Conversing with customers is a natural, expected part of business. It’s easy enough to do when they are in the process of making a purchase. Outside of the sales transaction process, though, some customers find it difficult to get some businesses to respond to them when they reach out. That’s a problem if you’re one of those businesses because there are some pretty compelling reasons to have a fast response time.
Increase Customer Loyalty
Customers want businesses to treat them like they matter. After all, they are the reason you have a business. Now, that doesn’t mean that you have to do everything they want all the time, but if you want to have greater customer loyalty, responding to them in a timely manner when they reach out is a must. It shows that you care about what they have to say and that you’re willing to listen. When you help your customers feel good, they’ll start to associate that with your business and will be more likely to visit you again.
Stop Letting Leads Slip Away
Not everyone who reaches out is going to be a customer already. Some will likely be consumers who have questions about your business and what you offer. These leads can be highly valuable since you already know they have at least some level of interest in your goods and services. The problem is that you’ll lose those leads if you wait too long to respond. The likelihood of converting a lead after five minutes drops by 80 percent.
Addressing Problems More Rapidly
 Unfortunately, some of the messages you’re going to get are going to be complaints about your business, your employees, or their purchase. Some are going to be valid, while others will probably just be someone looking to troll you. When you are more responsive to these types of messages, it can give you insights into what you’re doing that is and isn’t working. When you notice trends, take steps to address the problem. Feel free to invite the customer back to show them the impact of their input.
If you’re one of those businesses that struggle to respond to customers who reach out to you, it’s time to reevaluate and improve your process. Improving your responsiveness to messages helps increase customer loyalty, reduces the leads that get away, and helps you address problems with your business in a more timely fashion. With all the benefits that you stand to gain, it’s not so much a question of whether or not you should be more responsive, but what the best way to improve your response time is for your business.
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