Everyone knows that customer service is huge in retail and hospitality. It’s essential in the financial and healthcare realms too. But manufacturing? Yes, customer service matters in manufacturing.  It’s time all industries recognize the need to prepare and train their people for first-rate customer service via an established plan with a concentrated focus on servicing the consumer.  This age of transparency and social media calls for nothing less. That is . . . if long-term success is the goal. In today’s online, socially-connected world, customer service is more important than ever before. With how easy it is to post a review and the encouragement to interact about every little experience on social media, customers are now in the driver’s seat.

• “For the first time, customers are in control of the dialogue surrounding brands and companies more than the brands and companies themselves,” suggests Work Wise Software.
• “Manufacturing customer service departments used to be cost centers. They were tasked with handling tough issues when things went wrong — whether that meant communicating with an angry customer about a late shipment or dispatching a field technician to repair a broken machine,” notes Cindy Bolt.

  But times are changing. The manufacturing landscape has evolved considerably in the last decades. It’s not the same industry that employed your father and grandfather.

• “If you are in the manufacturing sector, you are witnessing the breakneck speed with which customer needs and demands can change. These changes are driving innovation within the industry. Nowadays it is critical for manufacturers to rethink their sales strategies and put customer satisfaction at the forefront,” notes the folks at Commercient.

  Customers across every sector—including manufacturing—don’t just hope for great customer service, they demand it. They expect swift, courteous service, or they won’t hesitate to take their business elsewhere. Remember the same internet that effortlessly spreads reviews of both the positive and negative variety, also provides an extremely efficient means of researching who else can provide the same type of service/product. Where in the past, a company or individual may have endured poor service due to limited options or the inability to find another manufacturing source to provide the needed product, that is seldom an in issue in today’s ever-expanding market. A study by White House Office of Consumer Affairs found that 80% of U.S. consumers would pay more for a product or service to ensure a superior customer experience. Customer service is just that important. If the fear of a disgruntled customer sharing his/her negative experience with the masses via social media keeps you up at night, good. Such a concern is more than valid and should be taken seriously. A scathing review can inflict lethal, long-term damage to a company’s reputation, requiring a lot of time, energy, and even money to clean-up. Even then, a hit in revenue often follows in short order. The flip side is that positive reviews and social media chatter can provide an enormous boost to both a mediocre reputation and a struggling bottom line. There’s no getting around it: the consumer’s opinion matters. That’s why excellent customer service is more crucial than ever. And what everyone seems to expect and equate with good service is the relationship factor. The way a company “connects” with them. How often and via what avenues the business communicates and reaches out. Make connections, build relationships, speak their language, and they will come - and stay. Put our commitment to customer service to work for you. At MPS Technical, our flexible staffing service and human resource management team specializes in the unique needs of precision manufacturing companies. We deliver customized, industry-specific, process, and culture-based Human Resource solutions every day – saving our clients both time and money. Give us a call today.