Effective Strategies for Lowering Customer Service Costs

Introduction

Good customer service is essential for any business, but it can also be expensive. Fortunately, there are a variety of strategies that companies can use to reduce their customer service costs while still providing quality support. In this blog post, we’ll take a look at some of the most effective ways to lower your customer service costs without sacrificing quality or customer satisfaction. This includes understanding the customer's needs and expectations, automating certain processes, outsourcing tasks, and maintaining a focus on customer satisfaction. Throughout this article, you’ll learn how to save money on customer service without risking your reputation.

Fundamentals:

Before trying to optimise each area of your department it’s important to make sure you;

1. Hire or outsource to a great quality team of Customer Service Representatives
2. Implement a knowledgeable support structure, from Team leaders to QA
3. Provided concise and quality training
4. Define KPIs and set expectations
5. Make sure your model is scalable 

Once you’ve got the fundamentals in place you can look at;

Cost effective channels

Although it may not be wise to completely remove your telephone offering; Telephone customer service can be expensive for businesses for a few reasons. First, it requires businesses to have dedicated staff available to answer calls, which can be costly in terms of labour, especially if you’re trying to cover a 24/7 operation. Second, telephone customer service can be time-consuming, as it often involves long conversations with customers. This can lead to reduced efficiency and productivity for businesses.

1. Live Chat: Did you know that live chat is the preferred communication method for millennials? This is great news for businesses, as it allows customer service agents to handle multiple conversations simultaneously, improving efficiency and productivity. Additionally, live chat allows businesses to collect important information from customers before an agent interacts with them, which can help to improve the quality of support provided. Overall, implementing live chat can be a valuable way to enhance the customer experience and drive business success.
2. Social Media: Social media has become an important channel for every business to focus on with over 90% of people saying they’re comfortable calling out poor customer service on social media. Luckily, social media is just another form of instant messaging, and clever canned responses can be another way to reduce costs
3. Email: This is another great route to implement automation. Many email platforms offer inbuilt options for customisable canned responses auto-completing lines of text such as expected delivery dates with simple integrations. 
   
   

Automate customer service processes with technology 

Automating customer service processes with technology can help businesses improve efficiency and provide better experiences for their customers. By using tools like chatbots and automation software, businesses can handle common customer inquiries and requests quickly and efficiently. This allows customer service teams to focus on more complex and high-value tasks, improving overall customer satisfaction. Automation also helps to ensure consistent and accurate responses, reducing the potential for human error. In today's competitive marketplace, implementing technology to automate customer service processes is a smart move for any business looking to improve its operations and provide excellent customer service.

Develop customer service policies and procedures to reduce the need for manual intervention and customer service calls

Well-defined policies and procedures help provide customers with the information they need to resolve common issues on their own, reducing the need for manual intervention and reducing the volume of customer service calls. Overall, developing effective policies and procedures can help businesses improve efficiency and provide better experiences for their customers. Consider things like giving customers the ability to book a return or refund via their account, keeping them up to date with delivery information and certainly if this differs from what they initially expected.

Ensure you understand customer demand and resource accordingly

Understanding customer demand and allocating resources accordingly is key to providing excellent customer service. By regularly analysing customer data and feedback, businesses can gain a better understanding of the types of inquiries and requests they receive and the level of demand for their customer service team. This information can be used to ensure that the right resources are in place to handle customer inquiries efficiently and effectively. For example, if customer demand is high during certain times of the day or week, businesses can ensure that they have enough staff on hand to provide timely and accurate responses.

Similarly, if certain types of inquiries are more common than others, businesses can allocate resources to provide specialised training and support to their customer service team. By understanding customer demand and allocating resources accordingly, businesses can provide better experiences for their customers and improve overall customer satisfaction.

Outsource customer service to specialised service providers

Outsourcing certain elements of your customer service operation to specialists can help reduce costs without sacrificing quality. An experienced outsourcing partner who understands the latest strategies and techniques in customer service can optimise their own processes to provide efficient and effective support. By partnering with such  specialists, you can benefit from their expertise and experience, allowing you to focus on other areas of your business. Additionally, outsourcing can improve customer satisfaction by providing a dedicated team of professionals who are focused on delivering excellent service. You don’t have to outsource your entire operation either. For instance, if you’re finding it hard to get cover overnight without paying increased rates. Offshore suppliers can benefit from the difference in time zones and often do not charge a higher rate for out-of-hours. 

As an example, we at resolvable have an all-in £8.50ph per agent cost, any hour of the day, or day of the week. This also includes all support costs, such as Team Leaders, and management structure, as well as support structures such as Quality Assurance, Workforce Management, and Real-Time support.

Explore partnerships with offshore solutions

Outsourcing all or elements of your Customer Service solution offshore can reduce costs because it allows businesses to take advantage of lower labour costs in other countries. Additionally, outsourcing customer services can help businesses save on overhead costs, such as the cost of maintaining a physical call centre and providing training and support for customer service staff. By outsourcing customer service to a company that already has the infrastructure and expertise in place, businesses can also benefit from increased efficiency and improved customer satisfaction.

Evaluate customer service tools and processes regularly to identify further opportunities for cost reduction

By regularly reviewing and analysing your customer service tools and processes, businesses can identify areas where they can improve efficiency and reduce costs. For example, they may find that they can save money by using more efficient communication tools, such as chatbots or virtual assistants, or by streamlining their processes to reduce the amount of time and resources spent on each customer interaction.

Analyse customer feedback to identify common customer service issues and address them proactively

It is important to track and pay attention to the reasons why customers are reaching out to you. This can be done through feedback surveys, obtaining reason-for-contact data through customer contact logs, and other tools. By analysing this data, you can identify common issues that are driving customer contact and take steps to address them proactively.

One way to do this is by creating a frequently asked questions (FAQ) section on your website or customer service portal. This can provide customers with quick answers to common questions, reducing the need for them to contact you for basic information. If possible, try to improve the processes that are causing the most customer contact, such as delivery questions, or confusing instructions.

If you are outsourcing your customer service operations, make sure to choose a partner that is willing to work with you to improve your customer service. They should be able to provide insights and guidance on how to reduce the number of repeat customer contacts and improve the overall customer experience. By working together, you can ensure that your customers are receiving the best possible service.

Integrate technology solutions into the customer service process, such as CRM software, analytics tools, and AI/machine learning algorithms

There are several types of software that businesses can use to help save costs in customer service. Some examples include chatbots and automation software, which can help handle common customer inquiries and requests quickly and efficiently. This allows customer service teams to focus on more complex and high-value tasks, improving overall Customer Satisfaction. Other types of software that businesses can use to save costs in customer service include email automation tools, which can help improve the efficiency of customer service agents by allowing them to handle multiple conversations simultaneously. Additionally, customer feedback and data analysis tools can help businesses understand customer demand and allocate resources accordingly, which can help improve the quality of customer service without incurring excessive costs.

Some great technical solutions to explore further are;

1. Automated chatbots: Implement automated chatbot technology to handle customer inquiries. This can reduce costs by reducing the need for live support staff and streamlining customer service processes.
   
   
2. Self-service portals: Provide customers with the option to manage their own accounts online through a self-service portal. This allows customers to update their information, check order status, and handle other common tasks without having to contact customer service directly. By offering a self-service portal, businesses can reduce the volume of customer service inquiries and free up their customer service team to focus on more complex and high-value tasks. This can improve the efficiency of customer service operations and save costs without sacrificing quality or customer satisfaction. Additionally, self-service portals can provide a convenient and user-friendly experience for customers, which can help improve customer satisfaction and loyalty.
   
   
3. AI-powered analytics: Businesses can use AI-powered analytics tools to gain insights into customer behaviour and preferences, which can help identify areas for improvement and cost savings in customer service operations. By analysing customer data and feedback, businesses can better understand the types of inquiries and requests they receive, the level of demand for their customer service team, and the most effective channels for providing support. This information can help businesses streamline support processes, implement automation, and reduce the volume of low-value inquiries, which can improve customer service and save costs.
   
   
4. Knowledge base & FAQs: Create an easily searchable knowledge base of frequently asked questions and answers that customers can access on their own time instead of having to contact customer service representatives directly.  Make sure that this is internal too, instant access to information and answers to common questions, will reduce the need for manual research and improve response times.
   
   
5. Automated outreach: One way to save costs in customer service is to use automated email, text message or more recently push-notification campaigns to proactively reach out to customers with relevant information or updates. This can help eliminate the need for manual outreach efforts from customer service personnel, which can be time-consuming and costly. Automated email or text message campaigns can be triggered by specific events or actions, such as a customer making a purchase or requesting information. These campaigns can be personalised to include relevant information or updates that may be useful for the customer, such as product updates, special offers, or support resources. By using automated campaigns, businesses can provide timely and useful information to customers without the need for manual outreach from customer service personnel. This can help improve the customer experience and save costs in customer service.
   
   
6. WFM/ Rota Management Tools: Workforce management (WFM) or rota management tools are software applications that help businesses plan, schedule, and manage their employees' time and workload. These tools can be especially useful in customer service departments, where there are often large fluctuations in customer demand and the need for flexible staffing. WFM/rota management tools can help businesses create efficient schedules that meet customer demand and reduce labour costs. These tools often include features such as time and attendance tracking, advertising overtime, holiday monitoring and more. Which can help businesses accurately record employee hours for payroll purposes. Overall, WFM/rota management tools can be a valuable tool for businesses looking to improve their customer service operations and save costs.
   
   

Conclusion

In conclusion, there are a number of ways that businesses can reduce their customer service costs while still providing quality support. By understanding the needs and expectations of customers, automating certain processes, outsourcing tasks, and maintaining a focus on customer satisfaction, companies can optimise their customer service operations and improve efficiency. Some specific strategies to consider include using cost-effective communication channels like live chat and social media, automating processes with technology, developing policies and procedures to reduce the need for manual intervention, and measuring and analysing customer feedback. Ultimately, the key to lowering customer service costs while maintaining quality is to find the right balance between automation and human interaction, and to constantly seek ways to improve efficiency and the customer experience.