In today’s modern world of Business, more than the product or its price… what matters most is the customer experience. The better you treat your customers, the better is your brand loyalty.

To beat the competition, you need to go beyond expectations and deliver a greater experience to your customers. 

Many marketers still believe mass communication to be the key to brand building. However, in the era of technology & big data, marketers must go one extra mile & shift their focus from ‘brand building’towards ‘buildingcustomer relationships’.  

What is Customer Service?

In simple terms, Customer Service is the interactions that a company has with its customers, via email or phone or through traditional channels. It’s the support you offer your customers before and after they use or purchase your products. If you want to keep your customers satisfied and grow your business, offering good customer service is vital.

What is Customer Relationship Building?

Customer Relationship building is the process through which a business builds, establishes and maintains relationships with its customers. It’s important that you develop effective communication with your customers in order to make sure they stay with you for a long time.   

Evolution of Customer Service Into Customer Relationship:

Customer expectations are increasing and customers are now more interested to share both good and bad experiences. Generally, service-based industries often experience high turnovers. If customer service tools don’t help in expanding your company’s customer base, then they might be considered as non-required expenses.

Here are some challenges from previously used Customer Service practices, which are actively solved by the new-age Customer Relationship Building practices:

People:

Challenges: Only service agents were the primary point of contact.

Solution: With the help of a CRM, sales & marketing, service agents, manufacturing and everyone are more involved in the action.

Technology:

Challenges: Only communication medium were email, phone and other traditional channels.

Solutions: CRM involves active involvement of phone, SMS, web, chat, call, social media and various cross-channel platforms.  

Processes:

Challenges: Customer services were simple & static by action and clumsy in performance.

Solutions: CRM aids the process in being dynamic & adaptive.

Central Idea:

Challenges: The central focus with Customer Service were ‘Customer Issues‘.

Solutions: The central focus with Customer Relationship Management is the ‘Customer‘ itself. Hence, the quality of customer experience goes up.  

Approach:

Challenge: Customer services had a scripted and restricted approach.  

Solutions: With the help of a CRM, the approach has become more collaborative, proactive and extremely engaging.

Hence, businesses should treat customers as a key component of their business activities. You need to see the world through the eyes of your customers and focus on creating services and products which suit their requirements and desires.

CRM is all about merging marketing efforts with business processes; identifying, building and managing customer relationships. It’s about finding & analyzing customers’ requirements. It also improves the rate of customer retention, profitability and revenue growth.  

Signing off…

CRMs have been gaining popularity because businesses have found it easy in cutting costs, providing better quality and improvising overall performance for better customer satisfaction.

“Just having satisfied customers isn’t good enough anymore. If you really want a booming business, you have to create raving fans.”

– Ken Blanchard

If you need an ideal CRM for your business, check out Wakeupsales. It’s ranked #1 CRM of the Year by Accurate Reviews. Also, feel free to drop your suggestions below. I’d love to hear from you

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