Communication with your customers is one of the most important parts of customer service. In today’s world of social media, there are now numerous ways your customers can reach you. However, that doesn’t mean that the traditional ways of communicating are no longer used. What communication channels do customers prefer for contacting businesses?
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What Communication Channels Can Businesses Use?
Businesses grow because of their customers. Surveys suggest that 90% of people in the US use customer service as a factor in deciding if they want to do business with a company or not.
This means you must make as many channels as possible open to your customers so they can reach you.
While most people will now use social media or email to contact businesses, there are still those that prefer to call and speak to someone.
What communication channels do customers prefer for contacting business? Your business needs to have an omnichannel customer service approach. The channels you choose depend on a number of factors:
- What does your customer expect from you? If you are a technology company, then most people will expect that you will use a number of different channels.
- Your budget will have an impact on what channels you can offer. Only choose a channel if you are confident that you can deliver a high-quality service through it.
- What are your company’s demographics? If you have a lot of older customers, they may prefer a more direct approach such as calls rather than social media.
What Does Each Communication Channel Offer?
There are many options for communication channels and each one has its benefits:
Website
Your website can have integrated channels such as live chat and video chat. These can be a great way to speak to customers, although you need to ensure that they can easily access these channels from your site.
These channels are also a good way to help customers with navigating the site without leaving it.
Messaging
One of the original digital ways to communicate, but still one of the most popular. Many customers like messaging companies as it is a natural channel for them to use.
Businesses are now starting to use messaging more and although it is important to reply as soon as possible or your customers will lose interest.
Social Media
One of the fastest-growing ways that businesses are contacted is through social media. Even if they don’t have a dedicated customer service team monitoring the feed, many customers will link to their accounts when talking about a product.
With social media, it is worth taking the time to reply to any messages you receive. This creates a community spirit and can lead potential customers to make a purchase.
Email is still one of the best ways for customers and businesses to communicate. Not only can your customers contact you and attach documents, but it is also great for newsletters.
Telephone
Some companies have turned away from providing telephone customer service. However, it is still a popular way for customers to communicate, especially for a complicated query.
The key to making telephone communication work is to not let the customer wait too long as this can have a negative effect on your brand.
Customer service is a vital part of your business. You need to offer as many channels of communication as you can while still maintaining a high level of quality.