Top 7 Customer Service Mistakes To Avoid at All Costs

Customer service is all about the customer’s experience. 

However, even the smallest companies can have huge issues and even fail if they don’t pay attention to the customer service they provide. 

So how can companies avoid these customer service mistakes? 

Let me take you through the top seven customer service mistakes various brands make today, and provide some helpful advice on how to avoid them.

But first, let’s see why customer service is so vital today.

Here we go!!

The Critical Role of Customer Service

According to Salesforce research, 89% of consumers are more likely to make another purchase after a positive customer service experience.

So that’s why customer service plays a crucial role in every organization.

If you’re a business owner and want more sales, just focus on providing exceptional customer service!!

Eventually, think of it as a domino effect – one happy customer can lead to many more.

7 Most Common Customer Service Mistakes To Avoid

Mistake 1: Ignoring Social Media Complaints

Today, there are around 5 billion social media users globally.

Ignoring social media complaints can give the impression that your company doesn’t care about its customers. 

Imagine you want to use a law firm’s services. You visit their social media page and see many negative reviews, unresponded.

Would you use their services?

Here are a few ways to effectively analyze and respond to social media complaints:

1. Monitoring Accounts: Use social media listening tools (or brand monitoring tools) to stay on top of any mentions of your brand. These tools help you get notifications whenever your brand is brought up, ensuring you never miss a customer’s grievance.
2. Quick Response: Time is one of the most crucial factors customers pay attention to. Strive to address issues quickly without making your customers wait, meeting their expectations.
3. Public Acknowledgment: In this case, I would advise addressing the problem publicly first, then diving into the deeper conversation privately. This will show other users that you’re active and responsive to concerns.
4. Authenticity: Avoid using 100% robotic auto-responses. Show a human side in your responses to let customers know there’s a real person behind the screen who genuinely cares.

Mistake 2: Lack of Employee Training

A U.S. study found that around 84.4% of those employed at companies with 50 or more employees received formal training at work.

On the other hand, 59% of employees report they’ve never had workplace training. Especially in the sectors like development, where 70% are self-taught.

For example, imagine you’re importing products from China. If your employees are not aware of all the procedures and protocols, your business will eventually fail to deliver a great customer experience.

Here’s how you can avoid several measures:

a) Regular Training Sessions

This is a seemingly obvious solution, but many businesses don’t invest enough into it. Make regular employee training (a few times a year, at least) a part of your company culture. Keep your team abreast of the latest service trends, protocols, and new tools to enhance customer service delivery.

b) Role-Playing Scenarios

The theory sometimes is not enough. Creating role-playing scenarios that mirror actual customer interactions allows your team to practice troubleshooting and empathizing, thus preparing them for real-life situations.

c) Feedback and Revisions

Boost the impact of training by incorporating regular evaluations and feedback sessions. Recognize top performers, pinpoint underperformers, and understand their struggles. Adjust training methods as needed.

Mistake 3: Long Response Times

Long response time is one of the mistakes in customer service as it can lead to customer dissatisfaction and potential loss of business. 

Today, customers expect prompt and efficient service and long response times can lead to frustration and drive them to seek alternatives. 

According to one of the studies, 46% of the people surveyed (among 3200 people) expect companies to respond faster than 4 hours (see the image below).

So assessment of your response times should be a top priority to ensure you are meeting, or exceeding your customers’ expectations.

Imagine your customers get back to you saying they’re experiencing some technical issues with the website and they’re having some issues.

What should you do? Wait a few more hours or even days? 

Instead, you can use bug reporting tools and send the recorded issue to your development or product team at no time.

Providing exact information about the issue will help you address the issue effectively and efficiently, thus keeping your customers.

Mistake 4: Failing To Meet Expectations

Meeting customer expectations isn’t just a good practice – it’s one of the most vital things for successful customer service. 

For example, imagine you’re promoting speedy delivery and high-quality products, but you deliver a week later than promised, and the received product doesn’t match the online images. 

The result? Unhappy and dissatisfied customers, bad reviews, forget about loyalty!

To avoid this issue and exceed customer expectations, one should 

1. Understand Your Customer’s Expectations
2. Maintain Clear Communication
3. Prioritize Quality
4. Keep Your Promises
5. Provide extra pleasant surprises for customers

Mistake 5: Assuming You Know What the Customer Needs

Assuming what the customer 100% needs is a pitfall many businesses stumble into. 

In this case, the danger lies not just in misdirecting resources to what you believe the client wants but also in damaging the relationship and trust you’ve built with them. 

So assumptions in customer service can lead to ruining relationships between your customers and your business. 

So how can you steer clear?

All you need to do, is just:

• Ask and listen to customers (reviews, feedback, etc.)
• Encourage feedback
• Analyze your data
• Personalized Solutions as each customer is unique.

Mistake 6: Not Valuing Customer Feedback

Ignoring customer feedback is one of the top mistakes in customer service. Doesn’t matter if it’s a web design industry, shipping, or even the eCommerce sector – it can lead to a poor customer experience, decreased brand loyalty, and ultimately, loss of customers. 

One of the studies I was recently reading, indicates that 95% of consumers consider customer service essential for brand loyalty, and 60% have switched to a rival company due to poor service.

After all, customer complaints and feedback provide valuable insights into areas that need improvement.

Eventually, addressing those issues can lead to an enhanced customer experience, customer satisfaction, and increased brand loyalty.

Mistake 7: Inconsistency in Service

Inconsistency in service is a critical mistake in customer service as it can lead to a decline in customer satisfaction, erode brand reputation, and drive customers to seek alternatives. Whether it’s an inconsistent customer experience, messaging, or data, the impact is significant. Customers expect a seamless and uniform experience across all interactions with a business. Inconsistency can lead to mistakes, confusion, and mistrust, ultimately affecting customer loyalty and the company’s bottom line.

So how do their brands maintain consistency? 

Just follow some easy steps below:

1. Establish clear service standards that reflect your brand promise. 
2. Ensure your staff are sufficiently trained and have a thorough understanding of every corner of your brand (we’ve talked about this in mistake 2)
3. Get the most out of technology to automate processes whenever possible
4. Continuously, seek feedback from your customers.

Conclusion

Today, losing customers because of improper customer service is easier than ever.

Hopefully, the provided mistakes above will help you have an overview of each of them and help to avoid them.

Worth mentioning as well that every mistake is an opportunity. They offer a chance to reassess, get reshaped, and amplify how you serve your customers. 

Good luck!!