Sir Richard Branson, CEO of Virgin, is known worldwide for his incredible business success. He owns more than 400 companies. And his worth is estimated to around $4.2 billion dollars. His rags-to-riches story serves as an inspiration to many young entrepreneurs.
When asked what was the key to his successful business , he said: “Simplicity and good customer service will win every time.” May sound easy. But it isn’t. That is something many organizations fail to offer their customers. Reason? Well, they always try to out to their competitors. And in an attempt to doing so, they forget about their customers completely. They forget, its not about leaving your competitors behind but understanding your customers.
This is where you need guidance from established names like Richard Branson. His ultimate tips for improving your customer service will help you reach your customer base more effectively. Also, some software ideas such as live support chat can help you meet all of your objectives easily.
First, let’s explore some of Richard Branson tips that’ll help you improve your customer experience.
Be Out There
Branson says: “A good leader doesn’t get stuck behind a desk.” This means that you always have to be on the move, meet your employees, and seek feedback from your customers. Constantly asking for your customers’ opinions and keeping notes about the ideas and their feedback can be a great way to improve your customer support service.
Branson suggests that the creativity of a good leader depends on the time spent in the field, outside the office, asking your customers about their experiences and working with your team on ways to serve your customers better.
Ultimately, it all boils down to good communication. Whether that communication is between you and your customers or you and your employees, if established properly, it will make everyone feel comfortable. If you are listening to everyone’s needs, they will feel more confident talking to you.
Good communication and listening will help any leader identify where the problems or inefficiencies lie. This will further enable them to solve these problems before they escalate into something more serious.
That is the reason why you should implement live support chat on your company’s website, as it’s the best tool for discovering customers’ pain points, problem resolution, expanding your market reach, improving your customers’ loyalty and providing you with valuable reports and analytics.
Say “Yes” to New Opportunities
Saying “yes” to new ideas, being bold in your approach to projects and meetings will help you long way. Setting the bar higher than others when it comes to customer service is the best way to set yourself apart from the numerous competitors.
Sometimes, taking risks in business is considered to be reckless and irresponsible. However, if your risks are well-calculated, the chances are they will be key components for the success of your brand, and that is what differentiates a visionary from an irresponsible business owner.
Put Yourself in Your Customers’ Shoes
Many business owners make the same mistake by not trying to understand their customers’ needs. Instead they choose to mechanically and emotionlessly address their problems, which results in overall dissatisfaction.
However, you need to bear in mind that your customers are real people with real desires and requirements which, if met the right way, can bring your business immense success. That is why you need to ask yourself: “How would I like to be treated if I was a customer?”
If you don’t think you would be pleased to receive the service your company provides, it’s high time you made some changes. However, never promise what you cannot achieve and never fail to deliver on all of your promises.
Using live chat software for website can help you gain more insight into what your customers really want. According to a survey conducted by eDigital Customer Service Benchmark, live support chat has customer satisfaction levels of 73%, compared to email support which is at 61%.
Be Honest
Honesty is a valued trait in every personal relationship, as well as the relationships with your customers. If you are making promises just for the sake of making your customers happy for a short period of time, the situation will only get worse.
Instead, ensure that both you and your employees are always honest. Make sure that you inform your customers about what can and what cannot be achieved, to let them know where they stand.
Keeping your word, instead of not communicating properly and giving your customers false hope, will help you gain respect from them and establish trustworthy relationships.
Pay Close Attention to Details
The majority of entrepreneurs tend to focus on the bigger picture only. However, this is not entirely advisable, since it may cause you to overlook some smaller but equally important details. Branson encourages business owners to always keep track of what’s going on in their companies by jotting down small details that they notice.
Knowing every little detail about your business will help you deliver a more insightful experience for the customers. When a customer makes a request, you can offer them some related details in order for them to value your company even more and to increase your chances of being recommended to other potential customers too.
Hire the Right People
Finding the right people to be a part of your business is 90% of the work. Your employees should be competent, committed to meeting your customers’ requirements, friendly and accessible.
Once you hire some great people, you should train them for the job and then empower them to use their creativity and imagination when it comes to solving issues. As Branson states: “Empowerment is a very important concept at Virgin America. Team members are not only empowered to satisfy customers, they are publicly rewarded when they do.”
Let’s Sum it Up…
What matters the most for delivering an exceptional customer service is staying true to yourself. Other than that, you need to make sure that you are being surrounded by a great team and being ready to take chances. Following Richard Branson’s tips will undoubtedly help you achieve all of that and take your customer support service and business to the next level.
Guest article written by: 
Jared is a customer-support ninja and a marketing evangelist working with ProProfs.com for more than 5 years. After wearing many hats as a sales specialist, a content marketer and a brief stint as project manager; Jared found customer support to be the passion-fueled calling. Being a die-hard fan of Spider-Man and Avengers, Jared is always keen to develop new strategies to help customers seeking support and strive for a delightful customer experience every time. During leisure time, Jared can be seen digging books on customer psychology in the library, playing soccer or munching a random snack from the refrigerator.
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