Tim Morris is a distinguished franchise professional, customer service expert and now MD of inbound communications specialist, Cymphony. Throughout his career, he has supported franchisees to respond quickly, accurately and provide personalised communication to potential customers. Doing so builds trust and rapport and most importantly it increases the chances of closing the sale. Here, Tim gives his five top tips on how franchisees can improve their enquiry management to boost revenue.
Respond to all customer enquiries promptly
One of the most critical factors for effective enquiry management is responding quickly. As we should all be aware, a prominent Harvard business study shows that you must aim to respond to leads within five minutes. And, according to insidesales.com, up to 50% of sales go to the vendor who responds first. That’s a significant statistic and shows exactly why a fast response time is such an important priority for your customer service department. This isn’t an unrealistic pipedream for franchisees, it’s something you should view as vital for your business. The reality is that customers are more likely to buy from the business who responds most swiftly to their enquiry. A quick (within five minutes), accurate and personal response shows prospects that you value their business and creates a positive first impression.
To help with this, franchises should leverage automated email responders and social media management tools to ensure they capture every enquiry. Automated email responders can acknowledge receipt of enquiries and set expectations for a follow-up. Social media management tools can help businesses track and respond to messages across multiple platforms so that enquiries are not missed.
Another important aspect of prompt enquiry management is to prioritise urgent enquiries over routine ones. By triaging enquiries and responding to urgent ones first, businesses can ensure that critical issues are addressed speedily while routine enquiries are handled in a timely but less urgent manner. This can also help avoid the risk of over-committing resources to non-critical enquiries.
Deliver a consistent brand message
When responding to enquiries, it is essential to deliver a consistent brand message around the products or service you offer. Providing reliable and accurate information builds trust with potential customers and increases the likelihood of a sale. To ensure you are communicating your messaging, as well as showcasing your culture and values effectively, businesses can create a standard set of responses and FAQs that truly reflect their brand. Luckily for franchisees, your franchisor will already have strong guidelines and resources around all of this in place – so use them!
This information should be used across all communication channels, including phone, email, and social media, to ensure that customers receive the same information, wherever they engage with you. Businesses should also ensure that their staff are trained on brand messaging, including tone of voice and brand personality, and equipped with the necessary tools and resources to provide accurate and consistent responses. As a franchisee, it’s your job to get your team up to speed and on board with your brand. It shouldn’t matter which franchisee, geographically, a customer interacts with, the brand should look, feel and sound the same. This is how businesses can build a strong brand identity and reputation, which can differentiate them from competitors and increase customer loyalty. This, in turn, can lead to increased revenue through repeat business and positive word-of-mouth referrals. It’s on this point in particular, that the strength of a cohesive and dedicated network of franchisees can really come into its own.
Reach customers on the channel of their choice
Franchisees should use multiple channels to respond to enquiries. This includes phone, email, social media and web chat Using multiple channels enables potential customers to contact you using their preferred method. It is important to respond to all enquiries, regardless of the channel used. Here’s why: younger audiences may prefer to use social media, while older audiences may prefer email or phone. Customers may need to communicate by text or form fill whilst juggling work but may need to call hands-free during a commute. What matters is, you’re there for them when they need you.
By being available on multiple channels and responding promptly, you demonstrate to your customers that you value their time and are committed to providing excellent customer service. This can help build trust and loyalty, again ultimately leading to increased revenue through repeat business and positive reviews.
For all this to work, you must have the necessary resources and tools to manage enquiries across different channels effectively, such as customer relationship management (CRM) software and trained staff who can respond to customers and leads promptly and professionally.
Train employees
Franchisees should ensure that their employees are trained in effective enquiry management. This is more than just being knowledgeable about the products or service they are representing – those are the basics! It’s essential that your employees are empowered with customer service training to ensure that prospects are respected, treated with empathy and made to feel valued. Even if – and often especially if – you’re dealing with a complaint, as can happen from time to time.
For smaller franchisee businesses, it may be more challenging to allocate resources for comprehensive staff training. In these cases, it’s important to focus on the essentials and prioritise training in effective enquiry management and top-level customer service, equipping your team with the necessary communication skills to respond to queries quickly and accurately and always with a personal approach.
Follow up
Franchisees should always follow up with potential customers after an enquiry, whether it be through phone calls, email or on their social media channels. Following up not only shows your willingness to serve, but also increases the likelihood of a future sale. Think about it, if you are the only business that follows up promptly and provides excellent customer service, you will undoubtedly stand out from your competitors and likely to win repeat business further down the line.
By simply responding promptly, delivering a consistent brand message, using multiple channels, training staff, and following up with potential customers, franchisees can manage enquiries effectively, improve customer experience, and boost their bottom line – so, what’s stopping you?
