Does customer service matter? A brand is the sum of its interactions with customers and potential customers. Everything from product to marketing to customer service either builds (or detracts) from your brand. With most people starved for time, good customer service means not only processing a transaction, opening an account, or solving a problem — but doing it in the most convenient way possible.
Customer Service 1.0: Instant Access
When we think of customer service, what probably comes to mind is access to the attention of a company employee who can help. Toll-free call centers and customer service desks are built around instant access. This type of customer service is critical, and it’s not going away, though Graham Ede, CEO of Neoswave, says call centers may shrink as new technology is adopted.
Some of the new technology includes access through email, chat, website, and smartphone. But instant access is still reactionary customer service: waiting for the customer to reach out or for something to break before providing assistance.
Customer Service 2.0: Frictionless Customer Service
What do Uber, Airbnb, and Domino’s Pizza have in common? Each embraces a standard of frictionless customer service. This is a form of service that makes getting things done so easy you never need to pick up the phone or wait in line at a help desk.
Uber allows you to call a taxi with a press of a button on your smartphone. Airbnb facilitates connections between hosts and guests with nary a front desk in sight. Domino’s introduced an online tracking system so customers never have to call to find out where their pizza is: whether it’s being assembled, in the oven, or en route.
The challenge with this model is that when things do break, where do you turn? Frictionless customer service is great, but people want a backup plan if it breaks. You still must offer instant access, but your costs should shrink as you get better at instantly answering all customer questions.
Customer Service 3.0: Seamless Customer Service
The future of customer service lies in a “blended” model. The more that can be done through technology, without waiting to interact with a person, the smoother the process will be. But when something does go wrong, something that can’t easily be solved without human touch or that requires a special urgency, the company must be agile enough to create a seamless transition to the “instant access” model of customer service.
To map out the future of your brand’s customer service, look at customer service through your customers’ eyes. Your customer service logs can help you build a customer service journey. Adam Richardson, Creative Director at global innovation firm frog design and the author of Innovation X: Why a Company’s Toughest Problems are its Greatest Advantage, writes in the Harvard Business Review that about the importance of mapping the customer journey:
- Which are the “moments that matter” to the customer?
- Which are the “moments that matter” to the brand?
- What are the most frequently asked customer questions?
- When is a customer most likely to interact with the brand?
- Rank the issues customers contact the brand about.
- What causes customers to exit customer service prematurely?
- What forms of instant access are used most often?
From there, a customer service journey map can help identify where digitizing and streamlining service may benefit both the customer and the company, with a decrease in operating expenses. It should also show what customers are happiest about and potential opportunities for the brand. Richardson feels the customer service map is the key to innovation.
Every customer interaction matters for a brand. Companies that meet their customers where they need and want to be at that moment stand to elevate their customer service to a seamless level and a competitive advantage.
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Hunter Pechin is a marketing problem solver who consults through Brand Federation as a fractional CMO or brand strategist for firms in food, banking, and other industries. He also provides excellent customer service for his two children.
