If you are working as a contractor who carries out work for clients, carries out house calls as a service provider, or runs a small business that frequents events or marketing, improving customer service at the point of engagement and behind the scenes is vital. People need a great impression of you prior to meeting you in person or engaging your services, as well as when they meet you face to face.
But is improving customer service as easy as it is for a business with a static location? It can be you just need to get creative with boosting customer service.
Increase Payment Options
For contractors without a physical location, the flexibility of payment options is crucial. Restricting customers to cash or checks can alienate some, especially the younger generation, who often don’t carry cash. By offering mobile credit card processing from this website to take payments on the go, you’re providing a convenient and secure payment method. All you need is a Bluetooth reader and an app, and you’re ready to accept payments wherever your work takes you.
Alternatively, options such as scanning a QR code to take people to a digital payment page can work well for you. To further increase options, you could allow for bank transfers or payments via Zelle, for example.
Live Chat or Chatbots
Suppose you are out on the road driving or with a customer conducting repairs or serving people at a market stall, for example. In that case, you won’t be able to field inquiries for other people from contacts, such as phone calls, website orders, or inquiries. For this reason, live chat and chatbots can be a valuable resource.
Whether you program a chatbot to answer commonly asked questions before directing them to a contact form you can pick up when you’re free, or you have a live chat feature with a dedicated staff member or outsourced team handling contact, you need to give the customers a way to engage with you to get the information they need when you cannot physically be there to do so yourself.
Invest in Training
As the face of your company, you need to be at your best at all times. This is where customer service training comes in. Whether you’re in B2B or B2C, training in relationship building, conflict resolution, issue handling, and problem-solving can empower you to deliver better service and enhance your reputation. With the right training, you can feel more capable and confident in your customer interactions.
Utilise Software
When you are constantly moving from place to place, site to site, it can be easy to lose track of things or miss important details. Software like CRM or field agent software and even accounting software can help you keep standards up easily without missing anything. An effective booking and appointment system can be beneficial, as can route management software or GPS software to help you track drivers on router routes or plan routes yourself. The more tools you have to make your life easier, the better the standards you can easily introduce and maintain.
