At Your Service

Make your business customer friendly from the store front to the web front. “The internet has become the preferred method for shopping, which makes it all the more imperative that the company get its customer service right,” she says. “Your website itself is a big piece of the customer experience, so it should be an extension of your customer care.” To that end, the website should be convenient and easy to navigate. It should offer a help center, online chat, email contacts or whatever else is necessary for customers to not only buy from you but communicate with you and receive assistance if needed. “Your customers may be able to do their entire transactions online, but when they have questions or need assistance, they need access to you in a quick and convenient manner,” Simon notes.

Be good to your customer care agents—they have the most important job in the company. Acknowledge them. Invest in them. “At O.co we are happy our agents work for us and want them to feel comfortable in building their careers with us,” says Simon.

Recognize that your customer care agents include everyone that talks to or touches the customer in any way—that might include your sales people, receptionists, anyone—and train them how to interact.

We live in a very social world. Your successes will be outlined by your customers, just like your failures, for the world to see. And bad customer experiences don’t often lead to second chances. “Your customers can put you out of business,” says Simon.