Do you feel like your Customer Service partners are just being reactive to situations that occur? The “Customer Service for Marketers” cheat sheet will help you frame your marketing impact in a way that Customer Service teams can understand and appreciate.
Introduction to the Cheat Sheet series
As a marketer, we spend a lot of our time thinking about the customer, the psychology, and the creativity of the campaigns, activations, and initiatives we produce. We’re like artists painting a Picasso or musicians scoring a Mozart. Sometimes, in the midst of our artistry, we forget the science of marketing. We forget to ask ourselves the burning questions that our partners (e.g. Finance, Product, Tech, etc.) like to know:
Why is marketing important? How do you know it’s working? Why should we care?
We used to be able to say “we trust our gut” or “it’s standard” but those days are gone. Now, we need data to support and validate our intuition.
As part of this Cheat Sheet series, we will breakdown some of the most important parts of our partner teams’ jobs and goals so marketers will have a better way of communicating our impact to them as well as be better business partners.
Customer Service
for Marketers
Role of Customer Service
Customer Service team’s remit is to provide support and assistance to customers who have questions or concerns about a company’s products or services [1]. They ensure that customers are satisfied and well-supported, and that their interactions with the company are positive and productive.
Meaning:
- Customer Service is a major touchpoint between your customers and your business (or organization). They may answer customer inquiries, provide information and advice, and resolve issues and complaints. Customer service teams may also be responsible for maintaining relationships with customers, providing ongoing support and assistance as needed, and gathering feedback and insights from customers to inform business decisions. Oftentimes, the interactions your customers have with Customer Service may turn them into your brand advocates or your biggest brand critics. For example, American Express (Amex) customer service teams are given a lot of authority to ensure customers’ issues are resolved quickly and happily. As a result, many customers who had negative interactions with Amex would become the biggest brand advocates after their interactions with Amex’s customer service.
- Customer Service cares to provide excellent service to their customers and ensuring that their needs and concerns are addressed in a timely and satisfactory manner. They also care about maintaining positive relationships with customers, as this can lead to increased customer loyalty and retention. Additionally, customer service teams may care about meeting or exceeding performance metrics such as average handle time, first call resolution rate, and net promoter score.
[1] Though the majority of the article is written through the lens of a business, this cheat sheet holds true for non-profit or for-profit organizations.
What does this mean for Marketers?
Marketers and customer service teams have a unique relationship in the world of business. While both departments are focused on providing value to customers, they approach their tasks in different ways. As a result, it is important for marketers to understand the role of customer service teams and how they can work together effectively.
- Share information and insights. Customer service teams have direct contact with customers and are able to gather valuable feedback and insights on their experiences with the company. This information can be extremely valuable for marketers, as it can provide insights into customer preferences, behaviors, and expectations. By sharing this information with the customer service team, marketers can better understand the needs and desires of their customers, and tailor their marketing efforts accordingly.
- Collaborate on messaging and branding. Both departments should be aligned on the key messages and themes that they want to promote to customers, in order to ensure a consistent and cohesive brand experience. For example, if the marketing team is promoting a new product, the customer service team should be aware of the key features and benefits of the product, so that they can effectively communicate this information to customers. By collaborating on messaging and branding, both teams can provide a more seamless and consistent experience for customers.
- Partner on crisis management. In the event of a crisis, such as a product recall or negative news story, it is essential for the company to respond quickly and effectively. The marketing and customer service teams should work together to develop a crisis management plan, and ensure that all stakeholders are informed and updated. The customer service team may be responsible for providing direct support to affected customers, while the marketing team may be responsible for managing public communications and messaging.
Vocabulary
- Average handle time – the average length of time it takes for a customer service representative to resolve a customer issue
- Customer service – the act of providing assistance or support to customers or clients
- Customer retention – the act of keeping a customer as a long-term, loyal user of a product or service
- Customer satisfaction – the degree to which a customer is happy with the service they received
- Escalation – the process of escalating a customer issue to a higher level of support or management
- First call resolution – the act of resolving a customer issue during the initial call or interaction with customer service
- Net promoter score (NPS) – a metric used to measure customer satisfaction and loyalty
- Resolution – the act of resolving or fixing a customer issue
- Ticket – a request or inquiry submitted by a customer or client
Key phrases
- “What insights and feedback have you gathered from customers?”
- “What trends and insights have you observed from working with customers?”
- “How can we improve our marketing materials to support your customer service efforts?”
- “Can you provide us with feedback on the effectiveness of our campaigns?”
- “What are the key challenges and obstacles that you are facing in the customer service process?”
Related questions
- “How can marketing and customer service work together to provide a better experience for customers?” Share information and insights, collaborate on messaging and branding, and work together on crisis management.
- “What are the key differences between marketing and customer service, and how can they complement each other?” Marketing focuses on promoting products and services, while customer service focuses on providing support and assistance to customers. Marketing can support customer service by providing compelling messaging and materials, while customer service can provide feedback and insights to inform marketing strategies.
- “How can marketing provide support and resources to the customer service team to help them resolve customer issues and concerns?” Provide training and support, create effective marketing materials, and provide access to customer feedback and data.
- “What metrics and data can be used to measure the effectiveness of marketing and customer service efforts?” Customer satisfaction, resolution rates, and net promoter scores.
- “How can marketing and customer service teams collaborate to develop and implement effective strategies and tactics?” Communicate regularly, share information and insights, and work together to identify and pursue opportunities.
