Whether you’re an established business or just getting set up on the web, customer service is becoming increasingly important for Seattle businesses online. While in the past, customers were accustomed to waiting days or even weeks for a full reply, today’s service based industry demands faster responses. In fact, quick customer service can actually make sales.

The following include a few tips from Seattle web development professionals on what you can use to integrate customer service directly into your website.

CRM

A CRM or Customer Relationship Management system is an easy way to integrate customer service directly into your website. Available options include everything from ZenDesk to Zoho, and allow you to create live chat boxes, click to call functions and customer support forums, where customers can ask questions and help themselves. These customer service solutions require no technical knowledge or development skills, but do charge a monthly fee based on your usage and required features.

Custom CRM

A custom CRM can provide all of the offerings of a subscription based CRM but does not charge a monthly fee. Instead, you pay your Seattle web development team to design and build a chat function, forum or help desk for you. This means that you pay one fee upfront for the development, wait for it to be built, and then allow them to integrate it into your website. This allows you to manage as many customers as you want without paying more. However, you do have to wait during development and you do need occasional maintenance.

Social Media

Social media allows you to integrate a free chat system directly into your website, but it is not foolproof. While you can direct users to your social pages to chat with you, send you messages or post on your wall, this requires careful monitoring and requires that you manage your social media closely. The faster you respond to customers on social, the better they will feel about the experience. If you have a small business, you can likely do this yourself, but if you have a lot of customers and a lot of questions, you may need a dedicated manager. In most cases, you can integrate the Facebook Messenger API into your website, or have your developer do it if you aren’t sure how.  You can also add links to your Twitter and Google + as needed.

There are a variety of customer service solutions that you can choose from, and sometimes, the best option is a mix of both. If you have a large business that processes returns, then a help desk with a ticketing service is a must. If you just have a small business, social media may be an adequate solutions. Because there are plenty of options, you can also integrate both to offer more service.

If you want help deciding on what’s the best way to integrate customer service into your website, contact Rory Martin’s Seattle web development team for a consultation.