What is Customer Support?

Companies have pivoted from transaction-based selling to customer relationship and brand loyalty-building initiatives to differentiate and compete in today’s marketplace and to provide a superior customer experience. A Gartner survey backs this up, indicating that 81% of companies now expect to compete based on the customer experience. In addition to personalizing touchpoints throughout the buyer’s journey, optimizing the post-sale customer experience with quality customer support has become integral to success for many businesses.

Whether you’re evaluating adding customer support or assessing your current customer support model, this guide offers insights and examples. Here, we’ll describe ways to build and provide the best customer support. We’ll answer the following questions:

What is customer support?

The customer support function supports a company’s products or services. Responsibilities typically include troubleshooting and assisting customers with installation, training, maintenance, and product or service upgrades. Think of it as a blend of technical support and customer care to provide the best customer experience, boost customer satisfaction and brand reputation, and create future opportunities to upsell, cross-sell, and drive long-term return on investment (ROI).

In addition to the functions mentioned, customer support’s objective is to listen to general customer concerns and address company questions, acting as a sounding board and vital customer touchpoint for information and assistance. Here are the top three objectives of customer support:

  • Address company questions. It’s not uncommon for customers to ask questions about company policies and services. For example, a customer who purchased a camera from your online store may ask if you provide expert assistance as they determine which lenses they need. Or a customer may inquire about specific product warranty details and the scenarios when it will apply and won’t apply.
  • Listen to concerns. When customers voice their concerns, the key is to listen actively and, if possible, create an action plan. Let’s say a new standard software feature is added to an application that a customer doesn’t want to use and can’t seem to get around. A customer support agent will listen and empathize, strive to understand the exact problem and try to find a solution.
  • Provide actionable responses to product and service problems. Customers often contact customer support seeking problem resolution. When customer support can’t resolve the issue, they can work closely with other departments to determine if there’s a solution, essentially acting as a customer advocate.

Customer support vs. customer service

Customer service provides an overall service to customers, whereas customer support teams specifically support a company’s products or services. Suppose you download a software product, yet you don’t know how to use it despite reading the instructions. In this example, a customer service agent might send you a link to an instruction video or transfer you to customer support. A customer support agent can take it further by talking you through the steps on the phone or via a live chat.

Types of customer support businesses can provide

The methods and interfaces used for customer support vary based on an assortment of factors, including the type of products or services your company offers, your customer support budget, and service level expectations established during the sales and marketing process. Due to the importance of providing a superior customer experience, many companies use an omnichannel support strategy, combining two or more of the methods highlighted below.

In-person

In-person customer support is typically tied to hardware installation, service agreements such as Best Buy’s Geek Squad, or troubleshooting when online support is insufficient. Although it’s an expensive form of customer support, it provides a high-touch, ultra-personalized customer experience that competitors may not offer. Plus, it’s an opportunity to build rapport and strong customer relationships.

Phone

Phone calls offer a personalized customer experience that most online-only options can’t rival, and it can be the quickest way to resolve a customer support issue. Downsides include possible long wait times in the queue for a customer support agent and potential language hurdles.

Email

Email remains a tried-and-true customer support method. A 2019 Forrester survey indicates that 54% of customers used email channels to interface with customer support and service agents. However, response time can be an issue, with most customers indicating they want a response in an hour or less.

Online live chat

This option is growing in popularity for good reason. Unlike email, customers interact with a support agent in near real-time or real-time. Using a remote workforce worldwide, companies can offer live chat support 24/7/365 if desired, and with chats, language barriers can be less of an issue than with voice phone calls.

Website chatbots

Chatbots using AI (artificial intelligence) is a promising, cost-effective solution that minimizes expenses, but many customers find them frustrating. Forrester indicates that 54% of U.S. online consumers believe interacting with a chatbot will hurt their quality of life. If you decide to implement a chatbot, it’s wise to include options where customers can choose to exit the bot and go to a live chat or talk to an agent.

Social media

Social media platforms such as Facebook are another option for a near-instant chat and personalized service. If you decide to offer customer support directly through social media channels versus directing customers to a website chat, make sure it’s tied into your customer support benchmarking and reporting tools and is included in your CRM strategy.

Support and resource center

Some customers enjoy do-it-yourself troubleshooting and problem-solving. Online support tools such as how-to articles, tutorials, FAQs (frequently asked questions), and instruction videos enhance customer support endeavors and minimize overhead costs. Still, items such as these are typically supplemented with email, live chat, or phone support.

The makeup of a customer support team

When developing a customer support strategy, you’ll be forming a team that consists of several roles, depending on the products or services offered. Representatives typically report directly to a customer support manager or supervisor, while specialists and engineers are likely to be dotted line reports with specific shared KPIs (key performance indicators).

  • Manager: The manager leads and motivates the customer support team, defines goals and objectives, performs team member evaluations, and helps ensure that customers have a positive, quality experience when they use customer support. And with more customer support agents working remotely, managers are responsible for keeping their team connected, motivated, productive, and communicative, often using specialized tools for remote teams to help accomplish this.
  • Representative: Customer support agents are often your first-line interface with customers. If they can’t resolve a problem or answer a question directly, they’ll determine who can, such as a specialist, and guide the customer appropriately.
  • Specialist: Specialists are responsible for handling questions and resolving specific types of problems. For instance, a software installation specialist will work with customers to help them overcome installation issues.
  • Engineer: Engineers work with specialists and agents to resolve technical issues such as software bugs, problems with hardware, upgrades, and feature changes. Let’s say a customer support agent can’t figure out if a customer’s problem is due to a hardware or software issue. The agent will interact with an engineer, who will help identify the cause and then work with appropriate internal parties for resolution.
  • Success manager: Success managers are key players in customer lifecycle management. They’re responsible for developing customer relationships that promote retention and loyalty, ensure customers are satisfied with the services they receive and improve upon areas of dissatisfaction.

The 6 pillars of customer support

Everyone knows problems occur once in a while. How you handle them can make or break your company. Below are six pillars and qualities that set exceptional customer support apart from good customer support.

Prevention

The old saying “prevention is the best medicine” applies to the customer experience. Preventing issues from arising in the first place should always be a goal. By reviewing customers’ questions, problems, and concerns, support teams can detect and report patterns and common issues, enabling companies to take proactive measures to address the cause.

Proactivity

When possible, solve customer problems before they know they have one. For example, suppose support agents notice a hardware problem customers are starting to report. A customer calls customer support to ask an unrelated question, and the agent sees the customer is using the hardware with the problem. In that case, the agent can proactively tell the customer about the potential problem and transfer them to someone who can resolve the issue.

Convenience

Customers expect support to be accessible and responsive. Multichannel customer support offers convenient options, enabling customers to choose how and when they contact and interface with your company. For instance, if the customer is in a noisy location or riding mass transit, suggesting the use of a live chat instead of a phone call would provide a better customer experience.

Speed

Given our on-demand culture, it’s no secret that consumers and business customers alike expect swift responses and solutions. Once again, multichannel customer support can address speed issues. For example, customers wanting a quick response can opt to use 24/7 live online chat versus slower email support or phone support that may not be available around the clock.

Personal

Individualized attention can forge an emotional connection and build a stronger customer relationship. Although customer support agents use a general template when interfacing with customers, reading from a script appears impersonal and contrived. Customer conversations should feel and sound natural.

Delivery

Setting realistic customer expectations and then delivering on what was promised is imperative to building trust and brand loyalty.

Short- and long-term benefits of good customer support

Delivering excellent customer support has immediate advantages and provides benefits over time, making it a vital component of your business strategy.

Short-term benefits

Solving problems and answering questions promptly leads to higher customer satisfaction. While this value is evident, there’s also an intrinsic one. When users contact customer support, they become more familiar with your product or service and company. Generally, customers tend to prefer buying from a company they’re familiar with.

Long-term benefits

Every positive interaction with a customer builds loyalty and trust, ultimately resulting in repeat business.

  • Brand association and trust: Your brand is foundational, signifying what customers can expect when buying your products or services. Excellent customer support is part of brand relationship-building that instills trust and ultimately impacts purchase decisions. Survey findings support the idea that if businesses don’t establish trust with their customers, they will lose to those who can.
  • Brand referral: Happy customers are likely to refer your products or services to friends, family, and colleagues. They’ll write positive online reviews and recommend your brand on social media platforms and become brand ambassadors that help sell your products or services to others for you.

Examples of companies that provide good customer support

Companies known for their superior customer support cover a wide range of industries. Consider the following examples of brands with legendary customer support when working on your customer support strategy.

Nordstrom – Retail

Nordstrom has focused on providing exemplary customer support since it was founded in 1901. Here’s an example that highlights the depth of Nordstrom’s dedication to extraordinary customer support. A customer lost a diamond from a ring while trying on clothes at Nordstrom. She called the store, told them what occurred earlier that day, and asked them to look for it. Hours were spent searching. When most stores may have given up, the Nordstrom team had faith in their customer’s conviction that she lost it at the store and kept searching until the diamond was found and returned.

Amazon – Online

Amazon is one of the most successful, talked about companies worldwide. From the outset, the online digital marketplace giant focused on creating a positive customer experience, being committed to a customer-centric culture, and becoming a relentless advocate for customers. For example, anyone who has ordered merchandise online knows that returns can be a hassle. Amazon makes it easier, often including a prepaid, printed return label or making return labels easily accessible through its online returns portal.

Ritz-Carlton – Hospitality

Ritz-Carlton hotels are synonymous with quality, luxury, and outstanding customer support. Committed to turning customer disappointments into a positive experience, Ritz empowers their employees at all levels to spend up to $2000 per guest, per incident. This conveys a message to customers that the Ritz brand values them and their Ritz experience over money.

Mailchimp – SaaS

Mailchimp is a cloud-based marketing automation platform that uses customer support to stand out among other SaaS (software as a service) businesses. One way is via their customer support options, including free email support and an extensive resource library of how-to articles and tutorials for every skill level, as well as premium customer support plans that provide email, live chat, and phone support.

Disney – Theme parks

Walt Disney Company creates “magical” customer experiences by optimizing everything a Disney customer might experience, including problems. For example, if a child buys a treat and drops it, Disney will replace the dessert free of charge. Tears gone, issue resolved.

How to provide the best customer support to your customers

Customer support can play a vital role in your business’s success, but what’s required to offer the best customer support? Answering questions and addressing problems satisfactorily promptly is needed, but what separates run-of-the-mill from excellent customer support involves knowledge and skills in the art of human interaction.

Be knowledgeable about the product or service

It’s impossible to provide adequate customer support without having the appropriate knowledge of the products or services being supported. Making sure you are familiar with the products and services is essential in providing great customer support. It’s OK to not have every answer. The key is to know when to get someone else involved that can provide one.

Listen to your customer

Listening skills are essential to good customer support. It not only helps agents understand customers’ needs but reduces the potential for miscommunication or misunderstanding. Agents should actively listen and make a conscious effort to hear the words a customer is saying and understand the complete message being communicated.

Speak with thought

Customer support agents should occasionally repeat what the customer has said to make sure they’re being attentive and to confirm understanding.

Be empathetic

Empathy fosters a meaningful, human interaction and is one of the best ways for support agents to show customers they genuinely care. It also helps customers move from a complaint-focused interaction to one that’s more positive and open. Examples of phrases that convey empathy to customers include, “I can understand how frustrating it is when…,” or “I realize how complicated it can be.”

Process and procedures

Documented processes and procedures lay out all the steps to be taken to provide quality customer support and help your customer support team tackle every issue promptly and with ease.

Promise and follow up

Customers expect support agents and the company to keep promises made. Customer support follow-up emails or calls after serving clients can further improve the customer experience and build stronger customer relationships.

Keep in mind that it’s essential to create an agent training program that establishes best practices and reinforces all of these skills.

How businesses are looking at the future of customer support

As businesses continue to focus on providing a positive customer experience, the customer support role will evolve and expand to support a more seamless approach.

Being always “on” for the end-user

Look for more companies to move to a distributed workforce based in different geographic locations to provide 24/7/365 “always-on” accessibility via live chat and phone calls. And as chatbot and AI technology continue to improve, you’ll see more businesses taking advantage of this technology or a hybrid chat solution that blends human and AI chat, to provide ever-present customer support while cutting costs.

Customer support paired with customer care

When a customer experiences a problem with a product or service, and it’s resolved, that’s a sign of good customer support, and it’s expected. When a business takes the time to follow up, thanking the customer for their purchase and offering something extra for their trouble, such as a retroactive discount, that’s customer care. Combining these functions keeps customers happy and engaged and creates more raving fans and loyal brand advocates that praise your brand on social media and generate referral business.

Conclusion and next steps

Customer support can be essential to the success of your business. If you don’t offer customer support, conduct a strategic review to determine how it can benefit your business. If you do, proactively evaluate your current customer support model and associated KPIs to determine if it’s working as planned or if modifications are required.

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