3 Reasons Why Happy Employees are Key to Happy Customers

Have you ever heard this traditional Chinese proverb? "A man without a smiling face must not open a shop." Perhaps you’ve heard of a more common phrase, happy employees = happy customers. Want to know why they’re so important? They’re both true. Happy customer service representatives really are the key to happy customers.

A study from BI Worldwide found that of the 8 per cent of American workers who said they “strongly disagree” that they are happy with their current jobs, around 55 percent agree or strongly agree they are “willing to work especially hard for my organization’s customers.” That proportion, however, surged to 87 percent among those who are happiest with their jobs. 

This means there is a statistically significant connection between happiness and customer focus, and improved customer focus makes for better customer service (something outsourced call centers strive to do on a daily basis).

In fact, a further report from Gallup, titled ‘The State of the American Workplace’, found that employees who are engaged are more likely to improve customer relationships, with a resulting 20 per cent increase in sales.

The same survey, however, found that just 33 percent of employees are engaged at work - so outsourcing your customer service to a contact centre that’s renowned for their employees, such as Advantage Communications, could significantly benefit your overall customer service offering.

Happy and engaged employees are the foundation of a successful company, whether employed in-house or outsourced. This strong foundation will enable you to build solid customer relationships that last, encourage brand loyalty and increase those yearly revenue and sales targets.

It’s simple. Happy employees are good for business, and happy customer service representatives are good for sales.

Here’s three reasons why happier employees will improve your customer service offering:

1 - They build better relationships with customers

Employees who are happy in their workplace are more likely to support customer needs in a fast and efficient manner, with higher levels of positivity. They will be upbeat and connect with your customer on a personal level, and customer’s will remember that when they next think about buying your products or services.

While knowledge is a crucial part of customer service, a positive attitude towards work carries over to customer relationships. Customers will be happy in the knowledge that your company is excited about helping them and meeting their needs.

2 - They become brand ambassadors

Customer service representatives who are engaged in their job will fully commit themselves to learning about, and personifying, a brand. Happy representatives will become immersed in your products and services, and what your brand represents.

This increased engagement makes for a proactive and knowledgeable customer experience. These agents will represent your brand every hour of the day, fully enjoying the opportunity to delve into new tools and technologies that can help them achieve a higher level of customer service.

3 - They provide a more knowledgeable service

Employees that are happy with their workplace generally stay with a company far longer than an unhappy employee. Employee retention means an increased level of knowledge about your company, what you offer, how to resolve specific problems and a deeper level of customer service.

Customers who receive more knowledgeable service have better experiences, and better experiences means they will come back to your company to do business again. Why would a customer move to your competitor when they’re happy with what they’re receiving and know that any problems will be swiftly dealt with? They won’t.

Advantage Communications is passionate about putting people first, and our employees are at the centre of what we do. Our culture of engaged, passionate and personable staff care about the clients they work for, and that results in world-class customer service.

To find out more about how we empower our employees in their daily lives, contact us today.