Every time a customer reaches out for help, it's a chance to shape how they see your brand. These little moments add up, creating the big picture of what your company stands for.
Customer support is about solving problems when customers come to you with issues. It's super important because it can turn a frustrated customer into a happy one.
In this blog, we'll explore customer support, why it matters so much, and how it combines with customer service and success to create an awesome customer experience.
What Is Customer Support?
Customer support is like being a helper and problem-solver for your customers. They contact your support team when they get into trouble with your product or service. Your customer support team’s job is to fix their issues and answer their questions.
Here's what customer support usually involves:
- Answering phone calls, emails, or chat messages from customers
- Helping customers figure out how to use your product
- Solving technical problems
- Handling returns or refunds
- Updating customers on the status of their issues
Think of customer support as your business's emergency room. When customers have urgent problems, your support team is there to fix them and get them back on track. 80% of customers say a company's experience is as important as its product or service.
Why Is Customer Support Important?
You might be wondering, "Okay, but why should I care about customer support?" There are many reasons, but let's focus on a big one: customer retention.
Customer support helps keep your customers around. Here's why:
1. It builds trust
Customers who know they can count on you to solve their problems are more likely to stick with your company. When your support team demonstrates knowledge and competence, customers feel they're in good hands. This boosts their confidence in your brand.
"If the company’s customer service is excellent, 75% of consumers will do business with them again, even after making a mistake.
Every time you successfully resolve an issue, you're adding another brick to the foundation of trust. Over time, this builds a strong, lasting relationship.
2. It prevents frustration
Problems happen, but good support prevents them from snowballing into major frustrations. It's the difference between a customer thinking, "This company doesn't care about me," and a customer thinking, "Wow, they really went the extra mile to help me out."
75% of consumers will continue doing business with a company if its customer service is excellent, even after a mistake.
Keep customers in the loop about the status of their issue shows you respect their time and are actively working on their problem. You should also show you understand and care about the customer's frustration.
3. It creates brand advocates
When you provide great support, customers don't just stay—they tell others about you. 85% of American customers will recommend a company if they rate its service as "very good." It's like free advertising, but even better because it comes with a personal recommendation.
Customers who have had positive support experiences are more likely to stick with your brand, even if they encounter minor issues in the future.
4. It gives you valuable feedback
Your support team is like the eyes and ears of your company on the ground. They’re interacting closely with your customers and hearing their praise and complaints directly from them.
This feedback can help you improve your products or services, making them even better for your customers.
Where Support, Service and Success Fits in the Customer Journey
Your customer's journey is the entire experience a customer has with your company, from their first interaction to becoming a loyal, long-term user of your product or service. This journey isn't always smooth, and customers may need different types of assistance along the way.
This is where support, service, and success teams play necessary roles. Each team contributes to ensure customers have a positive experience throughout their journey:
1. Customer Support Reacts to Problems
Customer support is the team that responds when customers encounter issues or have questions they can't resolve on their own. They provide immediate assistance to address specific problems or concerns.
Let’s imagine a customer can't log into their account on your e-commerce platform. They contact customer support, who guides them through the password reset process and ensures they can access their account successfully.
2. Customer Service Proactively Helps
Customer service takes a proactive approach, offering assistance and information before customers even realize they need it. This team works to prevent issues and enhance the overall customer experience.
For instance, a software company's customer service team notices that many new users don't utilize a feature that could significantly improve their experience.
They create a series of onboarding emails highlighting this feature and explaining its benefits, helping new customers get more value from the product right from the start.
3. Customer Success Plans for Long-Term Happiness
Customer success focuses on the big picture, working to ensure that customers achieve their long-term goals with your product or service. They help customers realize the full value of their investment in your offering.
Let’s say that for a B2B software company, a customer success manager works closely with a client to understand their business objectives for the year.
They then create a customized plan for how the software can help achieve these goals, schedule regular check-ins to track progress, and suggest new features or strategies as the client's needs evolve.
How Support, Service, and Success Work Together
When customer support, service, and success work together seamlessly, they ensure customers have the best possible experience.
When they don’t work together, customers can end up feeling frustrated. 52% of consumers say support interactions leave them exhausted. One major reason is scattered information. 56% of customers have to repeat or re-explain information to different representatives.
Here’s how these roles collaborate:
Support feeds information to Service
When the support team resolves a customer's issue, they don't keep that information to themselves. Instead, they share it with the service team.
This information sharing allows the service team to take proactive measures with other customers who might encounter similar problems.
For instance, support representative helps a customer troubleshoot a software integration issue. They then inform the service team about this common problem.
The service team can now reach out to customers using similar integrations, providing them with guidance to prevent the issue before it occurs.
Service prepares customers for Success
The service team's role involves proactively assisting customers and educating them about the product or service. They lay the groundwork for the success team to guide customers towards their long-term objectives more effectively.
Let’s say service team conducts regular webinars demonstrating advanced features of a project management tool. This proactive education helps customers become more proficient with the software.
When the success team later works with these customers on achieving their project efficiency goals, the customers already have a solid foundation of knowledge, allowing for more productive conversations about strategic use of the tool.
Success provides insights to Support and Service
The success team has a comprehensive understanding of customers' overarching goals. Sharing this information with the support and service teams lets them provide more personalized and relevant assistance.
For example, a success manager learns that a particular customer aims to expand their business internationally. They share this information with the support and service teams.
Now, when this customer contacts support with a question, the support team can offer solutions that align with the customer's global expansion plans. Similarly, the service team can proactively offer resources and training specific to international business features of the product.
Benefits of Having All Three Working in Harmony
When support, service, and success teams collaborate effectively, it creates a seamless customer experience that significantly increases customer lifetime value.
Here are the benefits of having these three teams work together seamlessly:
1. Happier Customers
When support, service, and success teams are aligned, customers receive comprehensive care throughout their journey.
They don't just get problems fixed; they also receive proactive assistance and guidance towards achieving their goals. This holistic approach leads to increased customer satisfaction.
2. More Efficient Problem-Solving
Collaboration between teams leads to faster and more effective issue resolution. Each team brings its unique perspective and expertise to the table, allowing for more comprehensive solutions.
3. Smoother Operations
Clear role definitions and good communication between teams reduce confusion and minimize overlap in responsibilities. This leads to more efficient internal processes and better resource allocation.
The Power of United Customer Care
Customer support, service, and success are interconnected. Customer support acts as your problem-solving expert, ready to address issues as they arise.
Customer service proactively enhances the customer experience, while customer success focuses on helping customers achieve their long-term goals with your product or service.
When these three elements work in harmony, they create a symphony of customer satisfaction. Your customers feel supported, valued, and empowered to succeed. This leads to increased loyalty, longer customer relationships, and positive word-of-mouth referrals.
Exceptional customer care isn't just about fixing problems—it's about building lasting relationships.
Partner with Origin 63 and Harness the Power of HubSpot
At Origin 63, we're dedicated to helping businesses create outstanding customer experiences using HubSpot's powerful tools. HubSpot can revolutionize your customer support by streamlining processes andenabling personalized support.
Implementing new tools can be challenging, but our expert team is here to help you set up and customize HubSpot, train your staff, and develop strategies to seamlessly integrate support, service, and success.
Reach out to Origin 63 today, and let's work together to elevate your customer support from good to exceptional.
