3 Bad Customer Service Examples and How To Avoid Them

When it comes to keeping shoppers happy through customer service, there’s little margin for error. If any of these bad customer examples occur, it could be problematic for long-term revenue. As Gladly found in our 2022 Customer Expectations Report, just two negative service experiences are enough to turn a customer away for life.

But what are some of these bad behaviors in support centers, and how can support managers stop them from happening? Luckily, real solutions exist that not only prevent these shortcomings but also improve service altogether.

3 Bad Customer Service Examples

These common issues are the root cause of almost every issue that arises between brand and shopper. When leaders are able to prepare their staff to identify and address these issues, they’ll give them the tools to develop stronger and more loyal customer relationships.

1. Having poor communication

What it looks like: Poor communication is a death sentence for any customer interaction and can take on numerous forms, such as:

• Agents being unable to address simple issues
• Less-equipped agents receiving difficult queries
• Impersonal and rushed conversations

Making it better: The secret to solving poor communication lies in creating a flexible, collaborative workplace for your support team. The more they can lean on one another and communicate with each other, the more that collaboration will spill over into the way they interact with customers.

This means sharing a strong knowledge base to tackle product issues, treating customers as individuals, and most importantly, accessing a system that pairs the best possible agent with customers who are facing unique situations.

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2. Making customers work too hard

What it looks like: Customers love to feel taken care of, but they also want to be able to take care of themselves. As a result, when customers have to deal with the following, they will feel frustrated:

• Having to repeat themselves multiple times
• Getting bounced around to several agents for a single answer
• Having to wait for an agent to address simple problems that should be solvable through self-service

Making it better: Typically, customer overexertion is a result of using a ticketed system. By switching to a support platform that takes a conversation-focused approach, important information won’t get lost, no matter which channel the shopper reaches out on.

In order for customers to solve their own issues through self-service, make sure your knowledge base is up-to-date and accessible. Update your self-service from a single source of information so answers are always consistent.

3. Misusing customer information

What it looks like: If you’re trying to strengthen connections with customers online, you’re likely using consumer data. But as third-party data becomes obsolete in the face of new regulations, ecommerce brands are figuring out how to collect their own first-party data. Shoppers won’t appreciate it if their personal information is taken or accessed inappropriately. Here are some potential instances:

• Using first-party data for excessive targeted ads
• Taking personalization to a creepy level
• Storing data incorrectly or unsafely

Making it better: Customer data and personalization go hand-in-hand, and are the key to creating long-lasting, loyal relationships. Store all information securely and only apply it in ways that the customer has agreed to. When data is secure, customers feel secure, and they’re far more likely to put their trust in you.

Tools for Rooting Out Bad Customer Service

With Gladly, these examples of bad customer service are a thing of the past. The platform combines the simple but effective power of a conversation-driven system with all the necessary yet secure touches of personalization.

When you’re able to nip these service issues in the bud through technology, you’ll boost your brand’s standing with customers and prevent unnecessary losses in revenue from angry customers. Good customer service is the key to having the opposite effect, as demonstrated by what Chubbies did with Gladly. In applying radical personalization across their support centers, they created strong consumer advocates that spread the word on their brand and created customers for life.

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