After-sales service: Strategies to keep field service customers engaged

Field service businesses flourish when they take care of customers after the job is done. But how can you make after-sales service easy?

Field service businesses naturally focus on completing jobs on time – that’s kind of the point. Yet it’s easy to lose track of what happens to customers after the work is done. While getting new contracts is important, it’s also crucial to continue to nurture existing customers. 

You have to put in the work, and follow up with stellar post-job service that delights customers and keeps them coming back. 

But, how do you maintain a high customer engagement rate in the later stages of the buyer journey, once the job is done?

In this article, we’ll explore the key ways you can leave a positive impression on your clients and keep them coming back for more. 

🏆Bonus: Plus, we’ll share how job management software can simplify the entire process.

KEEP FIELD SERVICE CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT HIGH ONCE THE WORK IS DONE

But first, let’s put things into perspective. The truth is, 89% of companies see customer experience as a critical factor in driving customer loyalty and retention. 

Therefore, learning how to delight your clients — even once the work is complete — is essential. 

Here are our top three tips on keeping engagement high in the latest stages of the buyer journey:

1. SEND A CUSTOMER SATISFACTION SURVEY

Did you know, companies that measure customer satisfaction are 33% more likely to describe themselves as successful than those that don’t? 

By collecting customer satisfaction data, not only allows you to check whether people are happy with the work your technicians carried out, but it also enables you to address problem areas and improve your CX. 

💡Pro tip: With modern field service management technology, it’s easier than ever to collect customer feedback. Once your technicians have completed their jobs, the system will automatically send a company-branded satisfaction survey to your clients.

Our platform has the ability to collect all the data and allows you to see your Net Promoter Score (NPS), which indicates how willing your customers would be to recommend your services to others. 

You can then break your customer base down into three categories:

• DETRACTORS: Detractors will usually provide an overall satisfaction score of six or lower. The chances of these customers using your business again are incredibly slim, and they may even dissuade others from purchasing your services.
• PASSIVES: Passive customer scores of around seven or eight indicate that they were happy with the service but aren’t necessarily loyal to your company. They wouldn’t think twice about switching to a competitor if they had a better offering.
• PROMOTERS: A score of 9 or 10 typically means that these customers are promoters of your organisation. They were delighted with the outcome of the work and would actively recommend your services to others.

Collecting key metrics, such as customer satisfaction, enables you to see what you’re doing well and where there is room for improvement. Over time, you’ll be able to enhance your services and, in turn, your NPS.

2. MAINTAIN REGULAR COMMUNICATION

Once you have a pulse on how your customers feel about you, it’s important to stay top of mind. 

Email marketing is one of the most effective ways to do this. In fact, 80% of small-to-medium-sized businesses rely on email as their primary customer retention channel. 

Luckily, setting up regular email communications with your customers needn’t be a headache with the right job management software in place. With BigChange for example, you can use custom-branded templates to send automated emails to your client base. Plus, by using the built-in, dynamic data fields, you can pull the customers’ names directly from the CRM (customer relationship manager) for a personal touch that will make them feel valued.

Maintaining communication with your clients, even after their projects are complete, is a great way to remind them of your existence and increases the likelihood that they’ll think of your business next time they require field services.

3. LEAVE A LASTING IMPRESSION

Finally, it’s essential to leave a good and long-lasting impression. 

According to Gartner, more than two-thirds of companies now compete primarily based on customer experience. Consequently, you will need to make CX a priority to stay competitive and retain customers.

With job management software, you can deliver seamless, convenient services to your customers that will leave a lasting impression and encourage brand loyalty. 

For example, a platform like BigChange provides:

• Easy, online bookings: no more waiting on the phone to speak to a representative
• Allocation of stock and equipment to jobs: ensure your technicians arrive at the job with the gear they need to complete the work the first time
• Real-time status updates: allow your customers to track the location of their technician
• Instant, digital documents: your technicians can send invoices and essential documents to your clients in seconds for same-day payment
• Modern payment methods: enable your customers to pay using the methods they’re accustomed to — gone are the days of paper cheques

All this provides a smooth end-to-end process and excellent customer service, making you stand out from competitors that rely on outdated, manual processes. As such, you’ll increase the likelihood that clients will remain engaged with your business long after the work is complete.

IMPROVE YOUR FIELD SERVICE CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT RATES BY USING TECHNOLOGY

According to our latest data, 40% of field service organisations have enjoyed business growth due to adopting state-of-the-art technologies to manage their operations. 

Subsequently, companies will need to modernise their processes and undergo a digital transformation to maintain a high customer engagement rate and thrive in a competitive, post-pandemic landscape.

With job management software, you can digitise a large portion of the customer experience, making for a convenient, straightforward and excellent buyer journey that won’t add extra administration tasks to your team’s workload. It’s a win-win scenario.

ELEVATE YOUR CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT RATE

A dependable field service process is cyclical. You’re not done with a client once the work is done: the cycle simply starts over again. 

Set your team up for success by ensuring they have the right support and the best tools to engage customers before, during, and after the job is done.

Keep customers happy for many years to come: BigChange’s field service management system gives you a 360˚ view of every account, contact site and contract. Deliver positive customer experiences at every level thanks to an array of dynamic product features.

Find out how BigChange can help your business, book a free consultation today. Get more helpful guides and tips delivered to your inbox by subscribing to our newsletter below. You can keep up to date with BigChange on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.