As businesses evolve and adapt to new technologies, business anatomies also change. With so many changes in the business world, it does make sense that the same is happening with customer service and after sales trends.
Looking back a few decades ago and comparing the present state of businesses, we have traversed from telephones to computers to the internet and social or digital media. Customer service, an industry that was solely was handled through cold calling and snail mails, is shaping up by AI-dominated systems, virtual representatives, and human-like interactions through live chat, conversational AI, now.
The customer experience today is putting customers in more control. Modern consumers are empowered, and it is at their discretion how, when, and through what medium they wish to communicate with the brand representatives.
That said, customer service trends are also shifting. Every global and local business must take a cue from these trends and adapt to the changing technologies.
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Here are some remarkable customer services and after-sales trends to learn from in 2023:
1. Customer service and experience is a differentiating factor
73% of business leaders believe that they could retain more customers after offering a better experience, leading to increased business performance. Further, 64% of business leaders say that good customer service impacts their business growth positively.
Thus, modern businesses go forth to invest more in customer service so that they can offer an amazing after-sales experience to their customers. Some key factors that marketing managers should focus on are better order tracking, changing an order, requesting a quote, asking for technical support, and more.
2. Consumers will keep looking for personalized experiences
When a user reaches out to your marketing team, he or she anticipates being treated like a person, and not just a number. Irrespective of how big or small their query is, they want the same to be treated as special. This becomes a decisive point for every business. If your rep cares deeply about their issue, the user becomes a customer. The user should not feel that the company is trying to impose a standard approach to every interaction.
66% of customers look forward to purchasing from a brand that understands their needs and requirements and offers them personalized solutions.
3. All businesses are prioritizing customer experience
Modern customers have more power in the buying process. Thus, it is a task to force products or services on them, and no marketer should do that. Instead, the focus should be on prioritizing customer experiences. 63% of companies today are investing in customer experiences.
With increasing attention to customer experiences, the expectations are also escalating. Thus, if you are not traveling on this bandwagon, you are missing out on potential customers.
4. Face-to-face video support options are in demand
Customers are demanding more video support options. Earlier, video meetings were limited only within the organizations but that is not true anymore. Customers appreciate when they can find solutions to their problems on a video call.
If a company offers video support as an after-sales service, it gets an opportunity to offer live streaming, a platform to host AMAs and create product tutorials.
5. Automation for simple tasks
The customer service team bears a lot of burden on their shoulders. At times, they are doing the same task repeatedly for a long time. Such tasks squeeze out their energy and make the team dull. Artificial intelligence makes a stride here in reducing the workload.
Automation makes such mundane tasks easy and every business needs automated workflow routines. Chatbots can handle simple inquiries where human intervention is not needed at all.
6. Chatbots and other AI messenger tools will be Popular
Chatbots and other AI messaging tools were popular in 2022, and will continue to be so in 2023. Customers appreciate them because answer quickly to their queries rather than waiting for a reply by phone or email.
71% of the customers appreciate live customer support over messaging channels. Chatbots save your time and please customers when they respond to the query within 5 seconds. There is no need to be skeptical about AI messenger tools. It is time to adapt them soon.
7. Omnichannel support
Nothing is more frustrating for a customer than explaining the same issue repeatedly over different brand touchpoints. It is so because many companies still run their customer service channels in Silos.
The leading B2B customer service departments have turned to omnichannel support, which tracks all customer interactions in one place and the number of stakeholders involved.
Wrapping Up
Modern companies need to adopt a people-centric approach. Businesses should understand their customers and train the customer-facing staff accordingly. A unique approach towards after-sales will keep business ahead of the competition in 2023.
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