Why customer service is even more important in the Digital world

Customer service is an integral element for the success of a business. With so much choice, it is very easy for a client to leave a company if they feel they haven’t been given the best service. We all know that ensuring your clients are satisfied with the job you are doing for them is extremely important. But how has the way we offer customer service changed since doing most of our business online?

When you think of customer service, you ordinarily are thinking about brick and mortar businesses. But with the announcement by the IAB that there was a 10 percent increase in the UK’s online ad spend, it seems that digital is here to stay so businesses need to go the extra mile to ensuring high levels of customer service to their clients within a digital age. Dougherty and Murthy (2009), for the Harvard Business Review found that, "...alienated customers often disappear without the slightest warning". This is why, especially in a digital market, it is imperative that companies instill policies for ensuring clients are contacted regularly with status updates. This helps twofold: first, it gives the client the satisfaction that they are very important to the company, and secondly, if there are any issues with the clients’ account, the company is able to verbalize that they are aware of the issue and are working on combating it.

Within our SEO world where it is very easy to misinterpret the language of an email or phone call it is important to ensure that all your employees know best practices for writing emails and conducting telephone conversations with clients. Add up several misinterpretations and you could find yourself losing clients at the end of their contract.

So remember, contact and consistency ensure your clients stay happy and you keep client retention high.

Reference: Dougherty D. and Murthy, A (2009) Harvard Business Review on the Harvard Business Review website, extracted November 18, 2010