Putting the spotlight back on customer happiness

Customer is the king. Every company, be it a startup or an enterprise, knows the importance of treating its customers well. But it is not a problem cracked by everyone. Acompany goes through varied challenges associated with customer service at each stage during its growth. This differs based on the vertical a business operates in, its target customer base and the geographies it caters to. Some companies have adopted a trial-and-error approach to handle these challenges; failing and learning along the way in ensuring the quality of their customer service.

Freshdesk, which has offices in Chennai and SanFrancisco, is one of the companies that has made customer/client interaction easy and fun through technology. We spoke to the team at Freshdesk to know their perspective on customer handling and the evolution of customer with the changing aspects of businesses:

Role of customers in B2B and B2C businesses

Though the role of a customer isn’t technically different for B2B and B2C businesses, the impact of customer experience can change drasticallywith each. In the B2C space, interactions with the customer happen primarily during and after the purchase, as opposed to B2B wherethey happen through the entire customer lifecycle. This implies that the stakes are much higher in B2B businesses where a customer is looking for a solution to solve or optimise a specific problem in their company, which in turn will help improve the service they provide to their customers. This two-level dependence is the reason why the evaluation process involves more intense comparisons and approvals, resulting in a lengthier buying cycle. Customers make more informed choices and lookfor specific features that will complement their business processes, expecting to have personal touch points so they can quickly reach out when they face issues.

Another point to note is that customer expectations vary greatly in the two markets. In B2B, customers can request product changes or tweaks that cater to their requirements, whereas in B2C, a majority of the customers have to face the same issue to warrant a product change.

Evolution of customer over the years

Earlier, it was more than enough for businesses to simply meet customer expectations. Things have changed drastically over the last decade with some businesses raising the bar on customer expectations with the service they deliver. Today, it has become an absolute necessity for businesses to go the extra mile when it comes to customer interactions. Customers expect to be surprised and the customer service experience is often a deciding factor when it comes to choosing a brand over its competitor. They exercise this power of choice by voting with their wallets.

Secondly, platforms like Twitter and Facebook are also changing the way customers talk to brands. They can magnify the impact of a single support experience, be it good or bad, and change the collective opinion of a brand with social media. While this makes customer service more challenging, it also serves as an excellent opportunity to provide good customer service and be rewarded for it.

Things to remember while dealing with customers

According to the team at Freshdesk, the company observes no distinction between those on the free trial and those on the highest tier of the paid plans. Irrespective of the roles, employees at Freshdesk, the team says, put the focus on customers tocreate good customer experiences at every stage of the customer-business relationship. Girish Mathrubootham, CEO, Freshdesk,says,

“Our business is in helping brands deliver great experiences, and we try to do a good job at it ourselves. So, while I'm focussing on the big picture everyday, getting support from my team helps me figure out what my customers care about the most, to fix underlying process problems right away”.

Customer happiness tour

Freshdesk is organising a Customer Happiness Tour to achieve the following goals:

• Help more businesses of all sizes put the spotlight on customer happiness.
• Connect leaders and decision makers from big brands and hotstartups in India
• Bring together smart minds in the country and leverage their experience to gain actionable insights into handling customer service challenges in India

Brands including Amazon, Flipkart, Myntra, BookMyShow and UrbanLadder will be sharing their insights and stories, providing people with real takeaways on how they have successfully cracked the customer happiness code.

Customer experience is redefining the way we do business today. It affects the way companies build products, support customers and the business processes they follow, among other things.

You can read more about the event here.

YourStory readers can use the discount code CHTYS to avail discount in entry fee.