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Providing Proactive Customer Service by Leveraging Customer Data

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Vaishali Gopi

Think of a situation where you would know with certainty that your customer would definitely choose one specific product over the other and his or her chance of making the purchase would be 89 per cent higher if it would be in his or her favourite colour-may be red! Also, your customer would be ready to buy the product by shedding a few extra bucks if it would arrive the very next day!

This is not an imaginary situation anymore. Businesses are using customer data like never before to provide a proactive customer service to their consumers. E-commerce giant Amazon has devised an excellent use of customer data through their predictive delivery patent. According to their new patent, Amazon will use predictive data analytics to ship products or items to premium customers even before they place the order! In this way, Amazon will use it humongous trove of customer data to deliver an extraordinarily proactive customer service.

Today, proactive customer service is no longer a “nice to have” but a “must have” in most companies. It’s tougher to deal with the 21st century informed consumer. Data-driven software and predictive forecasting can help a sophisticated customer in understanding his or her problem even before he or she has faced it! The old method of customer service has become an endangered species now. Companies have started moving away from preventive and reactive customer service models to a more proactive one. In the proactive model, a customer is shown the need of buying something even before the desire arises, or the customer is well informed about a service even months ahead of the expiry date of that service. In this way, you are sure to build on customer loyalty and satisfaction as you have successfully plucked out one worry off their platter even before they had the desire to consider it!

In today’s digital marketplace, data is the big daddy. There’s no point in guessing that data has made a tremendous impact on all areas of businesses. Businesses want to provide a proactive customer service ticketing system by leveraging customer data and this is how they do it- they build a customer support team with trained professionals who are adept in customer service skills. Combined with the skilled workforce and sophisticated software solutions, companies are making the best use of raw customer data and are using them to drive sales.

Recent surveys have shown that leveraging customer data can yield a better customer experience. It’s no longer a secret- the more you use the vast amount of data surrounding your customers and make it accessible, the more staggering will your profits be. Here are a few ways in which companies can leverage customer data to not only provide a better customer experience but also drive sales.

Connecting systems

In mastering the art of data-driven service, first and foremost, you have to ensure that customer data is successfully trapped, made accessible and managed across the varied channels. The tools and software your company uses to access customer data should be successfully synced with existing customer data management systems.

Skilled customer service representatives

After successfully securing all your customer data in one place, it’s time to focus on improving customer service representative’s skills. Skilled agents can make streamlining of customer data through CRM systems an easy job. A whole history of existing and previous data of customer interactions helps the agents to gain a context for customer contact. This treasure trove of  customer data works wonders by shortening response time and makes the process fast, simple and more efficient.

Using CRM

CRM or Customer Relationship Management is a business tool which helps companies learn more about their consumers and their behavioural patterns. CRM tools help collect, monitor and manage customer data. By making use of CRM technology, the whole game of customer service can change- the boring back-office job of collecting data can be metamorphosed into an exciting revenue-building initiative. Nowadays, an educated and well-informed customer is bombarded with a wealth of information of products available in either the physical or digital marketplace. Therefore, engaging an already informed customer requires more resources. Here is where CRM tools come in handy- they successfully capture customers’ needs and give a straightforward view of all the customer data you need. By using CRM tools, a company successfully reduces their annual marketing expenses while improving customer retention rates. After securing complete access to the multifarious profiles of customers across the globe, companies can predict or identify potential problems even before they arise, enabling a smooth and hassle-free customer service experience.

In a nutshell, it is crucial for businesses to secure proactive customer service powered by data-driven technology because, after all, it does drive sales and increase retention rates, making both customers and companies happy. Also, a satisfied customer is more likely to garner referrals which eventually add to business growth. Leveraging data from customers have proven to build proactive opportunities in the sphere of customer satisfaction. Not only is capturing information about a new customer at the beginning of their buying journey important, but the retention and utilisation of the data for delivering a proactive customer service is necessary as well.




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Vaishali Gopi
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