customer enters the store until they take their purchase home.
But your work doesn’t end there. You also need to offer after-sales support as a vote of confidence in your products’ quality and reliability. Here are a few ways you can transform your brand’s after-sales strategy.
- Adopt a dynamic pricing approach
Every business wants to improve its customer service, but that could prove a challenge if profitability and ability to compete are at risk. You need to balance your responsibility to your customers as well as your fiduciary duties. One way to improve customer care without hurting your bottom line is to adopt a dynamic pricing strategy for service parts.
The usual pricing model is to take the cost of the item or service and adding a markup for profit. This method, while popular, is also antiquated. You can stand to earn more profit by changing an item’s pricing based on factors such as weather, demand, and seasonality. Investing in machine learning and analytics allows your business to adjust pricing on a day-to-day basis.
- Resolve problems quickly
I’m sure we all want to resolve customer issues quickly, but in the information age, it could mean the difference between your brand’s success and failure. Pew Research Center reports that 35 percent of the labor force consists of millennials, outnumbering gen Xers and baby boomers. How does this relate to your problem? You only have to remember that the Millennial generation is incredibly tech-savvy and rely on the internet for everything from communication to information gathering.
If your business is unable to resolve a service issue, the next thing your millennial customer will do is attempt to solve the problem themself, which can incur ill will towards your brand. If no resolution has been reached, they could also complain over their social media, damaging your reputation. Viral user-generated content can be a great deal more effective than a planned campaign, so you need to tread carefully and ensure that issues are resolved quickly.
- Invest in new technology
Today’s customers expect speed and efficiency from their daily transactions, and the same applies to your business. They want it good and fast and are willing to pay a premium if you can offer it. Brands, in turn, are expected to adapt to the fast-changing market and make sure that they can respond to customer needs with minimal delay. One way to do that is to invest in new technology.
Businesses that still rely on old processes simply cannot compete with their nimbler and more forward-thinking rivals. If you want to improve your brand’s after-sales service, you need to invest in solutions such as warranty management technology to streamline processes and improve speed within the organization. The initial cost of investment will pay for itself many times over when you see the cost savings from improved efficiency and lower turnover.
Whether you’re a retail veteran or a scrappy startup, you shouldn’t underestimate the power of customer service. Businesses rise and fall on the capricious whims of their customers, and it’s your job that they are always satisfied. Your brand cannot survive if you neglect to adopt new methods and technologies that will transform the way your business is run.
