And no matter how good your product is, if customers are disgruntled with the service offered, they are unlikely to return or refer others to you. They need to “feel” the service experience. 

Engaged employees = great customer service

Employee engagement is the emotional commitment an employee has to your organisation, its goals and achieving positive business outcomes. You may have a great customer service strategy or customer service philosophy in place, but if your employees are disengaged, they won’t deliver on it. Likewise, a dissatisfied employee is unlikely to pass vital customer feedback up the chain.

The result? Your business won’t stack up when it comes to offering the very best customer experience possible and your customers will walk. Forget loyalty – they will leave you for a competitor promptly and without reservations. There will always be some other business that can provide the same or a similar offering.

Customers are more likely to recommend a business to others if they have had a positive experience with your staff.

Products produced by engaged employees are usually better quality. Likewise, employees that are more productive are less likely to make mistakes which can help improve the customer experience and satisfaction.

Engaged staff have a positive impact on your organisation's reputation in the marketplace by being excellent brand ambassadors. Conversely, disengaged employees can become a public relations nightmare, particularly in an age where employees and customers can interact outside traditional boundaries via social media.

Get to know your employees

First up, really get to know your employees. You spend more waking hours with your colleagues than with anyone else. What makes them tick? Ask them about their achievements, their challenges, their interests and their goals. Listen and take note of their answers. 

Ask whether they feel things could be done differently. Is there anything they need in their role, or is there anything you can help them with? Again take note of their responses and help them with what they need.

Are they happy in their role? If not, ignite their potential and get them engaged by helping them into the right role.

Build trust and emphasise the positives

You can do this by:

  • encouraging them to smile naturally using their mouth and eyes

  • using positive body language – open arms, standing tall

  • recognising regular customers – using their name or remembering what their ‘usual’ order is

  • giving a friendly and warm welcome to new customers

  • dressing to suit the business culture.

  • identify your management style – this can be done through behavioural profiling tools. Extended Disc (FinxS) provides individual and team profiling as well as 360 feedback

  • recruit employees with the right attitude, people that fit your organisational culture

  • update policies and keep current with trends that may impact on your business, directly or indirectly

  • ensure all employees understand your guiding customer service principles and objectives

  • review frontline training for all employees

  • review customer feedback with employees

  • introduce recognition programs for employees

  • implement recognition and loyalty programs as part of your customer service framework.