ethics-or-profit

ETHICS OR PROFIT: 9 Questions to Ask Yourself

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The race to make money is more heated than ever in direct response to the economic crisis caused by the lockdown last year. Corporations and SMEs seem to be more concerned with ROI than customer satisfaction, and the old argument between ethics and profits has become a daily struggle for managers.

ethics or profit

Ethics and Profit

Ethics is a system of moral principles that guides a person or business’s behaviour or way of conducting activities. While profit is simply the net revenue generated by a business enterprise minus the cost of production.

While profit is the main motive behind any business venture, the matter of ethics will more definitely determine the long-term profitability of that venture. If you sacrifice customers’ satisfaction, excellence, and integrity for profit, you will end up losing more. Because when people do business with you, they are indirectly signifying their trust and endorsement of your services. Satisfied customers are the best form of free promotions and referrals.

An ethical business demonstrates respect for its employees by valuing opinions and treating each employee as an equal. The business shows respect for its customers by listening to feedback and assessing needs.

An ethical business respects its vendors, paying on time and utilizing fair buying practices.

 What to Do

Sometimes the lines get so blurred that as a manager you get confused on which path to follow. In times like this, ask yourself these questions:

  • What are the company’s mission statement and values?
  • Do they align with the decision you are about to make?
  • What is the company culture? Or what is the company protocol concerning matters like this?
  • What is more important to the company, profit or reputation?
  • If you were the customer, what would you want?
  • Is there a solution that can satisfy both the client and the company without incurring unnecessary expenses?
  • Do you need to consult your superior before making a decision?
  • Would you be satisfied with your decision and be able to defend it later?
  • Do you have proper documentation for all the processes and activities leading up to your decision?

Once you answer all these questions satisfactorily, then go ahead and make your decision. Doing what is right for the business all the time is not an easy task, it requires intelligence, corporate awareness, grit and experience. If you succeed in making the right decision, the rewards will be worth the stress.

Ethics may cost you more in production, but it will bring you more long term profit.

Important Customer Service Skills For Your Staff

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In our last post, we talked about important customer service skills (communication skills) that your team should have. The truth is that, for you to achieve excellence in your customers’ experience, customer service cannot simply be a department in your organisation. Customer service should be the culture.

Every member of your staff is a potential customer service representative whether that is their role or not. Your staffs are your brand ambassador, therefore, it is best that they develop these important customer service skills. You never know where your next client will come from.

important customer service skills

4 Important Customer Service Skills

#1 Empathy

Communicating with empathy is a crucial element to deepening customer engagement. Whether a customer comes to your team with a particular issue or concern, expressing empathy builds trust and a foundation for relating to one another.

Here are examples of how customer support reps can engage in empathic communication:

  • Show, don’t tell. Use a personal anecdote to relate, rather than simply saying, “I know how you feel.”
  • Listen and ask questions rather than immediately launching into an impersonal canned response.
  • Clarify the customer’s point of view by reviewing what they’ve communicated: “If I understand correctly . . .”
  • Validate a customer’s concerns and affirm the need for a solution.
  • Apologize to dissatisfied, distraught, or concerned customers and assure them that you’re there to help.
  • Thank customers for their time, patience, and business.

Last but not least, customer support teams need to be authentic to showcase empathy effectively. There’s a reason 83% of consumers say they prefer speaking to live agents over chatbots. It’s not enough to parrot empathetic responses; customers are looking for honest representatives that can speak clearly, avoid jargon or clichés, solve problems proactively, and showcase a human touch.

Human touch and empathy are becoming even more important than before the pandemic, so your staff should work on further improving your responses to make sure they come across as sympathetic and considerate.

 

 #2 Adaptability

Flexible, creative thinking is not just a soft skill that would be nice for employees to have; it’s one of the most sought-after skills on employers’ hiring checklists. Every customer is different, and the ability to handle surprises and shifting customer moods builds a solid foundation for top-notch customer service.

There are several ways to cultivate better adaptability in the workplace:

  • Train agents to adapt their communications based on how internal channels interact. They need to identify the differences between a message that requires a quick Slack to a team member and one that merits a formal email to a manager.
  • Incorporate role-playing activities during customer service training to expose teams to different scenarios that may arise during a customer exchange.
  • Establish a transparent chain of command to help with customer escalations. Clarify which channel to use for immediate assistance and how to best share customer information about the issue, whether it’s detailed snippets from the conversation, a transcript of the entire discussion, screenshots, and/or a recording.
  • Encourage teams to talk through unfamiliar problems and ask questions.
  • Search for innovative solutions to customer complaints and invite suggestions.
  • Adopt new customer support technologies as a competitive advantage.

To be continued…

Credit: Grammarly business

customer communication skills

4 Customer Communication Skills Your Team Should Have

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You can have all the right processes and procedures in place, but it’s customer communication skills like empathy, adaptability, attentiveness, and consistency that convert and retain buyers. Training your team to recognize these drivers of human behaviour and deliver more personalized consumer experiences can improve your conversion rate by roughly 8%.

 

“Great customer service is about making the customer feel satisfied and feel as if they made the right decision when they chose our company to solve their problem. In every customer service case, even when we disagree with a customer’s point of view, we seek to make them feel as if we are on their side and that we are committed to helping them.” – Mike Sims, founder and owner of ThinkLions.

 

Business leaders must prioritize customer communication skills and seek solutions to ensure their teams’ ability to deliver five-star customer service experiences consistently.

customer communication skills

4 customer communication skills your team must have:

Empathy

Communicating with empathy is a crucial element to deepening customer engagement. Whether a customer comes to your team with a particular issue or concern, expressing empathy builds trust and a foundation for relating to one another.

 

Adaptability

Flexible, creative thinking is not just a soft skill that would be nice for employees to have; it’s one of the most sought-after skills on employers’ hiring checklists. Every customer is different, and the ability to handle surprises and shifting customer moods builds a solid foundation for top-notch customer service.

 

Attentiveness 

Attentiveness is a pillar of emotional intelligence. Successful customer support teams are able to set aside distractions and remain fully present during customer interactions.

Customers need to feel understood—especially those who opt for live customer service (versus written communication channels like email or chat). Rather than using canned responses, teams should be encouraged to paraphrase, empathize, and ask open-ended questions.

 

Consistency

Consistency is essential to a company’s ability to effectively brand, track a consumer’s path to purchase and ensure a cohesive customer journey across platforms. Customers today expect seamless experiences, consistent messaging, and acute attention to detail across all channels.

 

These four fundamental communication skills can boost customer satisfaction, retention, and even referrals when put into practice. Having a solid customer base not only equates to more outstanding sales and profit margins but also fosters an industry-leading reputation that positions your business as a strong brand at the forefront of its market.

Credit: Grammarly business

Brand trust

HOW TO BUILD CUSTOMERS TRUST IN YOUR BRAND

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how to build customers trust in your brand

In 2020, a Trustpilot and Canvas8 study found that global trust had recently declined by 11%. And given how much the world has been through in the last year, it’s safe to say that customers are more sceptical and unsure of whom to do business with. 

With that in mind, a trusted brand is one of the most valuable assets a business can have.

How consumers perceive your brand matters a lot, and how they talk about your brand both online and offline can alter your brand’s image and directly affect your reputation. That’s why brands are publicly engaging their customers in conversation more than ever before.

A consumer is 21% more likely to leave feedback after a negative experience than a positive one. How then can you influence the conversation even when you are not there?

Engage them:

4 Ways to Build Customers Trust in Your Brand

  1. Receive feedback gladly

In a world of viral marketing and social influence, consumer conversations have the power to make or break businesses. If you’re willing to take time out of your day to engage with a brand online, it’s likely because you’ve had an unsatisfactory experience. Therefore, never assume that you know what your customer is experiencing. Let them express themselves and show that you appreciate their feedback.

 

      2. Respond to criticism promptly

88% of global consumers engage in consumer conversations with brands in order to fix an issue they might have encountered during their journey, and 61% expect a company to publicly comment on their feedback. Trustpilot study showed that more than 2 in 3 people who were unsatisfied with a company’s engagement admitted they wouldn’t shop with that establishment again, and half would warn others to stay away from the company too. But more than half of the customers who felt their comment had been responded to appropriately said they would shop with the brand again. For 25% of people, how well companies respond to criticism can even help transition them from detractors to customer advocates.

how to build customers trust in your brand

  1. Say the right thing at the right time

Communicate proactively to customers, supplying as much relevant information upfront to provide a sense of authority and security. Don’t be vague when answering customers’ questions, leaving the customer confused and dissatisfied. If a customer asks, “How does your product work?” and your team doesn’t know, they shouldn’t answer with “I don’t know.” Instead, they should answer truthfully and to the best of their ability, supplying as much detail as possible. If they aren’t sure or did not supply adequate information, they should promise the customer that they will follow up with their teams for more information and then reach out to them once they acquire the necessary information. Build sincere relationships according to leading communication principles. Principles such as communicating professionally, openly, and honestly to attract, engage, and retain customers.

 

  1. See from their point of view

Today, a successful customer experience strategy should be enjoyable from the customer’s point of view while also leading to sales. Building great customer experiences means investing in your customers, and making sure their journey is seamless, from the top of the funnel to checkout. That’s why understanding your consumers’ needs and wants have become key to any company’s success. In a world where consumers are looking for more than just products and services, the most successful brands out there must be able to create customer-centric experiences by engaging and listening to customers in order to collect actionable insights and identify gaps and areas of development.

 

Customers insight is an invaluable asset to your business. After all, they are the reason why you are in business.

Credit: Trustpilot.com

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