How much does customer service relate to the likelihood you will use the company again?  Well let’s think about this…if you feel like you were mistreated…will you go back?  Not likely. 

On the other hand, if your experience is positive, regardless of whether or not they are able to help you, you are likely to use this company again.

Let’s put this into some real-life situations for you so you can better understand my point…

My granddaughter plays tournament-level softball.  With this sport, the quality of equipment you use does help somewhat determine your success. 

This being said, she has an expensive bat. 

At a double header she was playing, the umpire told her the bat was cracked.  Upon contacting the manufacturer, they advised my daughter to return the bat to them, they would inspect it and determine if she was eligible for a replacement bat. 

The time between contacting the company and getting the new bat was one week.  This included shipping. 

My daughter’s comments to me were “dealing with this company was the easiest thing ever”.  She also advised me that she is not likely to buy another manufacturer’s bat in the future.  That’s one customer spending 250 to 400 dollars a year with this company.  

Similarly, when dealing with a very well known online company I had an issue with a light fixture I had ordered. 

I contacted them and explained my issue.  Not only did they ship me out another light fixture with no problems, they also gave me a month of their exclusive membership for free for my “troubles”. 

All I needed was the replacement fixture.  

Did the add-on mean much to them, expense-wise; probably not.  It did however save me money, and made me feel like they were going out of their way to do something extra for me. 

Good plan.  I walked away feeling appreciated.

Now on the flip side of that, I ordered a deal on a website designed for providing only recommended contractors or service professionals. 

The crew arrived at a time other than the time period I was given, provided the service, and in the process ruined my garden hose. 

When I was contacted by the company’s customer service rep to inquire about my satisfaction for the service that was provided to me, I did indicate that I felt like the work completed was done well, but also informed her of my “issues”. 

Her response to me was that she would discuss this with her team. 

Not once did she offer to pay for the hose they ruined and she did not apologize.  Did she really care how I felt; or was she only looking for a positive review? 

My guess…the latter. 

Even more upsetting, I was not going to call and complain about either problem.  If you have a team designed to follow up on the customer’s experience, you really need to be ready for any reply. 

If you don’t want to know…don’t ask.  

What does customer service have to do with customer retention? 

Recent survey show that customers are willing to spend 66% more with a company that they believe has excellent customer service.  (Think about my daughter’s experience with the bat).  Now you might think that your business already provides excellent service, but in reality, only a few customers would agree to that. 

According to the same survey, conducted by the a consultancy firm in New York, 80% of business think they provide good service, but only 8% of their customers confirmed they received good service.  That difference is staggering. 

It doesn’t even matter if you are right – perception is everything!  Due to this huge disconnect between the consumer and the provider, businesses lose an average of $83 billion every year.  

I have an easy fix.  Don’t be part of the 80%.  Seems simple right? 

Listed below are three ideas that can help you reach out to existing customers. 

1. Suggest better and more proactive ideas. 

As product suppliers or service providers, customers look upon your business as an expert in the industry.  As a provider, your team must be trained to up-sell, trouble shoot and offer suggestions for upgrades or alternate products based on customer needs. 

2.  Don’t ask your clients for referrals. 

Don’t expect current customers to be your main source of referrals, until you’ve made significant improvements in your products and customer service.  Clients will not refer a product to other people if they do not think it’s worth it, but they will also not refer a business if they think they could receive better service elsewhere. 

3. Create rewards or discounts for in-house referrals. 

B2B businesses could give incentives to existing customers who refer other teams or departments within their organization.  This successful business idea could be implemented with minimum effort on your part, because you’ve already worked with someone in the company, all you need is a referral or recommendation. 

There’s no need to submit a new proposal or compete with other companies bidding to get a project.  

So what have we learned here? 

You may have the best product in the world, but customer service is the only thing that will set you apart from your competition. 

You must provide good customer service in order to have any hopes of a repeat customer or a referral. 

Finally, that old adage our mothers taught us as kids still rings true in business “Treat others how you would like to be treated”.