Individual customer service. Redundant or critical for success?

By providing individualized customer service, project managers can build strong relationships with clients and ensure that every project is a success. In business, the customer is always right. This adage is especially true in the world of project management, where individualized customer service is the key to success. By taking the time to get to know each client's needs and preferences, project managers can ensure that every project is executed flawlessly. In addition, regular communication with clients ensures that any changes or concerns are promptly addressed.

I bet all of us like to be treated specially — we like it when we enter the barber’s and get a cup of coffee or a small glass of something stronger and then have a chat with the barber, who gladly listens and replies. We like individual offers, personalized packages, and all kinds of such products. We can have a personal consultant in banking and a personal salesman in telecommunications. Why do I mention this? Because specially treating our customers may prove to be our key to success.

We never know who our customers are - individual customer service

It's not that we do not know whether our client is a woman or a man, but rather that they can turn out to be a famous person, a blogger known to a certain group of people, or even a writer whom we don't have to be familiar with. This is why it is worth specially treating every customer of ours, which improves their experience with the brand. In addition, it is worth noticing that, according to the data provided by Xerox, over 4% of the respondents would be glad to pay more for better treatment and better customer service.

Why don’t we try out individual customer service, then? It results in building long-term relationships, which are critical in business. Thanks to such an approach, we gain the following:

• customer's loyalty which translates to new orders – thanks to flawless service, which the customer is fond of, we may be sure that when the consumer is selecting a product in the future, a signal will appear somewhere in their mind reminding them about the good times which you "had" together;

• So-called brand evangelists are fans of the brand who willingly share experiences with their loved ones and friends. They do it not only face-to-face but also on social media. This is a free form of promotion for us and it is extremely effective.

• This is an excellent representation of a brand that cares about its customers - this way, our customers know that we not only sell good products or services, but we also have a high organizational culture, which translates into quality customer service.

After all, brands built this way have a much easier time dealing with crises and obstacles if they occur; they can always count on support from their loyal customers.

Solid ideas

In the current market, many brands have offerings that are identical and differ only in price or additional services, which do not always draw clients closer. This is why it is so important to give the buyers something more — a feeling of exclusivity and specialness that no other brand can offer. Let’s take a look at some examples. In some hotels, the receptionist has been replaced by a host who greets guests in the very vestibule: the reception desk no longer separates the host from the guest; everything is discussed in comfy armchairs; and so on. This is the case, for example, in the Andaz hotels.

The right people in the right place

Our employees are our strength. Note that the personnel's mood depends on the way we treat and reward them. All this is felt by our customers. Let's take a look at Richard Branson, who, even though he does not rank among the richest entrepreneurs in the world or have an innovative company, is an inspiration for many people.

Branson said, "Customers are not the most important thing." The employees are the most important. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of your customers. " In his book, he wrote another important thing that should be engraved in every entrepreneur’s mind and head: "You cannot make everyone happy. Even if you manage your company in the best way possible, there will always be some eternally displeased customers, the keeping of whom will cost you more than just losing them. This means that sometimes it is worth giving up on a customer who generates high keeping costs. It is worth considering whether we would be better off transferring these resources and measures to another customer who would appreciate our efforts.

Let's get to the point. Two companies can be an example. The first one is the Sunglasses Hut shop in SoHo. One of the customers described a situation where they had been trying to find glasses that would fit him for quite some time. The same thing happened in this shop as well. They declined the personnel’s offer of help and we're looking for a perfect pair themselves. In the meantime, the Sunglass Hut employee took the liberty of selecting two pairs, which – as it turned out – fit perfectly. Of course, the customer described the entire situation on social media. What worked in this situation? The knowledge and experience of the personnel who were very good at their jobs

The other example is the story of John DiJulius, who stayed at the Ritz-Carlton hotel. When leaving the hotel, he forgot his laptop charger. The customer wanted to call the hotel but decided to do it after he arrived home. The following day, he found his lost charger waiting for him in the office, accompanied by an extra charger sent as a bonus from the hotel.

Yet another interesting story deals with the Warby Parker brand, which is known for quality customer service. Warby Parker is a brand of glasses that is a socially responsible business. For every pair of glasses sold, they donate one to a child in need but unable to afford them. In addition, the company introduced a system for trying the glasses on at home if you want to buy them online. All we have to do is order frames that are appealing to us; we will receive them at home, and if we choose the ones we like, the rest will be collected by the courier, and we will pay only for those which we keep. All this without any additional costs. By the way, let us take a look at the story of Michael John Mathis.

The man forgot his pair of glasses on the train. Sometime later, he received a delivery from Warby Parker containing those glasses and a spare pair. As it turned out, a company employee was sitting opposite him — they noticed what happened and moved heaven and earth for the loss to be returned to the customer.

There are a lot of such stories about brands. These are no exceptions because companies like those described above, or the Zappos shop known around the world for that matter, have high standards of service embedded in their organizational culture. Even unprecedented situations employees find themselves in are solved in a subtle, skillful, and unique manner. There are also companies in the Polish market that value customer satisfaction above everything else. There is no need to search. Coffeedesk or Hard Beans Coffee Roasters are like this: these are places where the customer is put first.

Individual customer service in the teal organization

The teal organization is based on the idea of ​​self-management. This means that each individual is responsible for their work, and there is no need for a traditional hierarchy. This can lead to more efficient and customer-focused organizations, as each individual can make decisions that are in the best interest of the customer. In teal organizations, customer service is not just a department - it is everyone's responsibility. This means that every employee is focused on providing the best possible experience for each customer. As a result, teal organizations can provide a higher level of customer service than traditional organizations.

The road to success leads through the client's hearts.

Maybe the above slogan is a bit lofty, but it’s true that the way we build relations with our customers indeed translates into their feelings towards our company. Building long-term relationships are very important because satisfied regulars will more keenly buy our products if there have been no problems with them so far and the buyer has received something more — exceptional individual customer service.