The Plato Group Warns Firms of Customer Service Hazards

    MIAMI, FL, July 24, 2014 /24-7PressRelease/ -- The Plato Group have pointed out some of the major customer service issues that businesses should ensure are not taking place in their business.

1. Cutting Corners - This could include:

- Under-staffing
- Not hiring the right kind of staff
- Under-developing systems, the systems that support the customers and the systems and tools that support employees.
- Under-developing staff, e.g. under training, under inspiring, and not giving them feedback.

2. Inertia - Inertia is often born from success. The business starts with one, two, or three clients, and then you suddenly have a hundred. Somewhere along the road to a hundred the hand written thanks notes, the relevant emails that used to be sent regularly have stopped. But if a hundred clients are provided with the level of service the first three were, the business is likely to be successful.

3. Hedonic adaptation - This is a process of mechanism that reduces the effective impact of events. This is something the business needs to consciously fight against. For the business it may be the hundredth time they have described and tried to sell the product/service but for the consumer it may be the first time they have heard about it. The workforce has to consciously work to put themselves in the place of the consumer and make the product/service sound as interesting to them as it was when they were first told about it.

The Plato Group have also highlighted some key customer service strategies that could prevent these hazards and help customer retention.
Begin by analyzing these areas:

- All policies and procedures - they must be customer orientated
- Work flow - it should promote reliable delivery of customer orders
- The company's capability to react to unexpected events - create a contingency plan that ensures service to customers will continue uninterrupted when something unexpected occurs to the business.
- Customer wants and needs - they must be considered at every step.

1. Service as a product - Most buyers don't have the technical knowledge they need to make the best decision when purchasing a product. Offer them reassurance that support will be available to them should a problem arise.

2. The customer is boss - place the customer at the center of nearly every business function.

3. Strive for reliability - Reliability means consistent performance that meets the expectations of all customers all of the time.

The Plato Group highlight that customer service is important to achieving high customer retention levels. Loyal customers are worth more to the brand than potential prospects. Firstly, it costs a considerable amount more to attract new prospects than it does to hold on to existing customers. Loyal customers can also increase brand awareness; happy customers are likely to spread the word about the product/service. This effectively gives the business a free sales team ready to go and share their love for the brand. Studies also show that it is easier to sell new products to customers that have bought from the brand before than it is to sell to a new prospect.

About The Plato Group: http://www.theplatogrp.com/us/

The Plato Group is an outsourced sales and marketing firm based in Miami, Florida. They use direct marketing techniques to enable them to speak to their clients' customers directly, they specialize in creating personalized direct marketing campaigns to generate quality results for their clients as well as creating long-lasting customer relationships and improving customer retention levels.

The Plato Group develop innovative direct marketing campaigns that ensure their clients products reach their target demographic. Their experienced sales team help clients to engage with customers and build strong lasting connections, which boosts brand awareness and loyalty. Using this personalized approach enables The Plato Group to generate immediate and easily measured results, and garantee a high ROI for their clients.

Follow @The_Plato_Group on twitter and Facebook.

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