Any business worth its salt these days is paying attention to customer service - but are larger companies always attending to what the customer wants, or do they have their own agenda?
Rushing you through a telephone call to keep ‘handle time’ to a minimum, or keeping you hanging on while a manager is consulted because they have a limited script and can’t answer tricky calls, are just two annoying tactics many of us have been subjected to.
Good customer service is like a visit to the GP used to be - where they keep to the appointment times, know you and your medical history. Nowadays, you are lucky if you can get an appointment, are unlikely to see the same doctor twice, and feel you are little more than just a name.
In business there’s only so much customer service ‘lite’ that people will take before they switch provider. Smaller companies are able to offer excellent, traditional customer service and provide solutions to problems – a level of support that is personal and often has continuity as you can speak to the same person on subsequent calls.
When talking to customers, we go the extra mile and provide advice wherever practical. If we don’t know the answer to a specific query, we will find out and call back. This is met with much gratitude and sometimes surprise, but to us it makes sound commercial sense. We know it’s a strong reason why people specify our products again and again. The good will it engenders is tangible.
Customers do want things pretty much instantly nowadays and really appreciate a speedy response. For domestic products, we are often able to send out parts or product the same or the next day, and our delivery time of five days for commercial products is market-leading.
All our products are made in Britain which means that, in addition to holding some stock to react quickly to requests, we can flex our factory capacity to manage a large order when required. We know, for example, that during the summer school holidays we will receive last-minute orders for jobs that have suddenly been given the go-ahead for completion in a six-week window. We are proud to be able to fulfil these without missing a beat.
Learn more about Smith's Environmental Products on our website: http://SmithsEP.co.uk/
