How to Assist Customers through Excellent Customer Service?

If you assist customers by addressing their problems and giving them a satisfactory solution they will surely spread word of mouth. In that case, a company is unknowingly saving a hefty sum of money behind advertising.

How? The company is assisting customers and as a result they are talking positively of their products and services. That's how things work in today's consumer market where consumers hold power.

When you buy product from companies or a service provider the support they offer before, during, and long after the purchase is a great customer service. Back in the past customer services were offered only after the customers make confirmed buying decisions and that too with limited resources.

However, nowadays modern technology has revolutionized the customer service and support segment. Gone are the days when you could book a complaint to a telemarketer (over a phone call) but today you have tools like email, social media, text, and messaging features available 24x7 to get in touch with a support executive.

To put it differently, assisting customers is way more than addressing and solving their problems. It's about living up to the promise made to the consumer.

Why companies indulge in offering good customer service?

Surprisingly, customer service is a deciding factor and plays a critical role in the company's growth. Earlier a consumer purchased a product or service based on price, the company's reputation, social status, and the promptness of the after-sales services.

Nonetheless, today customer experience is the measurable parameter. Companies are competing based on who offers an impeccable customer experience. The reason being great customer service offers an unmatched experience to the customer. It includes not just determining the customer's problem but going beyond the set limit to offer a long-term solution.

Now this works two ways both for the customer and the business. The business can sell more since the customer is happy and the customer is delighted with a custom solution tailored according to his or her requirement.

Five phases of assisting customers

To assist customers means unleashing a potential to connect with them on various levels. Basically, there are three phase when a customer need help. Here's a detailed discussion.

#1 Familiarizing customers with product or services

You spot a buyers at your showroom, in a shop located in the shopping mall, or at a retail venue in a busy street. What is the initial course of action? You approach them, greet customers with a warm welcome, and offer knowledgeable information regarding a product.

This is sales where you help customers to get familiar with your products or a service. They touch, feel, and take a glance if it is a physical product. This is the initial phase during which customers asks questions to gain insights about what they are looking at.

#2 Assisting them with a demo

Once the customer is thorough with the product knowledge or service next is the demo part. After inquiries they want to see how the product operates in live conditions. Additionally, they will calculate the cost, depreciation and other details to make buying decisions.

This is the second process when formal inquiries turn into interested customers and finally into buyers. Here demo plays a vital role.

#3 Helping them to make a purchase decision

A great experience is associated with a great product and your customer is looking for the same. After the decision is made to make the purchase there will be a demand for a discount. This the tricky part when you are the seller but not for those working in a brand showroom since the price and discount is fixed.

Here, either you get a paying customer or nothing. What you will do is make an eye contact and accumulate all your sales wisdom to close the deal. In other words, you help buyer in purchasing.

#4 Delivery and installation

Finally process is to deliver the order and install if needed. In service sector the conditions are different depending on the type of service. During the delivery and installation a different team takes over the job. This is the part of good customer service.

#5 Product breakdown

The real meaning of good customer service begins when the buyer needs after sales service. This is where excellent customer service kicks off making or breaking the business of brands or an organization.

After sales service is the focus to compete with each other to determine their share of market and future business. The one whose service offerings are quick wins the loyalty of customers.

Now let's discuss how to offer good customer service.

How to assist customers through excellent customer service?

Like we discussed above to assist customers one need to go beyond and above the set limit. The question is how. Here are some tested methods to respond with a good customer service.

#1 Greet customers with a friendly smile

It is immaterial whether the customer buys merchandise from you or not but greeting them with a friendly smile and being courteous is anticipated. Treat them with respect, dignity, and make them feel valued. That's the first step towards converting a potential inquiry into a purchasing customer.

#2 Answer their queries

Your priority must be to listen to the customer queries patiently and pay attention to their requirements. To do this you will have to be a good listener. Hence, address their questions with facts and figures without making false promises.

#3 Review your product first

Before you give a demo or explain other about your product you yourself must be knowledgeable enough to understand the ins and out about a product. This is because doing it will enable you to answer relevant questions with confidence. If others sense that you don't know the product they won't be interested.

#4 Converse with the buyer

Avoid lecturing consumers for long hours until they get bored. A responsible sales manager or a sales associate will always strike a two-way conversation with the buyer to make him or her interested. Hence, hold yourself from giving lengthy sales pitch and not allowing buyers to interrupt and inquire.

#5 Offer free samples

Giving away free samples has been part of the sales and marketing strategy since ages. However, it is still in practice and giving out good results. Therefore, offer free sample to the buyers upon making hefty purchases. It is psychological when people get stuff for free they focus on free item more than the one they paid for. Hence, word of mouth.

#6 Give them special discount

A buyer always eye for something extra whether it is in terms of cash or free samples, it is kind of fulfilling for them. On the other hand, it is one of the most powerful sales tools. Create a customized deal for them and connect with them psychologically. For example, if the store offers 10% add an extra 5% off.

#7 Make them feel valuable

Car dealerships and real estate businesses does this very often to assist customers and make them feel valued. For example, they click photos while handing over the car keys and upload them on social media. Further, they tag the shopper and the shopper spreads the message on his or her social media feed. The marketing cycle goes on giving advantages both to the buyer and businesses.

#8 Take a feedback

A feedback has double edges it can do wonders if it's positive and it can tarnish businesses if negative. All in all, a feedback is always helpful to other customers because they get an idea whether to buy or not. Thus take constructive feedback from your buyer. Focus on what they like and dislike. Control your emotions if they give a negative feedback. Request them to be more specific what they didn't like.

We read different aspects of assisting customers. Now that we have good sense about good customer service here’s an example of a resume along with template for your reference.

Resume Template for Customer Service Employees

This template is compatible with sophisticated application tracking systems and will impress the hiring manager. Make sure you replace the guiding text with your original content.

Resume for Customer Service Associates

If you are not satisfied with the template alone and need further help with a real-time example then here it is. Don’t get confused between customer service employees and service associates.

Structure and format

Now that we are talking about a professional document let’s consider these two points also that are relevant and critical.

A customer asks and the salesman replies – this works in a retail store but here it is about organizing the content to make it readable and professional. So here’s the structure and format to be used in resumes.

That’s the outline for resumes used for job applications. Below are the formats for resumes. Here you go.

Out of these three the reverse chronological and functional formats are most favourable ones. Hence, if you are keen to assist customers and want a job in the same segment than follow the template, tips, examples, structure, and format mentioned here.

Cover Letter

Without making this article lengthy we will conclude the cover letter topic here. Cover letters are sent with job applications along with resumes as an introductory statement to the hiring managers. Writing cover letter is a daunting task but we have samples and cover letter examples for you.

Read the cover letter examples and use the templates to draft one for yourself.

High priority action words, verbs, and phrases

Whether you are writing resumes for sales associates or service representatives the following action words, verbs, and phrases are utmost important. Hence, refer and include them in cover letters and resumes wherever applicable.

• Tools
• Feedback
• Purchases
• Social media review
• Advantages
• Interested to assist customers
• Focus on requests
• Ability to assist
• Checkout process
• Selling system
• Customer's contact
• Customer's benefits
• Contact person
• Assist retail stores employees
• Product knowledge
• Sales associates
• Paying customer benefits
• Excellent customer service
• Assisted customers
• Cross sell to customers
• Company website
• Retail stores
• Store employees
• Retail selling
• Store person
• Assist selling process

Frequently Asked Questions