SMS and Customer Complaints

Customer complaints can be good for your business. By handeling them correctly you can use complaints to boost business. With this we do not mean that service excellence should not be a priority, we are simply saying that you can win over a complaining customer and turn him into one of your most loyal supporters.

The most dangerous of all customers is the one who is not happy with your service but does not say anything. They are more likely to rather tell other people about their unhappiness, instead of giving you an opportunity to remedy the situation. This can be disastrous for your business’ reputation.

By making it as easy as possible to hand in a complaint you can reduce your risk of being on the receiving end of negative word of mouth advertising.

The fact of the matter is that an unhappy customer does not want to be referred to another person, or given a telephone number or a website address where they can complain. They want a solution to be given on the spot.

For that reason training in conflict resolution and having clear guidelines as to what can and can not be done to resolve a complaint is very important, especially staff on grassroots level, who are the first to deal with your customers on a regular basis.

In the event of your staff member not being able to resolve a problem for a client, it is best to get them to take down the client’s contact details. This way you can be sure that the hand writing is legible and the client will be less likely to refuse the request to submit their details.

By using an SMS system, the staff member can then send an SMS letting their supervisor about the problem, without leaving the client alone. During this time, the staff member should go out of their way to be hospitable and courteous towards the client, in spite of the client’s behaviour and  state of mind.

Why use an SMS as a reporting method?

Chances of an a complaint getting lost in a mass of emails and other texting in popular texting apps is far greater than it getting lost via SMS, for the simple reason that we receive fewer SMS messages than other messages.

By receiving the SMS immediately, the supervisor can either attend to the matter personally or give an instruction to the staff member, thus increasing the chances of resolving the client’s problem as soon as possible.

In the event that it will take time to resolve the issue, regular updates can be sent to the client using an automated SMS system. Every resolved issue can be followed up with a short survey measuring the client’s satisfaction with the manner in which their complaint was resolved. One could also consider including a discount code in the SMS, increasing the chance that the client will return to use your services again, giving your business the opportunity to change their perception of your business by ensuring that they experience no further problems.

By embracing complaints for customers and by giving consistent and regular feedback you can alter a client’s experience and their perception of your business. A bulk SMS system is one of the most cost effective ways to achieve this.

How to get started?

The first step would be to register for a FREE ClickSMS account and to have your account verified. After that, we can communicate with your website developer and supply the necessary API information to them so that they can integrate the SMS system into your online shop. As an added bonus we will double your credits on your first purchase, so please ask our sales team about that offer.

ClickSMS offers a free SMS marketing course. You can sign up here for this course and get started on undersanding SMS Marketing better