The importance of enhancing customer service

5/18/2011

Keeping existing customers is infinitely easier than gaining new ones. For this reason, small business owners should ensure their customer service representatives are effective at their jobs.

The American Express OPEN Forums suggests that entrepreneurs hire customer service representatives that are first and foremost good with people. While having scripts and processes can help, it is ultimately how affable reps are with customers that will help them retain business.

"It doesn’t matter what it is, even the cleverest of entrepreneurs has to be getting their cash flow from at least one customer. And because customers are so important to your bottom line, it's a good idea to make sure you are doing enough to keep those customers coming back," notes the source.

Now that commercial loans are easier to come by, small business owners may want to consider upgrading their customer service center. This could include hiring more representatives, upgrading equipment such as computers or phones or bringing in an outsourced team to handle customer relationships for them.