This 2018, what should your customer support strategy look like?

To keep customers happy and stay competitive, businesses should be able to embrace market innovations and new trends. That’s why every new year is always a good time to update the brand’s strategies and ensure that everything addresses your customers’ evolving needs.
If you’re revamping your customer service this year, here are the five most important trends you must consider.

1. Keep in mind: customers are becoming smarter.

We live in a time wherein customers are driving the conversation and calling the shots. They’ve grown to be smarter and more informed, so they’re now more critical of the brands they buy from. So, carefully consider this when revamping your customer support strategy. Your clients may not be so forgiving of your mistakes because they can easily switch to your competitors. Thus, as you plan your business strategies, spend a great deal of time ensuring that your processes are tailored for the needs of your customers.

2. Self-service will still be in.

An overwhelming 72% of customers would rather solve issues on their own than speak to a call center agent over the phone or send an email for assistance. These are the same customers who would check out your website to find answers to their questions, so be sure to cater to their needs. Put up self-service tools such as a FAQs page, how-to videos, or a forum. By making these available to your customers, you can increase your year-over-year customer retention rate to 85% compared with those that don’t offer any self-service options at all.

3. Watch out for more AI in customer service.

Automated solutions powered by artificial intelligence (AI) are everywhere these days, helping customers with simple tasks such as ordering food or handling simple customer service issues. In fact, it’s predicted that by 2020, more than 85% of customer interactions will occur without a human agent.

This year and beyond, we can expect call centers to use AI to anticipate customers’ problems and resolve them before they happen. More and more AI solutions will also find their way into messaging applications. The customer support agent’s role will then be to take care of more complex tasks.

4. Creating your own brand of CX is the way to win.

When thinking about your brand’s customer experience (CX), ask yourself if you’re delivering something unique to your market. Your CX should make you stand out. It should highlight your unique selling points and project your brand’s personality. But most importantly, your CX should engage customers and convince them to stay with your brand. Thus, make sure to offer a convenient, smooth, and effortless experience for your customers.

5. Your human-to-human strategy will still matter.

In fact, it might matter now more than ever.

As businesses are shifting their investments and attention to the digital CX, there’s a great opportunity in refining your human-to-human interactions. So while you’re upgrading your services, don’t forget about enhancing your customers’ in-store experiences. Also, train your call center agents to be good conversationalists so they can better relate and communicate with your clients. Enhancing your customer support’s human touch can help you build trust among your clients.