Putting The “Service” Back In “Customer Service”
By Sean Cohen

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The future of customer service is here. Technology has made seeking out support faster and easier than ever. But, has your digital age company sacrificed true service in the name of automation?

Today, finding customer support is as simple as writing an e-mail or picking up the phone. But, even though you’re not face-to-face with your customers, you still leave a lasting impression. Do you come across as caring and competent, or menacing and mechanical?

Offering stand-out service on the Internet isn’t as hard as it is rare. Take these simple steps towards old-style service in the digital age:

• Give Each Customer a Personal Response
• Be Clear, But Sincere
•  Offer Live Customer Support
•  Make Sure Your Support Reps Have All the Answers

Give Each Customer a Personal Response

When a customer sits down to e-mail your company, it’s because he needs help. He chooses e-mail because it’s quick, but his request still warrants a satisfying and personal response!Companies eager to save time and money often take automation too far in their customer support. Each customer has a unique question, and deserves a unique answer. Even if you save time by copying and pasting stock replies, change the opening and closing to make the message sound less robotic. Continue reading →

There are various autoresponder services available.  But before we get into listing each one, let’s define what an autoresponder is.

• An autoresponder automatically responds to anyone that sends mail to it. In other words, it’s a method of replying to an incoming e-mail instantly and automatically.   For example: Corporations use them specifically for “out of the office” notices. Like when you know you’re going to be out of the office for a day or a few days even weeks, you can set up your email so that whenever someone emails you, your autoresponder message automatically responds with a pre-formatted message that you set up specifically for this. Like, “hello and thank you for contacting me. I will be out of the office until… if you need emergency assistance please contact….
• You can also use autoresponders to send a series of messages to the person who originally sent an email to that specific autoresponder email address. For example, you may have a free ecourse for the visitors who come to your website. Once they subscribe to the autoresponder email address, they will receive a series of pre-written messages to them on any given date and time.  Autoresponders are highly used for newsletters and ezines.

I’ve compiled a list of autoresponders below:

1. Aweber (Risk Free 30 day Trial)
2. Constant Contact (Free 60 Day Trial)
3. EmailAces
4. GetResponse

Don’t be in a hurry, take your time looking through each resource.  While I highly recommend you incorporate an autoresponder system in your business, look closely at your marketing needs, such as will you also need a shopping cart, affiliate management solution and tracking tools?  If so, look out for the post on Shopping Carts soon.