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One of the challenges all businesses face is figuring out how much personal support to offer their customers. Customer service automation can reduce human error and allow your company to scale its services more efficiently.
Tools like chatbots allow you to provide 24/7 customer support and collect leads that your team can follow up on during normal business hours. Plus, it can save your business a lot of money on call centers and customer support.
But too much of anything can turn into a problem, and over-reliance on automation removes the personal touch that most customers are looking for. Let’s take a look at how in-person interactions can benefit your business and how to find the right mix of automation and personalization.
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What is personalized customer service?
Personalized customer service is the provision of assistance to customers that is tailored to their specific needs and preferences. It’s about finding a way to include a human element in every interaction with your customers.
Starbucks was an early adopter of this tactic when the company began having baristas write customers’ names on their drink orders. It’s a small way to establish a connection between baristas and customers and build customer loyalty. It also reduces confusion and ensures that the customer receives the drink they ordered.
But even if you never see your customers in person, there are still ways to create a personalized customer experience. Starbucks also offers personalized drink recommendations and special offers based on the customer’s location and order history.
It’s also about giving customers multiple ways to contact your business, as everyone has their own preferred way of reaching out for help. By remaining flexible, you can ensure that every interaction with your business is useful and that the customer is happy.
Related: Want Your Customers to Love You? Treat every customer as if they were your only customer
How personal interactions help your business
Personal interactions will help you improve the customer experience and drive further growth for your company. Let’s take a look at the biggest benefits of providing personalized customer service.
It ensures that you meet customer expectations
The pandemic has raised the bar for what customers expect from the companies they do business with. More than 50% of customers say that the experience they have with a company is as important as the products and services offered.
According to data from McKinsey, 71% of customers expect personalized interactions with businesses, and 76% feel frustrated if they don’t. This applies whether you run an online store or a brick-and-mortar business. In many ways, personalization has become the minimum bar you need to meet to get customers in the door.
It creates customer loyalty
Having meaningful interactions with customers is the best way to create customer loyalty. Loyal customers will do business with you again and again and are more likely to recommend your company to their friends and family.
Loyalty customers have a higher lifetime value than a one-time customer. Alternatively, customers are unlikely to buy from you again if they don’t feel that their views have been heard or that the problem has not been resolved.
Additionally, businesses that use personalization effectively will differentiate themselves from their competitors. Personalization helps you build loyal customers and generate more sustainable revenue for your business.
It brings higher income
Data shows that companies that incorporate personalization achieve higher revenue, both from new and existing customers. A McKinsey report found that high-growth companies derive 40% of their revenue from personalization. Plus, because you’re targeting your customers more effectively, you can better control your marketing spend.
It helps you understand your customers
There’s only so much you can learn about your customers by collecting demographic data and breaking it out into different email lists. Through direct interaction with customers, you learn more about what they want from your business as a whole. You will learn what they like and dislike about your products and services and how you can improve them.
Related: 3 Ways Founders Can Connect With Their Customers To Increase Sales
The importance of balancing automation and personalization
Have you ever needed to contact customer support but couldn’t get through to anyone? No matter what you did, you couldn’t seem to get past the automated messages and talk to a real person.
That’s the problem with over-reliance on automation – it makes customer interactions feel inauthentic and frustrating. Technology can be a great way to keep up with the demands of a growing business, but some issues require human interaction and support.
That’s why Facebook is finally building a customer service division after 18 years. Members who had their posts or accounts unexpectedly suspended were unable to resolve the issue due to the company’s lack of customer support.
For most companies, automation and personalization go hand in hand – using them together is the best way to streamline your processes and grow more efficiently. The amount of human interaction you provide to your customers will depend on the type of business you run. However, adding a personal element to customer interactions can be a great way to grow, build and scale your business.