Grave Operational Errors That Aggravate Customer Churn & What To Do About Them
Customer Experience (CX), bolstered by customer service outsourcing, was always a major KPI for the retail space. However, in late 2018, retailers started shifting the spotlight to efficient transactions and low-touch experiences. And, while this increased the overall customer base, customer loyalty and NPS scores dropped.
In one instance, a leading online pharmacy’s NPS scores consistently dipped even after digitization. Upon analysis, the cause of slump was narrowed down to customer churn due to errors in operation.
Customer Churn — A Big Reason for Worry
Customer churn refers to the percentage of customers that sever their relationships with a business. With 88% of consumers choosing user reviews over description by companies, ignoring customer dropoff is not ‘best for business.’
Studies show that, on average, a 5% increase in customer retention rates can result in a 25% – 95% increase in profits. Companies also have a 60% – 70% chance of selling to existing customers than to new clients.
In terms of costs, acquiring new customers can be 25 times more expensive than retaining old ones. This places companies with high customer churn at a greater market disadvantage. On one hand, new customers are being acquired at expensive costs; on the other, old customers are leaving without realizing their complete Lifetime Values.
These statistics echo the need to identify customer’s pain points and analyze customer churn to help improve CX, build customer satisfaction, and grow profits.
Operational errors that aggravate customer churn
1. Forgoing an omnichannel retail strategy
With the new normal here to stay, the surge in digital transformation has led to a significant increase in the number of retail websites. Yet, in a world increasingly reliant on smartphones, this may not be enough. Websites can be glitchy on mobile browsers, leading to troublesome shopping experiences and subsequently, loss of business.
Solution
Since customers are progressively turning to e-commerce to purchase products, developing an omnichannel retail strategy makes retail more accessible, thereby increasing revenue and reducing customer dropoff. Creating apps and desktop-cum-mobile friendly websites also enables seamless use across devices for customers.
2. Unresponsive customer support
While most companies understand the importance of customer service, not all prioritize it. Why else would stories of long wait hours and unanswered support tickets prevail, to date? Many customer support experiences also prove to be unhelpful, and in some situations, misleading or uninformed too.
Solution
Opting to streamline all customer support to call center outsourcing companies has been proven cost-effective and time-efficient, making it highly beneficial for large and small businesses alike. Outsourcing customer service also removes the burden of hiring, training, and managing support staff off such retail businesses.
3. Untrained staff members
In large companies, it can become costly and inefficient to train each and every employee. However, it is important that all employees are equipped with company policies at their fingertips. Companies often take the easiest route, and opt to train staff members to redirect issues to specific teams that can solve each problem.
A prime example of this took place in 2018 when staff members of an American Airlines flight refused to allow a passenger to board her flight, stating size restrictions for an instrument she was carrying. The matter escalated quickly with police involvement as well. Eventually, it was found that the airline’s policies did not contain any rules against the instrument, and the whole situation could have been avoided.
Solution
Prioritizing proper training and mapping out different protocols for escalated situations can resolve issues smoothly. It can also be helpful to outsource or delegate this kind of customer support, in case the company has a large number of policies in place.
Leveraging Allsec
At Allsec, we understand that each brand has its own set of requirements, especially when looking to outsource customer service. For the online pharmacy, whose NPS scores dipped, an Allsec partnership improved their KPIs in minimum TAT. There was a 20% reduction in AHT and a 47% increase in the overall satisfaction scores. A hybrid work model was also set up where in-house agents and outsourced agents collaborated to improve customer experience.
With market-ready digital and e-commerce solutions, Allsec can cater to the complete customer lifecycle and ensure minimum customer churn through empathetic support. To know more, contact us.
