How to Develop a Customer Service Culture in Your Company or Team

Your customer service culture is more than just a promise or statement in your handbook. It’s the set of beliefs and values that guide every your employee in their actions towards customers. Even companies of two people have a culture, and it isn’t something you can directly build. It’s something that develops organically.

While some companies may have profit-driven or growth-driven cultures, a strong customer service culture can still exist. It’s not just about individual interactions but shapes the entire attitude of the company, leading to different decisions and outcomes in the long term.

What does a customer service culture look like?

Watch the hands:

1. You have the team responsible for customer service highly regarded and appreciated.
2. Business decisions prioritize the impact on customers.
3. All members of the organization, even those who are not customer-facing, possess an accurate comprehension of the customer’s identity and priorities.
4. Customer service is integrated into the company’s strategic vision.
5. The company has a clear and agreed-upon definition of both “good customer service” and “bad customer service.”

What can I do to instill in my team a customer service culture?

Hire the right people:

Those who possess the right attitude, behavior, decision-making ability, and responsiveness. Seek out individuals who are service-oriented across all departments, and they’ll help you stay on course.

Remove individuals who aren’t fitting in:

Those who mistreat people or disregard customer feedback can undermine a customer service culture. Do not allow them to negatively influence the rest of the team and ruin your reputation.

Listen to your customers.

And here are some ways:

• Customer feedback surveys;
• Email feedback;
• Usability tests;
• Exploratory customer interviews;
• Social media;
• Instant feedback from your website (statistic).

Get everyone talking about customers:

Find ways to expose the rest of your company to real customers. Consider bringing a customer into a town hall meeting or sharing a customer story in your internal newsletter. The more your team understands your customers and their needs, the easier it will be to create a culture of excellent customer service.

Marketing, sales, and product functions - 3 elephants on which customer service basis.

The metrics used to measure success should have a clear focus on the customer, and the leaders in charge should genuinely care about enhancing the customer experience.

Prioritize serving your employees first:

Demonstrating a service-oriented attitude towards your staff creates a positive example that they are likely to follow with their own teams, ultimately benefiting your customers. The tone you establish sets the precedent for their behavior.

And the most important one…

Companies often start with a strong focus on customer satisfaction but may lose it as they grow. Maintaining a customer-centric culture requires ongoing effort and dedication. So, every month, quartal, half a year, year keep asking yourselves “Do I still stick to the customer service culture”

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