Things are changing quickly in the business world as customers now have many choices, especially with e-commerce sites like Amazon allowing them to buy something without leaving their couches. Giving your company the best chance to compete is essential. You need to really lean in and understand your customers. It’s all about balancing attrition and retention, or how many customers you are losing and how many are coming back for more.
Companies losing more than they gain may have one of the five issues listed below. Streamline your processes and show appreciation for your customers by eliminating these problem areas, and you can maintain a strong client base.
1. Unhappy Employees Who Don’t Help Or Show Empathy
As soon as a customer enters your physical storefront or asks for help on your website, your employees need to show their enthusiasm to solve the problem. This can be more challenging if your staff members are unhappy and they carry this attitude into the way they treat customers. If someone needs assistance and they experience a negative interaction with your staff, that’s what your customers will remember most.
In addition to being helpful, your employees need to show empathy. In most cases, customers are forced to call because they need assistance. That’s why it’s nice to have your agents apologize for the inconvenience of calling in. It’s always important to show empathy for the caller’s misfortune. You’re more likely to retain a customer’s business if they know they’re calling a friendly place with helpful associates.
If your employees aren’t being helpful or showing empathy, then managers can improve the customer experience by finding out why employees are upset in the first place. It could be that they don’t have the tools or answers necessary to find a suitable solution for the customers. If they don’t have what they need, it’s only a matter of time before customers show their frustration, and that can make the employees unhappy with their work.
The other issue could be that your employees are overworked to such a point that they’ve become burned out. Often, when that happens, your team becomes exhausted, checks out, and only gives half the effort. Management needs to ensure that employees aren't working excessive overtime and that you’re listening to their concerns so you can provide solutions that can make them happy at work.
2. No Stock Available
Few things irritate customers as much as finding an item they’ve been searching for, only to discover that the item is out of stock. As a business, you must build resilience into your supply chain. It’s essential to ensure that your best-selling items are always available. You must take the unpredictability out of the equation by developing contingency plans, such as having a backup inventory source and using multiple vendors in case one falls through. It’s also essential to monitor your inventory levels at all times because you should never be surprised that an item is out of stock.
Check your website regularly and ensure that you avoid showing any of your products as available if they are actually out of stock.
3. High Prices
It's also essential that your company keeps its prices competitive with the market and that you’re focusing on the value of your products. If your prices are wildly above your competitors and your items aren’t unique enough to stand out, customers will get upset and happily take their business elsewhere. They may also mention their displeasure to their friends.
That’s not to say that you can't have higher prices on your products. However, if you do, you must ensure that customers get what they pay for and that they don’t immediately believe that they spent more than necessary. You never want customers pointing out that there are better products at a similar price because, if that’s the case, they no longer have a reason to shop at your store. Constantly evaluate your prices and make adjustments when necessary. That way, you’ll be confident that customers are getting the best value.
4. Customers Can’t Get Reach Your Company
The other most frustrating experience for customers is when they cannot get through to your company when they need you most. After all, why would you want to prevent potential sales just because you don’t have someone there to answer the phone? In reality, you should have several communication channels available, from chat and email to phones. It is also essential that all contact information is clearly listed on the website, especially if customers are required to call to complete a particular transaction. Often, if a customer can’t reach you, they’ll still be more than happy to reach out to a website like Yelp to leave a negative review.
While many other issues can prevent a positive customer experience, especially problems unique to your business, you'll be in hot water if you don’t at least get these five under control. Always put your customers as #1, and your company can survive anything the world throws at it.