5 Myths Regarding Customer Service

Gartner published a report of a survey they conducted in 2021 related to what customer service and support leaders are focusing on for 2022. If you’re responsible for customer service, you’ll find the results can help you direct your efforts in the coming year.

After analyzing the information they gathered during the survey, Gartner came to a striking conclusion, that customer service leaders are operating under five misconceptions about what their customers want and how they interact with customer service departments. Dispelling these myths can help you set your priorities for 2022.

Myth 1. If We Provide Proactive Customer Service, Call Volumes Will Decrease

Many leaders believe that customers won’t need to contact customer service as often if they receive proactive services. Leaders think that if they can anticipate what the customer wants and needs, they’ll avoid unnecessary customer contacts to channels such as telephone or live chat channels.

Examples of proactive customer service include online chat assistance, knowledge databases that customers can search, and communications from the company to address issues such as delays in product shipments.

The reality that became clear in Gartner’s analysis is that proactive service generates additional customer engagement, often using assisted channels such as calling in to a customer service center. This results in building loyalty among customers, but leaders need to realize that it isn’t an effective cost reduction strategy.

Myth 2. Our Customers Will Always Seek Out Our Customer Service Channels

Leaders are basing their customer service strategy under the assumption that their customers know about the customer service channels that are available and will trust the company enough to use them as the best source of information.

The reality is that customers prefer to solve problems on their own, often using internet searches and third-party channels. A majority of customers only contact your customer service as a last resort. Where people get their information does vary by age group. For example, 10% of Baby Boomers, 43% of Gen Xers, 62% of Millennials, and 75% of Gen Zers say they frequently solve issues using third party resources. And, a majority of them think that third-party resources are just as trustworthy as your customer service resources.

To keep your customers obtaining the right resolutions by using your company resources, make sure that your company’s service pages are on the first page of popular search engines. Monitor the other resources that appear on the top of searches and determine if your customers are being well served. If not, you may need to intervene.

Myth 3. Customers Will Use Our Digital Channels If We Promote Them

You are aware that using digital channels will offer the quickest resolutions to a wide variety of issues, but that doesn’t mean that your customers will use those methods to contact you. As creatures of habit, your customers will tend to use channels they’ve used in the past. While your customers are looking for the fastest way to get a resolution, they generally underestimate the amount of time required to get an answer using an assisted channel like a telephone call or interacting with a chat bot.

A good solution is to use a chatbot to reduce the number of telephone calls to your agents and direct customers to self-service resources. Configure the chatbot with common types of self-service issues to encourage customers to use knowledge bases and FAQ pages. If the bot can’t resolve the issue, make sure it collects basic information about the issue before routing the customer to an agent.

Myth 4. Customers Hate Switching Channels

Service leaders indicated that they believed that the best customer experience comes from resolving an issue using the first channel the customer used for contact. They’re afraid that if a customer has to go from a chat to an agent to get the right answer, they will be frustrated.

However, the study indicated that while it’s best to resolve a customer’s issue in the first contact, customers are comfortable switching channels if their inquiry finds an answer in one interaction. Where customers get truly frustrated is when their interaction is interrupted, and they need to start over at another time.

The answer is to use technology that allows you to store customer data that is accessible throughout your organization. In that way, even if the customer must change channels, it’s a seamless experience.

Myth 5. Good Customer Service Will Generate More Business

Based on their research, Gartner found that service leaders believe that if a customer is very happy with their service, they will tell others, stay loyal, and do more business with the company.

However, the research also found that good service may motivate a customer not to go to another vendor, but it won’t necessarily make them stay. Customers stay with your company because they like your product or service above all else. You don’t need to focus on incremental improvements in the customer service experience as much as you need to focus on customer service that can help customers get more value from your product or service.

Emphasizing value requires that you identify the best opportunities by looking at the types of issues that indicate a chance to emphasize value. You may even want to go so far as to route those calls to specialized agents who focus on enhancing value during customer service interactions.

How Datavail Can Help

We’ve created a white paper, “Use the Microsoft Dynamics 365 Customer Service Module to Delight Your Customers” that you can use to learn more about the Microsoft Dynamics 365 Customer Service module. As you review the white paper, you’ll see how the module can help you improve your customer service results in 2022. And, as a Microsoft Gold Partner, Datavail can help you take full advantage of Microsoft’s business applications.

Whether you need to plan, implement, or manage Microsoft Dynamics 365 modules, we have the expertise and resources to fill gaps in your internal resources or work with your IT teams to reach your goals. Contact us today to discuss how our experts can best assist you.