Is Customer Service training a Worthwhile Investment?
As Timothy R. Clark said, “Highly engaged employees make the customer experience. Disengaged employees break it.” Customer service training enable a company to create engaged and hardworking employee who will be great for their business return. So, it’s an investment with high ROI. In fact, according to Axonify, 93% of employees said that well-planned employee training programs positively affect their level of engagement.
Businesses invest money in many areas including developing products, manufacturing, advertising, and so on however they often overlook the importance of investing in training their employees to provide good customer service. Investing in customer service is an investment in employees. Taking the time to hire the right people and train them to deliver a good customer experience takes money, but just like any other business investment, it will pay off well. A shift learning survey shows that, 40% of employees who receive poor training leave their position within the first year.
So, if you are sceptical about the investment, here are some reasons to why your employees must undergo training before interacting with customers.
1. Happy employees make happy customers.
Training sessions provides a good opportunity for employees to voice their concerns and recommend improvement in the service experience of customers. In fact, 90% employees acknowledge that high-quality data is integral to improving learning delivery in their organization. When you provide training to your employees, you Keeping employee keep them engaged which boosts motivation and job satisfaction. If your employees feel that they are learning and constantly upgrading their skills, they are likely to stay motivated and give their best to their job.
2. Skill building and learning.
According to Lorman, to remain employed, 74% of workers are eager to learn new skills or retrain. Training can yield impactful results in terms of enhanced personal performance. Employees are exposed to new and emerging customer service trends, in addition to complex customer problems, they also learn how to navigate through them using real case studies. It helps them develop better problem-solving abilities and also teaches how to manage human relations more effectively. In fact, according to Finance online, 68%of employees would rather learn within the workplace. There are plenty training activities, like games can help encourage teamwork and putting aside all personal differences to achieve a common goal.
3. Better customer retention.
Training helps employee to work well. In fact, customer service training enables employees to attend to each customer for their concerns which in turn increases the chances of a customer sticking around for longer. A single good experience with a brand is enough for a customer to develop loyalty. According to Microsoft Dynamics 365, 95 percent of consumers say that customer service is important for brand loyalty. The training activities focus on developing a customer-centric philosophy which goes a long way to deliver and improve the overall experience for customers.
4. Lower Employee attrition.
High turnover is problematic for any business as it adds to the cost of re-hiring and it proves damaging to not only the outlook of the company but its service quality as well. Therefore, providing adequate training and upgrading the skills of employees is likely to encourage them to stay with the company since it indicates a potential for personal growth and development. In fact, according to LinkedIn Learning, 94% of employees say they would stay at a company longer if it invested in their learning and development. When your new employees are constantly inducted and trained, it will impact the company’s ability to maintain the same customer service standards which every customer appreciates.
5. Customer service role model.
If you expect your employees to treat your customers with the 5 principles of competence, compassion, empathy, good listening skills, and respect, you must model those behaviours in the way you treat your staff. Your employee won’t listen to you if they don’t see that you follow the same principles. Therefore, employee training can help your organization become an example for your employees and others as well. In fact, lorman suggests that 76% of employees say that a company would be more appealing if it offered additional skills training to its staff. A company who believes in taking care of their employees and helping them to become better is loved by many. Customers of today see values of a company for than anything, if they see you work with principles, they will trust you and do business with you.
As Henry Ford said, the only thing worse than training your employees and having them leave is not training them and having them stay. So, include training in your business and see that improvement through your own eyes. An investment in employees through training and support is a smart business practice that will pay off. Happy employees create happy customers and happy customers come back. What else does a business need?