Almost every company worldwide claims to care about their customers, but how do you know if they genuinely do or not? Further to this, how do you convey your customer care philosophy to your customers and potential customers? A crucial element of your customer journey is the aftercare process with which you offer – after all the hard work at construction, it’s easy to let standards slip and leave aftercare as an afterthought. Being transparent and setting expectations early can help mitigate the severity issues down the line. At clixifix®, we are committed to providing the highest standards of customer care, ensuring our clients are happy at every stage of our relationship. Below are some suggestions of how your business can demonstrate a sincere appreciation for your clients and customers.

“Just having satisfied customers isn’t good enough anymore. If you really want a booming business, you have to create raving fans.” -Ken Blanchard

1. Contact – whilst we often strive for perfection, it’s important for your customers to be aware that mistakes do happen and to allow for human-error. That being said, it is therefore vital your customers to have several possible channels of communication open to them in the event of an issue. Companies who invest in communication with customers are the ones who understand their value.
2. Service – With consumers consistently taking to social media when their voices are not heard, it’s even more important for businesses to ensure their service levels are excellent. If you fall behind, you risk losing your market share to your competitors. Poor customer service can cause a staggering 89% of customers to stop doing business with a company. An easy way to monitor this is to track everything in real-time via a software solution.
3. Customers – Getting to know your customers is essential in building a meaningful relationship that will establish trust. If a customer has had a good experience, don’t be afraid to ask for more details. Incentives for completing short surveys is an excellent way in which to learn more about your customers and making them feel valued.
4. Exceeding Expectations – Going out of your way to make your customers feel special is an excellent method. The gesture does not have to be grand either! Something as simple as a follow-up call to ensure they are satisfied, or a card to offer your apologies are just two examples of how to solidify your customer reputation.
5. Loyalty – There is nothing more frustrating for consumers than existing customers being overlooked for offers and discounts. Adopting a reward scheme for existing customers is going to speak volumes for your word of mouth marketing strategy.
6. Team – All too often the aftercare team is overlooked for praise as the sales and development teams get the limelight. By acknowledging that you understand the difficulties your customer care teams face on a daily basis and highlighting the vital role they play, you will out-perform your competitors. Companies who celebrate their aftercare team’s achievements consistently pave the way to success.
7. Transparency – With social media in mind, it is very common for companies to take the conversation out of the pubic eye, leaving everyone unsure as to the outcome of the issue. By owning up to the mistake and setting out what steps have been taken to rectify the situation will dramatically improve your online image.

Although these points can, at first glance, look like they will require heavy investment in order to track and measure your aftercare journey accurately, it is important to consider the impact a simple software platform like clixifix® can have. By using our award-winning defect management & resolution platform, designed by construction professionals, our clients have positioned themselves as customer excellence ambassadors. By investing a small amount into aftercare and defect management, you will see the benefits in a matter of days!

clixifix® summary of basic features…

✓ Cloud-based

✓ Transparent communication

✓ Audit trail

✓ Real-time

✓ Unlimited users

✓ Comprehensive reporting suite

✓ Collaboration between all stakeholders

✓ And many many more…