While the priority is always getting the right answer for the customer, a close second goes to ensuring the answer is delivered as quickly as possible. A diligent, organized and hardworking team is second to none for exceeding customer expectations, but ensuring that team has the right strategy and tools to deliver it is equally as important.

When repeat customers are spending more and buying more often, it’s essential that your team is ensuring loyalty. We’ve compiled the top three actions that you can use to help your team get responses out faster than ever before — increasing the likelihood that customers will share and promote your business more widely, as well as continuing to come back for more.

1. Direct your team to clearly manage customer expectations

Making sure your customers know what to expect from your team is key when it comes to making sure they’re remaining loyal to your company. Establishing transparency from the beginning keeps them feeling valued and in the loop. 78% of customers have decided against a purchase because of a bad customer service experience, and unclear communication is a quick way to turn a good experience into a bad one.

• Unclear Communication: 53% of consumers say unclear communication is what keeps them from a good service experience
• What Customers Expect: 41% of consumers expect responses within 6 hours, only 36% of retailers can do that and 14% never respond at all

To help your team keep track of goals and communicate expectations about issue resolution time, try Atlassian Marketplace Jira Service Desk Extender Integration available here.

• Gives your team control of providing SLA information through a customer portal
• Helps your team gather more information about the customer to help manage expectations and answer questions within the customer portal

2. Give your team the tools to access the right answers- fast

To ensure your customer service representatives are answering questions as quickly as possible, it’s crucial that they know how to access answers for themselves so the turnaround time can be as quick as you can say “happy customer”.

• Speed as Most Important Factor: 75% of customers say fast response times are the most important factor in a good customer experience
• Slow Resolutions: Only 11% of companies are able to answer questions in full on the first reply
• Lack of Clarity: Customers say that customer service representatives failed to answer their questions 50% of the time

A great resource for your team is the Knowledge Base on Jira Service Desk. While the customer may not be able to find answers right away, this resource lets your customer service representatives find the answers they need before sending those off to customers seeking answers of their own.

Customers also can utilize these knowledge bases in a similar way — seeking out their own answers for quicker resolutions, and ones that may not even need the help of one of your team members. In fact, 40% of customers would rather use self-service knowledge bases than talk to a customer service representative.

However, only 53% of companies have knowledge base searches that customers view as effective. To establish taxonomy for clearer customer understanding, some tips for organizing the hierarchy to increase readability and full understanding are available here.

3. Encourage your team to utilize personalized communication

An easy way to make sure your customers are feeling taken care of and confident in your product is by making sure your team is gearing answers toward each individual. Personalized communication leads directly to a happy customer experience for 38% of people.

Personalized communication : 1-to-1 email and video for customer service that makes the customer feel like they are important to the company

• Knowing Who Customers Are: 89% of customers have experienced frustration over having to repeat their issue to multiple customer service representatives
• Treating Customers Well: 70% of a customer’s experience is based on how they feel they were treated

To help your team quickly personalize communication with customers, try Atlassian Marketplace Jira Service Desk HYFY Integration available here.

• Encourages personalized communication by promoting quick help on a first name basis
• Records high resolution videos from any window or webpage that answer customer’s specific questions
• Keeps the process to just a few steps — record, copy the link and share with the customer in a matter of minutes.

When your job revolves around making sure your team is responding effectively and quickly, there are a few ways to make sure this is happening. With these three tips, you’re sure to see not only shorter resolution times, but also happier (and consistently loyal) customers.