The shopping experience is vital for buyers. A recent study found that 55% of consumers would be willing to pay more for a better client service experience. Thus, it all begins with understanding your client's emotions to encourage their engagement.
Tom French, Managing Director at McKinsey, stated: "The extent of client engagement with a company is determined by the growing number of interactions carried out through additional service centers. The main obstacle to capitalizing on the potential value of such a transformation is organizational barriers.
Let's explore how your company can improve client engagement through emotional intelligence.
How Can Emotional Intelligence Be Applied in Client Service?
Gallup's research has uncovered a vital link between client satisfaction and future business prosperity. Sales transactions hinge on the emotional rapport between buyers and sales representatives. Indeed, clients' fondness for sales reps boosts purchase likelihood by 12 times compared to others.
So, what precisely is emotional intelligence? It's the capacity to recognize and comprehend both your own emotions and those of others. Emotional intelligence encompasses five fundamental elements: self-awareness, motivation, empathy, social skills, and self-regulation.
This combination of individual traits helps individuals manage their emotions while interacting with others. For example, a client support representative with strong social skills considers the language used with clients, avoiding offensive or condescending phrases and instead employing positive expressions and a tone that reflects the understanding of the client's problem.
Emotional intelligence is crucial for understanding how to enhance client service effectively. It improves your communication with shoppers by considering their habits and lifestyles. PeopleMetrics has found that an emotionally intelligent client service representative actively seeks products or services that best fit the clients’ needs rather than imposing items on them or dictating what they should purchase, which could result in client dissatisfaction.
From this, we understand that emotional intelligence means adopting a different perspective on how your company engages with clients. This likely involves setting aside biases towards your brand and prioritizing clients' needs.
Why Is It Essential To Provide Training For Employees In Emotional Intelligence Skills When Interacting With Clients?
While some skills may appear innate, you must train your employees comprehensively in emotional intelligence. This ensures they're well-equipped to understand every aspect concerning your clients.
Favor Larson, a consulting expert in service at TTI Success Insights, emphasizes: 'Training client service staff in emotional intelligence skills enables them to develop the necessary abilities and knowledge for a better understanding of clients. They learn how to manage client expectations effectively and ultimately meet their needs.
This kind of training may include delivering presentations to review different client scenarios, like how to handle an angry client or providing valuable information to a time-constrained client.
Also, consider providing training to help support staff manage their emotions. Lead by example by taking a five-minute break after dealing with a frustrated customer, and demonstrate how to make better decisions by listening to colleagues and learning from past customer experiences. If implemented correctly, practicing emotional intelligence can have a positive impact on the final outcome.
L’Oreal found that sales agents hired for their high emotional intelligence sold an average of $91,000 more annually than those chosen through traditional recruitment methods. Moreover, turnover rates for sales representatives with high emotional intelligence were 63% lower during their first year of employment. Thus, incorporating emotional intelligence into your hiring process can revolutionize your business practices.
Client Engagement
Now is the time to put your knowledge of emotional intelligence into action. Your goal is to increase client engagement, which takes various forms such as email messages, chat sessions, and in-store experiences. All these interactions shape how clients feel about your company. Therefore, you must strive to build relationships with clients that extend beyond the point of purchase. You need to learn more about the shopper, such as their online activities, values, challenges, etc.
Joshua Freedman, CEO of Six Seconds, emphasizes: "For today's leaders to be effective, they must connect with people personally and understand their clients’ motivations. This level of 'connection' requires high emotional intelligence, particularly empathy: the ability to understand and engage with others' emotions."
Stay ahead in client engagement by offering compelling experiences that clients would be eager to share with their friends. For example, gather their success stories for case studies or invite user-generated content illustrating their love for your products. By encouraging client participation, you give them a sense of ownership in your brand, and how you handle this interaction will determine whether it's a positive experience or not.
Earning Client Loyalty
Experts reveal that 83% of consumers consider trust the key driver of their brand loyalty. Emotional intelligence and engagement can foster customer loyalty, representing the peak of customer interaction with a company. This can result in retaining more clients and boosting revenue.
Mona Channet, a contributing writer at Capgemini consultancy, asserts: "In the end, client engagement bolsters your organization's profit margins, stock prices, and return on investment. To fully engage clients, you must offer an exceptional purchasing experience that revolves not only around product variety but also around a product that enables clients to build an emotional connection."
Accordingly, analyze buyer personas to discern their motivations, pinpoint what drives them to take action, and identify incentives that resonate with them.
Switch, a skateboard deck manufacturer, fosters client engagement through a loyalty program. Recognizing that clients value product reviews before purchasing, the company rewards those who write reviews with loyalty points, which can be redeemed for additional products.
Moreover, contemplate ways to involve consumers in your brand, such as actively listening to and responding to their feedback, or reaching out to each customer individually to express your appreciation.
Aim to enhance your return on investment and prioritize building client loyalty.
Take Advantage Of Emotional Intelligence
Your clients aren't robots; their emotions significantly impact their purchasing decisions. Therefore, work with your team to delve into emotional intelligence and prioritize enhancing communication between employees and consumers.
Subsequently, train employees to resolve conflicts swiftly, stress the importance of showing empathy towards clients, and persistently monitor client interactions to maintain higher retention rates.
Be emotionally intelligent and captivate your clients.
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