The Ultimate Guide to Customer Service for Small Business

Customer service is the assistance you provide your customers in their entire purchasing journey—starting from interest and inquiry all the way to purchase and after-sales. It consists of offering support by answering customers’ questions about your products and services, as well as extending help to them after purchase, including requests for refunds, exchanges, and any other concerns they may have.

Providing robust customer service should be a part of every business strategy because satisfied customers translate to more sales—which builds long-term relationships and results in repeat purchases or referrals to peers. In this article, we discuss the importance of customer service, its difference from customer support, who makes up your customer service team, and helpful tools you can use to facilitate an efficient customer service process.

Customer Service vs Customer Support

Customer service and customer support are often interchanged and it is easy to think the two terms are the same. However, while both customer service and customer support aim to increase customer retention rates, they each have their own purpose.

Customer service is an umbrella term and a more well-rounded, long-term approach to taking care of your customers by improving their overall customer experience. It is not simply logging a complaint or fixing a technical issue; rather, it is making sure you are adding value to their experience by going above and beyond giving them assistance.

Additionally, customer service may include giving your customers proactive advice on how they can make the most out of your products or services. It might look like onboarding new customers to make sure they get their return on investment (ROI) and providing them with a dedicated account manager. In some cases, it can also include upselling or cross-selling if you think your other products or services can help solve their pain points.

Meanwhile, customer support is a pillar of customer service and has a more reactive and transactional approach, rather than focusing on building long-term relationships with customers. Simply put, customer support is providing technical assistance to your customers whenever they encounter an issue with your product or service—and closing the case after reaching a resolution.

Below is a brief comparison between customer service vs customer support:

Why Is Customer Service Important for Small Businesses?

Customer service is one of the most essential aspects of running a business because your customers are the lifeblood of your company. Hence, providing top-notch service should always be a key consideration for any business owner. Below, we list some of the reasons why having a proper customer service process in place is essential to growing your small business.

Customer retention is easier than customer acquisition

Convincing people about the quality of your products and services takes ample time and effort. As you build relationships with potential customers, you need to exert constant effort, such as investing in advertising and marketing to prove why your products and services are worth their money.

Once you win customers over, it is crucial to take excellent care of them—and one of the most effective ways to do this is to provide constantly reliable customer service. Remember, working toward customer retention is critical because it’s easier to make people who are already familiar with your brand make repeat purchases than those who don’t.

Your happy customers are your most effective brand ambassadors

Satisfied customers are the ones most likely to recommend your products and services through word-of-mouth. They are also more likely to contribute to boosting your online reputation by leaving positive customer reviews. In fact, a significant 83% of customers are willing to give a referral or a recommendation after having a positive experience with a business.

Poor customer service is the fastest way to lose customers

The quality of your products and services is only half of the reason why customers pay for them. The other half depends on the quality of your customer service initiatives. In fact, 58% of customers have the tendency to switch to a different brand if they receive bad customer service from a company, and this is why providing robust assistance to them makes a direct impact on your sales performance.

Below are some interesting statistics on why providing good customer service is essential to your business:

Small Business Customer Service Do’s & Don’ts

The quality of customer service a person receives greatly contributes to their perception of your business as a whole—and you want this to be positive. While customer service is not rocket science, it does require soft skills and a lot of patience—just imagine dealing with dozens of customers every day with varying personalities. Below we share some tips on how to achieve quick wins when doing customer service, as well as things to avoid.

Here are some small business customer service do’s:

Do: Put yourself in your customers’ shoes

Every now and then, you will encounter a difficult customer, and while it may seem discouraging, the best way to understand their concerns is to put yourself in their situation. For example, a customer’s unruly behavior may be because they have repeatedly encountered the same issue from your products, but are not getting satisfactory resolutions. Putting yourself in their shoes encourages you to be more empathetic to their needs and requests.

Do: Make follow-ups accordingly

Try to make follow-up conversations with your customers after resolving their issues. It could be as simple as giving them a quick call to check whether they are still encountering the same technical issues or not. Doing so shows that your relationship with them is not transactional—it shows you are genuinely interested in helping them resolve their problems.

Do: Ask for feedback

After helping customers resolve their issues, one of the most effective ways to gauge their level of satisfaction is by asking them to answer a quick survey or feedback form. Through this, you can determine their level of happiness with the service that they received, as well as identify areas of weakness that need improvement.

Here are some customer service don’ts:

Don’t: Be slow to respond

Being fast in resolving issues is one way to win customers’ trust as it makes them feel valued. Ignoring them or taking too slow to get back to their requests will surely leave a bad impression. This is why logging all customer cases in a customer service tool is important, so no issue is overlooked, and you have visibility on a case’s status, duration, and actions taken so far.

Don’t: Overpromise

An invaluable skill in customer service is being able to manage your customers’ expectations. When providing solutions for their concerns or complaints, commit to something you can realistically deliver. For example, if you know a technical resolution will take days to complete, be upfront about the long waiting time and politely explain the reason behind it. Don’t over-promise a short turnaround time just because you’re scared to upset the customer.

Don’t: Treat customers as transactions

Your customers are your business’s most important asset, so it’s key to treat them as such. When you deal with customers, show them that you’re genuinely concerned and want to help them with their problems. This helps you build a long-term relationship with them and reduces the chance you will lose them to a competitor.

Your Small Business Customer Service Team

Members of your customer service team largely depend on the size of your business. For micro-businesses or startups, it could be a one-person team. However, for small to medium-sized organizations, it may include a few members with dedicated roles. Below are some of the most common members of a customer service team for small businesses:

Customer service agents

Customer service agents are your front liners and are usually the ones processing tickets, answering calls, or responding to emails. They are responsible for documenting cases and taking down notes, so that information is properly logged in to the system.

Customer service managers

Customer service managers or supervisors oversee a team of agents and are typically responsible for training them. They are also actively involved in monitoring their progress and performance. In some instances, when cases need to be escalated to a more senior person, managers or supervisors take on the coordination with customers and resolution of their issues.

Technical support agents

Technical support agents or specialists take on a more technical role when it comes to providing assistance to customers. Based on what your company offers, they could be your front-line agents and are knowledgeable about identifying, diagnosing, and troubleshooting the technical problems of your products or services.

Customer success manager

Customer success managers are responsible for establishing long-term relationships with customers by rolling out activities designed to nurture your relationship with your most important customers. For example, the customer success manager can design VIP customer loyalty programs or hold special onboarding sessions for clients who are paying a premium for your products.

Customer experience manager

Customer experience managers are in charge of overseeing your various customer service touchpoints and are constantly finding ways to improve your customers’ experience every time they interact with your brand. For example, a customer experience manager may recommend simplifying or shortening the process of the product exchange or refund process.

Customer Service Tools

Putting an effective customer service strategy in place includes identifying the communication channels your business will use to communicate with your customers. In the process of choosing which channels to use, consider the extensiveness of support you provide to your customers, the size of your customer service team, as well as your budget.

Visit our article on customer service software for more information about what these tools can do for your business and how they increase customer satisfaction.

Best Small Business Customer Service Providers

The best customer service software is able to centralize a business’ communication activities by providing an omnichannel platform for your team and customers to interact with each other. These may include live chat, chatbots, shared inboxes, an in-app phone, social media, and ticketing.

Below are our top picks for the best customer service software for small businesses:

Small Business Customer Service Software	Recommended Use Case	Starting Price*
	Best option for users wanting an all-in-one customer service management solution, including a help desk, live chat, email, and ticketing	Offers a free plan; paid plans start at $15 per user, per month
	Ideal for those who need customer service software natively integrated with a customer relationship management (CRM) system	$29 per user, per month
	Best for customer service teams that need artificial intelligence (AI) tools to boost agent productivity	Offers a free plan; paid plans start at $14 per user, per month
	Excellent choice for teams that need robust automation tools for streamlining customer service needs	$29 per user, per month
	Best for users who need to make voice-over- internet-protocol (VoIP) calls directly from the app	Offers a free plan; paid plans start at $63 per month for two users
	Great option for businesses that utilize social media as a key customer service platform	$25 per user, per month
	Solid choice for users who want tools to enrich their customer profiles to deliver highly-personalized support to their customers	$19 per user, per month
	Best for users who want simple and easy-to-use customer service software	Offers a free plan; paid plans start at $14 per user, per month

*Based on annual pricing

For a closer look at the features, strengths, and weaknesses of each provider mentioned above, read our guide to the best customer service software for small businesses.

Bottom Line

Customer service is a crucial part of your business strategy. Your products and services may attract your customers to your business, but it is the quality of your customer service that enables you to keep them. While customer service greatly varies based on your business size, it is important to get started by identifying team members and their roles, as well as using customer service tools that help you keep track of all customer queries.