Why Business VoIP Delivers More than Just a Lower Cost of Communications

The main point in quality communications is to ensure your customers can reach you through a preferred and reliable channel. The quality of the communications platform is important, but not nearly as important as the amount of time it takes you to serve that customer and ensure satisfaction is reached.

As companies increasingly turn to voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) to take advantage of the lower cost of communications and the streamlined approach to information management, they are also discovering another benefit: improved customer service. Business VoIP enables the organization to assist customers in less time, allowing them to interact with the organization through a variety of communication channels.

This Nextiva blog highlights the value of the business VoIP portal in combination with the customer service manifesto. For every small business, the manifesto should serve two purposes – to give each employee a standard by which to perform, and a roadmap to guide each customer interaction. The manifesto will also set the customer expectations by way of a public declaration. By setting expectations for customers, it prevents them from setting their own, which may be hard to achieve.

In setting your own customer service manifesto, ask three questions:

1. If I was the customer, what would I want?
2. What are the most important things a customer expects from my company?
3. As a customer of other companies, what do I like or hate within their offerings or operations?

If the customer service manifesto is to deliver any value to the organization at all, it must deliver on what is promised. If you make promises you can’t keep, customers will quickly learn they can’t trust you and will turn to the competition. At the same time, make sure your promises still allow you to make a profit.

Listening is an important attribute for your customers. You may not be able to solve every issue that generates dissatisfaction, but you can at least listen to the customer’s concerns. And, when things go wrong, be sure you or another member of your team is easy to reach in an economical manner. Getting a live person on the phone is critical when a problem occurs.

Promise customers a refund if you can’t solve their problem in a timely manner. It is often the least expensive solution and will disarm the customer complaint. Likewise, be willing to admit when you’ve made a mistake. Whether you’re already leveraging business VoIP or not, customers want to know that you can admit to being human. Humility is likely to disarm a frustrated customer and can lead to a positive outcome.

If you personally are not handling the customer issue, empower your employees to do so. Passing issues to the manager consistently can lead to bottlenecks and increased dissatisfaction. At the same time, if the customer is frustrated enough to want to end the business relationship, allow them to do so, respecting their decision and their space. Don’t charge a cancelation fee and don’t add surcharges or nuisance fees.

Finally, respect the intelligence and the rights of your customer base. Don’t change something in the agreement without telling them in advance and very publicly. Also, don’t overload them with marketing materials or sell their information to another firm. Respect the business relationship you have.