In service, we encounter customers with very different problems. Nevertheless, the needs can generally be reduced to a number of common customer expectations that you must address in order to retain customers.
Especially in the service sector, it is difficult to keep customers enthusiastic about your offer. In the B2B environment, soft factors such as habits or emotional ties to a brand have very little influence on the customer's loyalty. Customer loyalty to the company. You can wow the customer one day and they will still drop you shortly afterwards in favor of your competitor.
That's why it's important to know the hard factors that will either make or break your offer. With the following list of general customer expectations, you can ask yourself: Do I have this point in mind and what am I doing to fulfill this requirement with my service department?
Customer expectation no. 1: Speed
If you ask customers what their most important Requirements for a service department In Germany, the speed of response is the top priority. This is often no different abroad. You need to give your customers the feeling that the gears are in motion and a solution is being worked on as soon as they first contact your department.
This also means having sufficient capacity and being able to be on site promptly. To do this, you need to have the service processes under control and be able to manage the various Roles in your after-sales department to cover. An effective Quality assurance You should think about your benefits in this context.
Customer expectation no. 2: Reliability
Customers don't want to play games and be surprised by small print. It is therefore necessary to communicate honestly and present the costs incurred transparently. Agreements and promises should be kept absolutely!
The need for reliability is not just a burden on the shoulder of the Service Managers. You can also use it to increase your own planning security. The distribution of Service contracts makes the provision of services more predictable for you and your customers and ensures a better estimate of the costs incurred. The trend towards product-as-a-service and Availability guarantees is strengthened by this need and can be an advantage for skillful After-Sales-strategists.
Customer expectation no. 3: Specialist knowledge
Nobody knows your products better than you do. This makes the difference between you as a premium supplier and the free riders who copy your technical concepts. You know your machines and are there when a problem arises.
This also includes ensuring that you have sufficient specialist staff and technicians and that your strategy in the area of Outsourcing does not cover essential parts of the service provision. You may also have to deal with products from suppliers in this context. In order to keep your employees up to date at all times, even in the event of staff changes, a successful Skill management be established.
With the help of Value Added Services such as Predictive maintenance and Condition monitoring on the other hand, you can surprise customers with your expertise and convince them of your offer in the long term. This offers great opportunities for clever service esperados!
Customer expectation no. 4: Customer orientation
Customers want to feel that their service is perceived and taken seriously. The development and promotion of Customer orientation and a designated Service mentality should be a high priority for a service manager. It is important to cultivate these principles in your own department and ensure that they are also communicated to the outside world. The entire Customer management and Complaints management of your company should be characterized by this aspect.
They must also offer the opportunity to get involved in the solution process and work towards solving the problem. After all, one of the main problems for disgruntled customers is the Feeling of loss of control We are aware of the pain we feel when a negotiated service or machine does not meet expectations. Listen to your customers and work with them!
Customer expectation no. 5: Availability
Customers want to be able to contact you immediately and at any time in the event of a problem. Ideally, you should address this need at an early stage by providing information on how to contact the service department when purchasing a product. In any case, you should show sufficient commitment to be visible to the outside world as a service department. For example, by placing your contact in a prominent position on the company website.
Availability also includes ease of use. It should be as easy as possible for customers to contact you. This is particularly important if you rely on technologies from the Self Service or Chatbots to fall back on. Interaction with the service must always be planned to be as clear and intuitive as possible for the customer.
