When customers face a problem, they turn to the business’s customer support service. They expect understanding, empathy, and solutions. After this interaction, they often post customer service reviews.
Other people use these reviews to judge how a company treats its customers and whether it’s worth doing business with. They want peace of mind and the ability to rely on customer support should they face any problems. That’s why providing good customer service and having reviews to back it up are so important.
However, it’s easy to lose sight of the customer service department when you have other business operations on your mind.
To avoid that, let’s discuss the importance of customer service reviews and how to assess and respond to them!
How Good Customer Service Drives Business Success
Simply acquiring a new customer can’t bring you the success you want. Instead, you need to encourage that customer to keep coming back. Your efforts should focus on making customers loyal rather than acquiring new ones daily. This won’t be possible without providing exceptional customer service.
Potential customers want to feel guided and cared for before, during, and after the sale. They know they can rely on you when you’re always available to answer their queries. As a result, they’ll never hesitate to reach out.
On the other hand, poor customer service always discourages customers from contacting your representatives.
Moreover, people perceive your offerings based on how you treat them. If you ignore customer queries and problems, they might think your products aren’t good either.
Providing exceptional customer service also means listening to your customers with care and intent. Taking these conversations and customer problems as constructive feedback can help you find areas of improvement. You’ll learn what’s amiss and what changes your customers want.
Doing this regularly and acting on their suggestions helps you improve your offerings. This continuous improvement positively impacts your reputation and increases customer loyalty. Other people also get a positive impression when you take your customers seriously.
How Do Customer Service Reviews Influence Businesses and Their Clients?
Customer service reviews influence businesses and their clients by shaping perceptions, driving improvements, and guiding purchasing decisions. While product reviews also do the same thing, customer service reviews have their place in a business’s success.
Potential customers use them to decide whether they should trust a particular business. Sometimes, these reviews might be the only thing that sets you apart from your competitors.
Moreover, a steady stream of positive customer service reviews enhances brand loyalty. They give customers peace of mind that they can trust your business. Hence, acquiring and retaining customers becomes easier than ever.
On the other hand, a business’s positive customer service reviews help people choose it over others. They can look at patterns in how the business treats its customers.
Additionally, they make customers feel confident about your business. They know their money is secure because you’ll go above and beyond if they face any problems.
The last consideration is that you can turn a bad review into a loyal customer when providing customer support. The service recovery paradox is a helpful process in your business. You can use customer service reviews to find unhappy customers and give them great customer service.
How Do You Write a Good Customer Service Review?
To write a good customer service review, remember to be as specific as possible. You aren’t writing about a product but rather a person. Think back to your interaction with the customer service representative and relay how they talked to you. To give you a better idea, here’s how you write a good customer service review:
- Be honest and fair: Trying to sabotage the business with dishonesty will help nobody. Avoid exaggerating or leaving out important details to help others.
- Mention names, if possible: Your review will look more authentic if you mention the representative’s name. Remember, customer service teams will also look at your review to assess employee performance. They can make better decisions based on your review.
- Highlight the positives and negatives: Your experience might have negative and positive aspects. So, as far as being specific goes, show people both sides of the coin.
- Explain the impact: While it’s a customer service performance review, leaving out its impact on you would be unhelpful. It might make people feel like you aren’t being authentic. So, write about your sentiments and whether the representative solved your problem.
How To Respond to a Bad Customer Service Review: 3 Steps to Customer Satisfaction
Things won’t always go your way because you can’t keep everyone happy. Even with the most exceptional customer service, there will be bad days when you’ll encounter a negative review.
However, you’ll always have a chance to make things right. Instead of panicking and going into denial, the best route would be to respond to the review. Since you’ll be replying to an angry customer, you must learn how to do this correctly.
So, here’s how to respond to a bad customer service review!
1. Address and Understand
It’s natural to feel frustration towards a negative review, especially when you aren’t to blame. As a result, you might want to ignore the review and move on with your day.
However, this can make things worse. There will be onlookers who expect you to do something about the review. Not replying will only add to the bad reputation that the review gave you.
The first step is to calm down and collect your thoughts. Then, read the review once you’re confident your head is in the right space. Thoroughly understand the problem and try to detect the customers’ sentiments. Take as long as you need, but ensure you understand the problem before you reply.
2. Apologize and Present a Solution
Apologizing to an angry customer can go a long way, even when it’s not your fault. It will instantly calm them down. As a result, they’ll be more willing to listen to you.
So, once you’ve understood the problem, start with an apology. Let’s say the client faced tracking issues, and the agent couldn’t solve the problem on call.
In this case, you can say, “We apologize for the delay in addressing your concerns about your order’s tracking.” This shows that you’ve understood the problem and genuinely care.
It would also be a good idea to briefly explain the issue before presenting a solution. Extending the above example, here’s what you can say next.
“The delay was due to a technical glitch in our tracking system, which we have since fixed. You can access the latest information about your order’s location here [Link]. Thank you for your patience and understanding.
While the above steps will ensure you’ve solved the customer’s problem, going the extra mile will help your case. Onlookers will feel that you genuinely care about your customers’ comfort. The reviewer might even take the review down if they’re happy with your reply.
So, after providing a solution, offer them an apology gift. For example, you might offer them a 10% discount voucher. Or you can give them access to exclusive content. In short, add something of value to make up for your mistake.
Consider replying to them privately, fully disclosing what happened, and apologizing further.
4 Ways To Assess Customer Service Reviews and Identify Key Insights
Now that you know how to reply to a bad review, let’s move on to assessing customer service reviews. Did you know that a poor business interaction can ruin the day for three out of four customers?
If this becomes a norm with your business, you might lose customers and have difficulty attracting new ones.
Analyzing your customer service reviews will help you avoid this by identifying key insights and making improvements. So, here are four ways to do so:
- Collect and categorize reviews: Analyzing online reviews isn’t possible without collecting and categorizing them. So, monitor your reviews and store them in one place. Then, separate negative and positive feedback to understand customer sentiment toward your service.
- Identify patterns and trends: If multiple customers have the same problem, it will become easier for you to identify it. So, look for trends and patterns to see what’s amiss. You can also look at phrases for customer service that your agents use to see if they’re effective.
- Engage with customers: You can also engage with customers to assess your customer service reviews. Loyal customers will be more willing to help. So, ask them politely what they think about your customer service. You can even ask them specific questions to see if your identified patterns are accurate.
- Create a schedule: Collecting and assessing reviews is a continuous process. So, create a schedule to identify new trends and improve your offerings.
Frequently Asked Questions About Customer Service Reviews
Let’s answer some frequently asked questions about customer service reviews now that you know what they are and their benefits.
Why should I leave a customer service review?
You should leave a customer service review because it helps shape other people’s perspectives. It will help set customer expectations about the support they’ll receive if they face a problem.
Moreover, you can help the business gain actionable insights and make improvements by leaving a review.
How can customer service experts encourage more customers to leave reviews?
Customer service experts can encourage more customers to leave reviews by politely requesting feedback after a positive interaction. Or they can offer incentives to customers to share their thoughts.
However, they shouldn’t try influencing the review with offers and discounts.
A simplified process to leave reviews also takes away customer hesitation when leaving a review.
What should I do if I receive a fake or fraudulent review?
If you receive a fake or fraudulent review, you should immediately report it. Review websites like Yelp and Google often have strict guidelines about such reviews and can remove them.
However, they won’t remove the review if it doesn’t violate their terms and conditions. In this case, you can reply to the review as if you would respond to an authentic negative review.
Turn Criticism Into Growth by Analyzing Your Reviews
A good customer service review can build trust, attract new customers, and create a positive reputation. It can also help customers make informed decisions about who to work with. Treat reviews as constructive feedback. Analyze them and identify areas of improvement to make your business better.
To grow your business, it’s essential to get reviews regularly. If you want to automate this part of your operations, try Beambox.
It’s a WiFi marketing platform that helps you get more positive reviews. You can also get data to improve customer service and get more clients. Start your trial now!
