When a customer calls you on the phone to ask a question or service their account, you’ll pay more operationally than if that same customer can self-service on your website.
How do you bridge the gap for those customers that reach for the phone first?
- Tell your customer they can take care of this quickly and easily on your website next time.
- Have your customer service representatives setup an online account while the customer is on the phone.
If you stop at the first step, you won’t see as many customers head to your website than if you follow through and complete both steps.
I recently called my gas utility company, Atmos Energy, because my bill had been lost in the mail. Not only did their customer service rep tell me my balance (my reason for calling) but he set up an account for me on the website, gave me my login and password, and I was ready to go.
I was able to immediately login to the website and set up recurring payments with a credit card to reduce future hassle.
Remember, when customers call they have a specific need. Solve that problem and then guide them right into the online connection.
Speak to convenience, time saved, and some of the other benefits of using your website over calling on the phone. With that foundation in place, setup an online account and your customers will be over most of the hurdles of their initial visit to your website.