Are you fed up with the never-ending process of acquiring new customers, only to see them drop off after a call or two? Don’t worry, you’re not alone there. Many small businesses have difficulty keeping customers on the phone and know just how frustrating it is to put in the hard yards to bring in new customers only to see them slip away. But fear not, there are proven strategies you can learn and implement that will improve your small business phone calls and build long-lasting and profitable relationships with your customers. In this post, we’ll go over five of the top small business phone calls tips for keeping your customers on the phone, such as personalisation, active listening, offering value,  and prompt problem-solving. Even if you just apply one or two of these strategies, you will create more positive customer experiences and increase the chance that your customers will come back and keep calling your business. So, let’s get into it!

Use your customer’s name

Using your customer’s first name in conversation makes them feel like they matter and are being listened to. It sounds simple, and it is, but it is an extremely powerful tool for increasing customer engagement and overall customer satisfaction. Hearing your own name makes you feel as though the other person is truly engaged with you and makes you feel heard and appreciated. Using the customer’s name also creates a sense of friendliness and familiarity, which can help make the association in the customer’s mind that your brand is trustworthy. When customers feel like they are being heard and understood they are more likely to come out of the call with a good memory and positive attitude about your business and the products or services you offer.

Practice active listening

Active listening is when you focus your full attention on the customer and what they are saying. It is an essential skill for customer service representatives to have, as it helps to create a more positive and productive interaction with the caller. But, like most skills, it requires practice, as our mind can naturally drift to other things when in the middle of a call.

When you actively listen to a caller, you show that you are genuinely interested in what they have to say, and this can help to build trust and rapport. It also helps to ensure that you fully understand the caller’s needs and concerns, which can help you address them more effectively.

There are several strategies that can help you effectively practice active listening, including:

• Giving the caller your full attention and avoiding distractions
• Asking open-ended questions to encourage the caller to elaborate on their thoughts and feelings
• Repeating back or paraphrasing the caller’s statements to show that you understand

By actively listening to your customers, you can create a more engaging and productive interaction, which can help to keep them on the line and increase customer engagement. This is a

Address their concerns and complaints

When it comes to small business phone calls, dealing with customer concerns and complaints is an important aspect of customer service, and it is essential for businesses to address these issues promptly in order to maintain customer satisfaction and improve customer engagement. When customers have a problem or concern, they want to feel heard and that their issue is being taken seriously. If these issues are not addressed in a timely manner, customers may become frustrated and may be less likely to continue doing business with the company.

To keep your customers satisfied on the phone, it is important to monitor customer feedback channels such as social media, email, and phone lines to quickly identify and respond to customer concerns. Utilising automation tools like chatbots and virtual assistants can assist in triaging and escalating customer issues, ensuring they are handled by the appropriate team in a timely manner. When addressing a concern or complaint, apologise and offer a solution that addresses the customer’s needs to mitigate the negative impact of the issue and improve customer satisfaction.

If you follow these tips your customers are much more likely to be happy after the call and have a more positive impression of your company and its customer service. This will lead to longer customer retention, more positive reviews and less nasty ones, and a stream of new customers via positive word of mouth.

How to provide excellent customer service over the phone

The best way to improve small business phone calls by far is to provide excellent customer service. This is essential for businesses looking to improve customer engagement and build long-lasting relationships with their customers. Customers want to feel valued and supported, and providing top-notch customer service is one of the most effective ways to create a positive customer experience.

Here are some of the best ways you can up your customer service game over the phone and keep your customers happy.

Train customer service representatives 

Providing customer service representatives with the tools and training they need to effectively handle customer inquiries and concerns is essential for providing excellent customer service.

Make it easy for customers to contact you 

Customers should have multiple options for reaching out to your business, whether it be through phone, email, or social media.

Respond promptly

Customers expect timely responses to their inquiries and concerns, and it is important for businesses to respond as quickly as possible to maintain customer satisfaction.

Be empathetic 

Customers may be frustrated or upset when they reach out to your business, and it is important for customer service representatives to show empathy and understanding.

Resolve issues effectively 

When a customer has an issue, it is important to address it promptly and effectively in order to maintain customer satisfaction.

These are all tried and true methods for improving customer service over the phone and will drastically increase your customer engagement and overall satisfaction. That’s a win/win!

How to keep your customers engaged on the phone

Keeping customers engaged is an important aspect of call retention, as it helps to keep them interested in your business and encourages them to continue calling. There are several strategies that businesses can implement to keep customers engaged:

Offer personalised recommendations

By using customer data to make personalised recommendations, businesses can keep customers engaged and encourage them to continue exploring your offerings.

Encourage customer feedback 

Asking customers for feedback and actively listening to their suggestions can help to keep them engaged and show that you value their input.

Keep the conversation interesting 

By using engaging language and maintaining a friendly tone, businesses can keep customers interested in the conversation and encourage them to continue calling.

Offer value 

Providing value to customers through promotions, discounts, or useful information can help to keep them engaged and encourage them to continue doing business with your company.

If you follow these tips, your customers will be more engaged and less likely to give up on the call and leave your company a bad review. Instead, they will stay on the phone longer and have a long lasting positive impression of the call.

Wrapping up: Tips to improve small business phone calls

Improving customer engagement is crucial for small business phone calls as it can affect customer loyalty and overall revenue. To improve call retention, businesses should tailor the customer experience to individual needs and preferences to create a more personalised and engaging interaction. Active listening, fully focusing and understanding the customer, and showing that the customer is being heard can lead to a more productive and positive interaction. Addressing customer concerns and complaints promptly can maintain customer satisfaction and improve call retention. Providing excellent customer service by training customer service representatives and making it easy for customers to contact you can also create a positive customer experience and improve call retention. Additionally, keeping customers engaged by offering personalised recommendations, encouraging customer feedback, and providing value can encourage them to continue calling the business. By implementing any of these strategies, small businesses can expect to see better call retention and an increase in the number of satisfied customers that keep returning and referring new customers.

Conclusion and next steps

In conclusion, improving call retention is an important goal for businesses, as it can impact customer loyalty and overall revenue. By implementing strategies such as personalisation, active listening, addressing concerns promptly, providing excellent customer service, and keeping customers engaged, businesses can create a positive customer experience and encourage customers to continue calling.

Now that you have a better understanding of the strategies for improving call retention, it’s time to put them into action. Here are some next steps you can take:

• Assess your current call retention rate and identify areas for improvement.
• Train customer service representatives on the strategies for improving call retention.
• Monitor customer feedback channels and respond promptly to any concerns or complaints.
• Implement automation tools to help triage and escalate customer issues.
• Regularly review and assess the effectiveness of your call retention strategies and make adjustments as needed.

Improve Your Small Business Phone Calls Today With SpringCom!

Improving your small business phone calls starts with a great phone system backed by a support team that understands small business inside and out. Call SpringCom on 1300 857 194 and our small business phone experts will talk you through everything you need to know. As Australia’s leading small business phone system provider, SpringCom specialises in helping small businesses grow and succeed. Call SpringCom today and let us help you with all your business phone needs.