7 Ways to Improve Your After-Hours Customer Experience
Top-notch 24/7 service is achievable—and technology can help
Thriving businesses aren’t successful because of luck. They are successful because they deliver what customers want at the right times. Businesses experience success when they actively listen to their customers’ needs, wants and daily struggles. They focus on delivering a customer experience that creates loyal and raving customers.
Many businesses still ignore the importance of customer experience even though it’s a leading factor in competitive advantage. Some businesses think they have a positive customer experience because they’ve trained and empowered their team.
The truth is, if you only focus on providing an exceptional customer experience during working hours, you are setting your business up for failure.
Most customers are just getting started on their non-work activities after 5 p.m. If your business can’t answer questions or guide customers during their available hours, they will find a business that can. Use these seven strategies to improve your customer experience after hours.
1. Add Live Chat to Your Website
Live chat software offers customers help when they visit your website. Outsource to a third party or rotate your existing team to be on-call one night a week or month. Using live chat decreases website abandonment while increasing sales and creating a rapport with online users.
2. Hire a Call Center
Call centers are a valuable resource for businesses with limited hours. They make you appear open even when your primary team has punched out for the day. Using a trained call center connects customers with a real person and gives them access to needed answers. Even if the call representative is unable to assist, they provide the customer with the recognition they need and what to expect.
3. Provide Mobile Support
Mobile apps are a trending topic for business marketers. They work especially well if you offer support via an app because customers can contact you from anywhere. In today’s jam-packed lifestyle, it is critical to make contact as easy as possible for your customers.
4. Use an Auto-Attendant
Auto-attendant messages are the next best thing to a live person. Make the most of your auto attendant greeting after hours by including an emergency number, website URL for live chat help and information on how to download your app.
5. Publish Training Videos
Take a look at your contact history from the past year. What do the majority of customers need when they contact you? Identify trends and use these to create training videos for your website. Customers will be thankful you made finding the solution to their problem easy and readily accessible.
6. Fine-Tune Your Email Messages
Email marketing is a strategy many businesses use to attract more customers. It is also valuable to your customer experience when you know how to use. Create unique email support addresses that customers can submit their questions or requests to. Then create auto-responders that let the individual know you are closed and provide answers with links to commonly asked questions.
7. Build an Online Community
Online communities act as a central hub of information for your customers. Customers can ask and answer questions about your business, products and services. A lot of customers prefer this information source because they are interacting with people similar to themselves.
Customer experience is important today and will only grow in importance. Before you get too comfortable with the experience you provide, remember customers have a choice. They can choose to do business with you or someone else. Make it difficult for them say goodbye by providing a positive experience around the clock.
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