Fostering collaboration between customer service and sales is crucial for business success. Companies who are able to promote teamwork between the two groups are roughly 7x more likely to boost customer spending.
Ready to break the silos and promote a lasting partnership between customer service and sales? Here are nine effective strategies to get you there:
1. Equip support agents to be product experts
Train support agents on your products so they can assist customers with purchases. AI customer service software provides comprehensive product and customer information, enabling agents to offer informed advice, effectively answer customer questions, and ultimately close deals.
2. Let agents foster relationships
Encourage support agents to build strong connections with customers. This starts with streamlining repetitive customer inquiries. Over 70% of questions can be automated, freeing up time for agents to deliver personalized interactions and build brand loyalty.
3. Empower agents to recommend products
By transforming support reps into product specialists, you’ve empowered them to propose relevant products to shoppers. AI-powered customer service software removes the need to memorize product information, and instead places your catalog right at their fingertips. Agents can browse, identify, and recommend products based on shopper preferences and questions.
4. Reduce friction in the buying process
Buying preferences are constantly changing, meaning offering an omnichannel experience should be one of your top priorities. To ensure your support can keep up, it’s important to choose customer support software that can integrate into your existing tech stack. This will allow agents to play a complementary role and offer them the chance to provide support at key points in the decision process seamlessly.
5. Share feedback between customer service and sales
No one knows your shoppers quite like your customer service reps. Encourage agents to communicate customer feedback to your sales team — and all departments — for continuous improvement. Why guess pain points and areas for improvement when your customer service team can deliver this info first-hand?
6. Track metrics to enhance customer experience
Align customer service and sales teams by tracking metrics that improve customer satisfaction and retention rates. You should have clear visibility into these metrics and targeted benchmarks. By monitoring this information, you can see where customers are having an enjoyable experience and where there is room for improvement.
7. Reward customer loyalty
Finding a way to thank your most reliable customers can work wonders. One strategy is offering a loyalty program — think airline miles or a Starbucks rewards card. Customer support teams should manage these initiatives and, as brand ambassadors, are ideally situated to spotlight exclusive discounts, gifts, and other promotions that encourage repeat purchases.
8. Offer post-sale follow-ups
Do you know if your customers are happy or have buyer’s remorse? Coordinate a plan to follow up with shoppers after they’ve completed their purchase. Are they happy? Excellent! Now is your chance to offer other products they might enjoy. If not, here’s an opportunity to make things right and potentially win back shoppers who’d otherwise abandon you.
9. Gather first-hand customer testimonials
People are more likely to trust a brand after seeing others have had a positive experience. Customer service representatives can collect valuable feedback and identify positive customer comments. These testimonials can then be utilized in marketing materials to enhance your company’s credibility.
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