The need to store, transform, analyze and share data is growing exponentially, with demand for cloud-based data analytics and data warehouse solutions also on the rise. Using the cloud for data processing, analytics, and reporting has now become quite popular mainly due to its convenience and superior performance. In this blog post, we will go over a migration scenario where a fictional business is attempting to migrate their data from an on-prem TokuDB to Snowflake, a cloud-based data warehouse. To this aim, let’s first compare both solutions.Introduction to TokuDB TokuDB is a highly scalable MySQL and MariaDB storage engine. It offers high data compression, fast insertions, and deletions, among many other features. This makes it a great solution for use in high-performance and write-intensive environments. It uses a fractal tree data structure and huge data pages to efficiently manage and read the data. However, concurrency, scale, resiliency, and security are some of the bottlenecks that limit TokuDB’s performance. It is available in an open-source version and an enterprise edition. Solve your data replication problems with LIKE.TG ’s reliable, no-code, automated pipelines with 150+ connectors.Get your free trial right away! Introduction to Snowflake Snowflake is a cloud data warehouse that came out in 2015. It is primarily available on AWS and Azure. Snowflake is similar to BigQuery in that it stores data separately from where it does its compute. It stores the actual data of your tables in S3 and then it can provision any number of compute nodes to process that data. In contrast, Snowflake offers instant access to unlimited resources (compute and storage) on-demand. Snowflake Benefits: Snowflake is specifically optimized for analytics workloads. It’s therefore ideal for businesses dealing with very complex data sets.Snowflake offers better performance both in terms of storage capacity and query performance.Snowflake also offers better security compared to an on-prem data warehouse. This is because cloud data warehouses are required to meet stringent security requirements.Migrating your data to the cloud is also cost-effective since there is no huge initial outlay and you don’t have to maintain physical infrastructure. Moving Data from TokuDB to Snowflake Method 1: Using Custom ETL Scripts to Connect TokuDB to Snowflake This approach would need you to invest in heavy engineering resources. The broad steps in this approach would need you to understand the S3 data source, write code to extract data from S3, prepare the data, and finally copy it into Snowflake. The details and challenges of each step are described in the next sections. Method 2: Using LIKE.TG to Connect TokuDB to Snowflake LIKE.TG is a cloud data pipeline platform that seamlessly moves data from TokuDB to Snowflake in real-time without having to write any code. By deploying LIKE.TG , the data transfer can be completely automated and would not need any human intervention. This will allow you to direct your team’s bandwidth in extracting meaningful insights instead of wrangling with code. Get Started with LIKE.TG for Free LIKE.TG ’s pre-built integration with TokuDB (among 100+ Sources) will take full charge of the data transfer process, allowing you to focus on key business activities. Methods to Connect TokuDB to Snowflake Here are the methods you can use to establish a connection from TokuDB to Snowflake: Method 1: Using Custom ETL Scripts to Connect TokuDB to SnowflakeMethod 2: Using LIKE.TG to Connect TokuDB to Snowflake Method 1: Using Custom ETL Scripts to Connect TokuDB to Snowflake Here are the steps involved in using Custom ETL Scripts to connect TokuDB and Snowflake: Step 1: Export TokuDB Tables to CSV FormatStep 2: Upload Source Data Files to Amazon S3 Step 3: Create an Amazon S3 StageStep 4: Create a Table in SnowflakeStep 5: Loading Data to SnowflakeStep 6: Validating the Connection from TokuDB to Snowflake Step 1: Export TokuDB Tables to CSV Format There are multiple ways to backup a TokuDB database and we will be using a simple SQL command to perform a logical backup. SELECT * FROM `database_name`.`table_name` INTO OUTFILE 'path_to_folder/filename.csv' FIELDS ENCLOSED BY '"' TERMINATED BY ';' ESCAPED BY '"' LINES TERMINATED BY 'rn';" This command dumps the data into CSV format which can then easily be imported into Snowflake. Repeat this command for all tables and ensure that your TokuDB server has enough storage space to hold the CSV files. Step 2: Upload Source Data Files to Amazon S3 After generating the CSV/TXT file, we need to upload this data to a place where Snowflake can access it. Install the AWS CLI on your system How to install the AWS CLI After that execute the following command. aws s3 cp filename.csv s3://{YOUR_BUCKET_NAME} Step 3: Create an Amazon S3 Stage Using the SnowSQL CLI client, run this command: create or replace stage my_csv_stage file_format = mycsvformat url = 's3://{YOUR_BUCKET_NAME}'; The example above creates an external stage named my_csv_stage. Step 4: Create a Table in Snowflake Create a table with your schema. You will load data into this table in the next step. create or replace table {YOUR_TABLE_NAME} ('$TABLE_SCHEMA') Step 5: Loading Data to Snowflake Loading data requires a Snowflake compute cluster. Run the following command in the SnowSQL CLI client: copy into {YOUR_TABLE_NAME} from s3://{YOUR_BUCKET_NAME} credentials=(aws_key_id='$AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID' aws_secret_key='$AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY') file_format = (type = csv field_delimiter = '|' skip_header = 1); This command will load data from all CSV files in the S3 bucket. Step 6: Validating the Connection from TokuDB to Snowflake select * from {YOUR_TABLE_NAME} limit 10; The above approach is effort-intensive. You would need to hand-code many steps that run coherently to achieve the objective. Limitations of Using Custom ETL Scripts to Connect TokuDB to Snowflake This method is ideal for a one-time bulk load. In case you are looking to stream data in real-time, you might have to configure cron jobs and write additional code to achieve this. More often than not, the use case to move data from TokuDB to Snowflake is not this straightforward. You might need to clean, transform and enrich the data to make it analysis-ready. This would not be easy to achieve. Since the data moved from TokuDB is critical to your business, you will need to constantly monitor the infrastructure to ensure that nothing breaks. Failure at any step would lead you to irretrievable data loss. Method 2: Using LIKE.TG to Connect TokuDB to Snowflake Using LIKE.TG (Official Snowflake ETL partner) — a managed system that simplifies data migration. LIKE.TG is fully managed and completely automates the process of not only loading data from your desired source but also enriching the data and transforming it into an analysis-ready form without having to write a single line of code. Its fault-tolerant architecture ensures that the data is handled in a secure, consistent manner with zero data loss. Sign up here for a 14-Day Free Trial! LIKE.TG takes care of all your data preprocessing to set up TokuDB Snowflake Integration and lets you focus on key business activities and draw a much powerful insight on how to generate more leads, retain customers, and take your business to new heights of profitability. It provides a consistent & reliable solution to manage data in real-time and always have analysis-ready data in your desired destination. Moving data from TokuDB to Snowflake requires just 2 steps: Step 1: Connect to your TokuDB database by providing connection settings. Step 2: Select the mode of replication you want: (a) Load the result set of a Custom Query (b) Full dump of tables (c) Load data via log Step 3: Configure the Snowflake destination by providing the details like Destination Name, Account Name, Account Region, Database User, Database Password, Database Schema, and Database Name. Check out what makes LIKE.TG amazing: Real-Time Data Transfer: LIKE.TG with its strong Integration with 100+ sources, allows you to transfer data quickly & efficiently. This ensures efficient utilization of bandwidth on both ends.Data Transformation: It provides a simple interface to perfect, modify, and enrich the data you want to transfer. Secure: LIKE.TG has a fault-tolerant architecture that ensures that the data is handled in a secure, consistent manner with zero data loss.Tremendous Connector Availability: LIKE.TG houses a large variety of connectors and lets you bring in data from numerous Marketing & SaaS applications, databases, etc. such as Google Analytics 4, Google Firebase, Airflow, HubSpot, Marketo, MongoDB, Oracle, Salesforce, Redshift, etc. in an integrated and analysis-ready form.Simplicity: Using LIKE.TG is easy and intuitive, ensuring that your data is exported in just a few clicks. Completely Managed Platform: LIKE.TG is fully managed. You need not invest time and effort to maintain or monitor the infrastructure involved in executing codes.Live Support: The LIKE.TG team is available round the clock to extend exceptional support to its customers through chat, email, and support calls. That is it, LIKE.TG will now take care of reliably loading data from TokuDB to Snowflake in real-time. Conclusion This blog talks about the two methods you can use to set up TokuDB Snowflake Integration in a seamless fashion: using custom ETL code and a third-party tool, LIKE.TG . Extracting complex data from a diverse set of data sources can be a challenging task and this is where LIKE.TG saves the day! Visit our Website to Explore LIKE.TG In addition to TokuDB, LIKE.TG can also bring data from a wide array of data sources into Snowflake. Database (MySQL, PostgreSQL, MongoDB and more), Cloud Applications (Google Analytics, Google Ads, Facebook Ads, Salesforce, and more). This allows LIKE.TG to scale on-demand as your data needs grow. Sign Up for a full-feature free trial (14 days) to see the simplicity of LIKE.TG first-hand. You can also have a look at the unbeatable pricing that will help you choose the right plan for your business needs.

Nowadays, streaming data is a crucial data source for any business that wants to perform real-time analytics. The first step to analyze data in real-time is to load the streaming data – often from Webhooks, in real-time to the warehouse. A common use case for a BigQuery webhook is automatically sending a notification to a service like Slack or email whenever a dataset is updated. In this article, you will learn two methods of how to load real-time streaming data from Webhook to BigQuery.Note: When architecting a Webhooks Google BigQuery integration, it’s essential to address security concerns to ensure your data remains protected. Also, when connecting BigQuery webhook, defining your webhook endpoint is essential – the address or URL that will receive the incoming data is essential. Connect Webhook to BigQuery efficiently Utilize LIKE.TG ’s pre-built webhook integration to capture incoming data streams. Configure LIKE.TG to automatically transform and load the webhook data into BigQuery tables, with no coding required. Method 1: Webhook to BigQuery using LIKE.TG Data Get Started with LIKE.TG for Free Method 2: Webhook to BigQuery ETL Using Custom Code Develop a custom application to receive and process webhook payloads. Write code to transform the data and use BigQuery’s API or client libraries to load it into the appropriate tables. Method 1: Webhook to BigQuery using LIKE.TG Data LIKE.TG is the only real-time ELT No-code Data Pipeline platform that cost-effectively automates data pipelines that are flexible to your needs. With integration with 150+ Data Sources (40+ free sources), we help you not only export data from sources & load data to the destinations but also transform & enrich your data, & make it analysis-ready. LIKE.TG Data lets you load real-time streaming data from Webhook to BigQuery in two simple steps: Step 1: Configure your source Connect LIKE.TG Data with your source, in this case, Webhooks. You also need to specify some details, such as the Event Name Path and Fields Path. Step 2: Select your Destination Load data from Webhooks to BigQuery by selecting your destination. You can also choose the options for auto-mapping and JSON fields replication here. Now you have successfully established the connection between Webhooks and BigQuery for streaming real-time data. Click here to learn more on how to Set Up Webhook as a Source. Click here to learn more on how to Set Up BigQuery as a Destination. Integrate Webhooks to BigQueryGet a DemoTry itIntegrate Webhooks to RedshiftGet a DemoTry itIntegrate Webhooks to SnowflakeGet a DemoTry it Method 2: Webhook to BigQuery ETL Using Custom Code The steps involved in migrating data from WebHook to BigQuery are as follows: Getting data out of your application using Webhook Preparing Data received from Webhook Loading data into Google BigQuery Step 1: Getting data out of your application using Webhook Setup a webhook for your application and define the endpoint URL on which you will deliver the data. This is the same URL from which the target application will read the data. Step 2: Preparing Data received from Webhook Webhooks post data to your specified endpoints in JSON format. It is up to you to parse the JSON objects and determine how to load them into your BigQuery data warehouse. You need to ensure the target BigQuery table is well aligned with the source data layout, specifically column sequence and data type of columns. Step 3: Loading data into Google BigQuery We can load data into BigQuery directly using API call or can create CSV file and then load into BigQuery table. Create a Python script to read data from the Webhook URL endpoint and load it into the BigQuery table. from google.cloud import bigquery import requests client = bigquery.Client() dataset_id = 'dataset_name' #replace with your dataset ID table_id = 'table_name' #replace with your table ID table_ref = client.dataset(dataset_id).table(table_id) table = client.get_table(table_ref) # API request receive data from WebHook Convert received data into rows to insert into BigQuery errors = client.insert_rows(table, rows_to_insert)# API request assert errors == [] You can store streaming data into a file by a specific interval and use the bq command-line tool to upload the files to your datasets, adding schema and data type information. In the GCP documentation of the GSUTIL tool, you can find the syntax of the bq command line. Iterate through this process as many times as it takes to load all of your tables into BigQuery. Once the data has been extracted from your application using Webhook, the next step is to upload it to the GCS. There are multiple techniques to upload data to GCS. Upload file to GCS bucket Using Gsutil: Using Gsutil utility we can upload a local file to GCS(Google Cloud Storage) bucket. gsutil cp local_folder/file_name.csv gs://gcs_bucket_name/path/to/folder/ To copy a file to GCS: Using Web console: An alternative way to upload the data from your local machine to GCS is using the web console. To use the web console option follow the below steps. First of all, you need to login to your GCP account. You must have a working Google account of GCP. In the menu option, click on storage and navigate to the browser on the left tab. If needed create a bucket to upload your data. Make sure that the name of the bucket you choose is globally unique. Click on the bucket name that you have created in step #2, this will ask you to browse the file from your local machine. Choose the file and click on the upload button. A progression bar will appear. Next, wait for the upload to complete. You can see the file is loaded in the bucket. Create Table in BigQuery Go to the BigQuery from the menu option. On G-Cloud console, click on create a dataset option. Next, provide a dataset name and location. Next, click on the name of the created dataset. On G-Cloud console, click on create table option and provide the dataset name, table name, project name, and table type. Load the data into BigQuery Table Once the table is created successfully, you will get a notification that will allow you to use the table as your new dataset. Alternatively, the same can be done using the Command Line as well. Start the command-line tool and click on the cloud shell icon shown here. The syntax of the bq command line to load the file in the BigQuery table: Note: The Autodetect flag identifies the table schema bq --location=[LOCATION] load --source_format=[FORMAT] [DATASET].[TABLE] [PATH_TO_SOURCE] [SCHEMA] [LOCATION] is an optional parameter that represents Location name like “us-east” [FORMAT] to load CSV file set it to CSV [DATASET] dataset name. [TABLE] table name to load the data. [PATH_TO_SOURCE] path to source file present on the GCS bucket. [SCHEMA] Specify the schema bq --location=US load --source_format=CSV your_dataset.your_table gs://your_bucket/your_data.csv ./your_schema.json You can specify your schema using bq command line Loading Schema Using the Web Console BigQuery will display all the distinct columns that were found under the Schema tab. Alternatively, to do the same in the command line, use the below command: bq --location=US load --source_format=CSV your_dataset.your_table gs://your_bucket/your_data.csv ./your_schema.json Your target table schema can also be autodetected: bq --location=US load --autodetect --source_format=CSV your_dataset.your_table gs://mybucket/data.csv BigQuery command-line interface allows us to 3 options to write to an existing table. The Web Console has the Query Editor which can be used for interacting with existing tables using SQL commands. Overwrite the table bq --location = US load --autodetect --replace --source_file_format = CSV your_target_dataset_name.your_target_table_name gs://source_bucket_name/path/to/file/source_file_name.csv Append data to the table bq --location = US load --autodetect --noreplace --source_file_format = CSV your_target_dataset_name.your_table_table_name gs://source_bucket_name/path/to/file/source_file_name.csv ./schema_file.json Adding new fields in the target table bq --location = US load --noreplace --schema_update_option = ALLOW_FIELD_ADDITION --source_file_format = CSV your_target_dataset.your_target_table gs://bucket_name/source_data.csv ./target_schema.json Update data into BigQuery Table The data that was matched in the above-mentioned steps not done complete data updates on the target table. The data is stored in an intermediate data table. This is because GCS is a staging area for BigQuery upload. There are two ways of updating the target table as described here. Update the rows in the target table. Next, insert new rows from the intermediate table UPDATE target_table t SET t.value = s.value FROM intermediate_table s WHERE t.id = s.id; INSERT target_table (id, value) SELECT id, value FROM intermediate_table WHERE NOT id IN (SELECT id FROM target_table); Delete all the rows from the target table which are in the intermediate table. Then, insert all the rows newly loaded in the intermediate table. Here the intermediate table will be in truncate and load mode. DELETE FROM final_table f WHERE f.id IN (SELECT id from intermediate_table); INSERT data_setname.target_table(id, value) SELECT id, value FROM data_set_name.intermediate_table; Sync your Webhook data to BigQuery Start for Free Now Limitations of writing custom Scripts to stream data from Webhook to BigQuery The above code is built based on a certain defined schema from the Webhook source. There are possibilities that the scripts break if the source schema is modified. If in future you identify some data transformations need to be applied on your incoming webhook events, you would require to invest additional time and resources on it. Overload of incoming data, you might have to throttle the data moving to BQ. Given you are dealing with real-time streaming data you would need to build very strong alerts and notification systems to avoid data loss due to an anomaly at the source or destination end. Since webhooks are triggered by certain events, this data loss can be very grave for your business. Webhook to BigQuery: Use Cases Inventory Management in E-commerce: E-commerce platforms can benefit from real-time inventory updates by streaming data from inventory management webhooks into BigQuery. This enables businesses to monitor stock levels, optimize supply chains, and prevent stockouts or overstocking, ensuring a seamless customer experience. Source Patient Monitoring in Healthcare: Healthcare providers can leverage real-time data streaming for patient monitoring. By connecting medical device webhooks to BigQuery, clinicians can track patient health in real time, and receive alerts for abnormal readings, and provide timely interventions, ultimately leading to better patient outcomes. Fraud Detection in Finance: Financial institutions can use webhooks to stream transaction data into BigQuery for fraud detection. Analyzing transaction patterns in real time helps to identify and prevent fraudulent activities, protect customer accounts, and ensure regulatory compliance. Event-driven marketing: Businesses across various industries can stream event data, such as user sign-ups or product launches, into BigQuery. This allows for real-time analysis of marketing campaigns, enabling quick adjustments and targeted follow-ups to boost conversion rates. Additonal Reads: Python Webhook Integration: 3 Easy Steps WhatsApp Webhook Integration: 6 Easy Steps Best Webhooks Testing tools for 2024 Conclusion In this blog, you learned two methods for streaming real-time data from Webhook to BigQuery: using an automated pipeline or writing custom ETL codes. Regarding moving data in real-time, a no-code data pipeline tool such as LIKE.TG Data can be the right choice for you. Using LIKE.TG Data, you can connect to a source of your choice and load your data to a destination of your choice cost-effectively. LIKE.TG ensures your data is reliably and securely moved from any source to BigQuery in real time. Want to take LIKE.TG for a spin? Sign Up for a 14-day free trial and experience the feature-rich LIKE.TG suite firsthand. Check out our LIKE.TG Pricing to choose the best plan for you. Do let us know if the methods were helpful and if you would recommend any other methods in the comments below.

A new economic climate is emerging with some businesses thriving, others going under, and a few getting acquired. Whether business acquisitions are actually good for a company is often debated. But the effects on the customers are rarely discussed. Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are not innately bad, but most acquired companies' goals are to deliver value to shareholders—not customers. Generally, after an acquisition, companies are not trying to improve their services or products to get more customers. As noted by the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ASCI), they are simply buying a larger customer base. Larger does not always mean better. You can buy customers by going on an acquisition spree, but you cannot buy their loyalty.For most big players, it is not easy to focus on building new products from scratch all the time. Acquiring smaller players allows them to increase their business size. However, it is the customers who have to face the repercussions of these deals. According to ASCI, "on average, the acquiring company experiences a 3% drop in customer satisfaction over the initial two-year period post-merger."Classic M&A stories that negatively impacted customersDozens of deals are a testament to the fact that acquisitions do not always mean better experiences for customers.Boeing's shift away from its engineer-led roots contributed to 346 fatalitiesBoeing was known for engineering supremacy and its devotion to building quality aircraft. They were a "customer-first" company and their philosophy was: You want it? We'll make it and we'll make it the best.Anticipating a commercial jet boom, Boeing merged with McDonnell-Douglas, which was a "money-first" company. It turned Boeing into a stock market trove. The top management was replaced and the company lost its culture of innovation, quality, and engineering excellence. Boeing was no longer led by a team of engineers, but by an investor who adopted cost reduction strategies. Without any aviation background, James McNerney held the reins of the company.The two recent crashes of Boeing's most trusted aircraft, the 737 Max, were a result of cost cutting in R&D, engineering, and pilot training. When the 737 needed an upgrade to adapt to new infrastructure and fuel efficiency requirements, Boeing added to the outdated 737 designs instead of building new ones. This resulted in the production of a faulty plane that cost 346 lives.When private equity firms made matters worse for a retail giantEvery American's inner child broke when Toys "R" Us closed over 800 stores during what was called a "retail apocalypse". After 60+ years in business, Toys "R" Us failed to innovate in the age of ecommerce and social media. Instead, it went private to reimagine itself.Under the new management of private equity (PE) firms, the effects of cost reduction took a toll on the employees of Toys "R" Us—30,000 employees were laid off. A shortage of employees and under-investment in stores affected both operations and customer satisfaction levels. Employees manipulated customer surveys to protect themselves from being laid off for under-performance.Toys "R" Us suffered from management myopia, believing it was the center of the toy industry and nothing bad could happen to it. The PE investors mounted up billions in debt, sold off assets, cut costs in the wrong places, and drove the company into bankruptcy.The largest buyout in history was so bad, even Warren Buffet lost $870MTXU Corp., an energy firm, faced growing objections from officials and consumer groups to its spiking prices and investment in new coal power plants. It was sold to a consortium of PE firms for a $45B debt and was renamed Energy Future Holdings (EFH). The PE firms jumped in at once as they predicted gas prices would rise. The upshot? gas prices fell sharply.The management at TXU had projected that if the buyout went wrong, it could wreak havoc on the business, as well as its employees and customers, but they took the risk anyway.EFH was still generating electricity from coal-fired plants, while a new efficient method of mining technology was being adopted by its rivals. Electricity from natural gas plants became cheaper, making it difficult for EFH's coal plants to compete. EFH lost customers to cheaper rivals. Warren Buffet, who invested $2B in its bonds, called it "a big mistake." PE investors squeezed every dollar out of the company to finance the buyout and swaddled it with debt it couldn't repay, forcing it into bankruptcy.The acquisition of T-mobile US Inc. by Sprint Corp. was a monopoly in the makingAmericans have limited mobile phone service options. The Sprint and T-mobile merger meant a wireless monopoly that could potentially be horrible for consumers. Less competition and no market disrupting offers would mean stiff pricing. Analysts believed regulators would reject the deal.However, in 2020, a federal judge ruled in favor of the deal despite evidence that it would destroy competition, raise wireless data prices, and eliminate redundant jobs, resulting in layoffs. T-Mobile and Sprint made their case by arguing the merger would benefit consumers, but Sprint's customer satisfaction ratings have plummeted since the deal was first announced.As reported by ACSI, Sprint's customer satisfaction score fell to 65 in 2019, down from 70 a year earlier. T-Mobile, by contrast, had a score of 76 across both years—the highest among the top U.S. wireless operators. But in the wake of the 2020 merger, things started to change for T-mobile as well. T-Mobile seemed to be losing one of its major competitive edges: customer service. After years of higher ratings than all its major rivals, T-Mobile slipped from best to worst among the three major carriers.eBay's miscalculation of customer needs led to it selling off SkypeeBay bought Skype hoping the VoIP service would improve communication between its members. eBay's management intended to introduce video communication to its customers. The outcome? eBay users rejected Skype as a mode of communication and considered it unnecessary. People seemed to like the anonymity of eBay—for most users, email was good enough to organize their transactions.The eBay-Skype deal suffered from other problems too. eBay overestimated the value of Skype and acquired it for $2.6 Billion, but Skype generated only $7 million in revenue. Additionally, the cultural differences between the two companies were too significant to overcome. Ultimately, eBay's failure to integrate Skype into its operation properly, lack of managerial involvement, and misunderstanding of the target audience led to it divesting in Skype. The balance sheet is always seen as the ruler in the world of business, and the economic climate is forcing organizations to prioritize profits over customer needs. It's time people noted the reality of businesses who choose to acquire, rather than innovate. It often comes at the cost of the customer.

Getting data from Zendesk to Redshift is the right step towards centralizing your organization’s customer interactions and tickets. Analyzing this information can help you gain a deeper understanding of the overall health of your Customer Support, Agent Performance, Customer Satisfaction, and more. Eventually, you would be able to unlock deep insights that grow your business. What is Zendesk? Zendesk is a Cloud-based all-in-one Customer Support Platform widely used by a broad spectrum of enterprises, from large corporations to small startups. Using any data — from anywhere — Zendesk presents businesses with a comprehensive view of the consumer. Hence, its products are built to include and innovate depending on user input collected through beta and Early Access Programs (EAPs). Companies that have outgrown their current CRM or are investigating other systems, currently utilize Zendesk’s Support Platform, or deal with a high volume of incoming customer inquiries can benefit from Zendesk. The Zendesk Support Platform helps companies thrive in self-service and proactive engagement by delivering consistent support. Organizations can manage all of their one-on-one customer interactions using Zendesk’s one Customer Support Platform. Zendesk CRM Software allows you to deliver personalized support where consumers expect it, expand your customer experience process, and optimize your operations. Businesses can find a range of Zendesk products with solutions catered to their needs. Out of its suite of CRM products, Zendesk Sunshine is a contemporary CRM Platform built on top of Amazon Web Services (AWS). Zendesk CRM Software Products are simple and easy to use, thereby allowing business teams to focus on making the most of their time and energy by selling and answering customer questions. This helps in the expansion of businesses without disrupting software services. For more information on Zendesk Solution, do visit Zendesk’s informative blog here. Solve your data replication problems with LIKE.TG ’s reliable, no-code, automated pipelines with 150+ connectors.Get your free trial right away! What is Amazon Redshift? Amazon Redshift is a petabyte-scale, fully managed data warehouse service that stores data in the form of clusters that you can access with ease. It supports a multi-layered architecture that provides robust integration support for various business intelligence tools and a fast query processing functionality. Apart from business intelligence tools, you can also connect Amazon Redshift to SQL-based clients. It further allows users and applications to access the nodes independently. Being a fully-managed warehouse, all administrative tasks associated with Amazon Redshift, such as creating backups, security, etc. are taken care of by Amazon. For further information on Amazon Redshift, you can check our other post here. For most recent updates on Amazon.com, Inc, visit the Amazon Statistics and Facts page Methods to Move Data from Zendesk to Redshift There are two popular methods to perform Zendesk to Redshift data replication. Method 1: Copying your Data from Zendesk to Redshift Using Custom Scripts You would have to spend engineering resources to write custom scripts to pull the data using Zendesk API, move data to S3, and then to Redshift destination tables. To achieve data consistency and ensure no discrepancies arise, you will have to constantly monitor and invest in maintaining the infrastructure. Method 2: Moving your Data from Zendesk to Redshift Using LIKE.TG LIKE.TG is an easy-to-use Data Integration Platform that can move your data from Zendesk (Data Source Available for Free in LIKE.TG ) to Redshift in minutes. You can achieve this on a visual interface without writing a single line of code. Since LIKE.TG is fully managed, you would not have to worry about any monitoring and maintenance activities. This will ensure that you stop worrying about data and start focussing on insights. Get Started with LIKE.TG for Free Methods to Move Data from Zendesk to Redshift Method 1: Copying your Data from Zendesk to Redshift Using Custom ScriptsMethod 2: Moving your Data from Zendesk to Redshift Using LIKE.TG Let us, deep-dive, into both these methods. Method 1: Copying your Data from Zendesk to Redshift Using Custom Scripts Here is a glimpse of the broad steps involved in this: Write scripts for some or all of Zendesk’s APIs to extract data. If you are looking to get updated data on a periodic basis, make sure the script can fetch incremental data. For this, you might have to set up cron jobsCreate tables and columns in Redshift and map Zendesk’s JSON files to this schema. While doing this, you would have to take care of the data type compatibility between Zendesk data and Redshift. Redshift has a much larger list of datatypes than JSON, so you need to make sure you map each JSON data type into one supported by RedshiftRedshift is not designed for line-by-line updates or SQL “upsert” operations. It is recommended to use an intermediary such as AWS S3. If you choose to use S3, you will need to Create a bucket for your dataWrite an HTTP PUT for your AWS REST API using Curl or PostmanOnce the bucket is in place, you can then send your data to S3Then you can use a COPY command to get your data from S3 into Redshift In addition to this, you need to make sure that there is proper monitoring to detect any change in the Zendesk Schema. You would need to modify and update the script if there is any change in the incoming data structure Method 2: Moving your Data from Zendesk to Redshift Using LIKE.TG LIKE.TG is fully managed and completely automates the process of not only loading data from your desired source but also enriching the data and transforming it into an analysis-ready form without having to write a single line of code. Its fault-tolerant architecture ensures that the data is handled in a secure, consistent manner with zero data loss. Using the LIKE.TG Data Integration Platform, you can seamlessly replicate data from Zendesk to Redshift with 2 simple steps. Step 1: Configure the data source using Zendesk API token, Pipeline Name, Email, and Sub Domain. Step 2: Configure the Redshift warehouse where you want to move your Zendesk data by giving the Database Port, Database User, Database Password, Database Name, Database Schema, Database Cluster Identifier, and Destination Name. LIKE.TG does all the heavy-weightlifting and will ensure your data is moved reliably to Redshift in real-time. Sign up here for a 14-Day Free Trial! Advantages of Using LIKE.TG The LIKE.TG Data Integration platform lets you move data from Zendesk (Data Source Available for Free in LIKE.TG ) to Redshift. Here are some other advantages: No Data Loss – LIKE.TG ’s fault-tolerant architecture ensures that data is reliably moved from Freshdesk to Redshift without data loss. 100’s of Out of the Box Integrations – In addition to Freshdesk, LIKE.TG can bring data from 100+ Data Sources (Including 30+ Free Data Sources) into Redshift in just a few clicks. This will ensure that you always have a reliable partner to cater to your growing data needs.Minimal Setup – Since LIKE.TG is fully managed, setting up the platform would need minimal effort and bandwidth from your end.Automatic schema detection and mapping – LIKE.TG automatically scans the schema of incoming Freshdesk data. If any changes are detected, it handles this seamlessly by incorporating this change on Redshift.Exceptional Support – LIKE.TG provides 24×7 support to ensure that you always have Technical support for LIKE.TG is provided on a 24/7 basis over both Email and Slack. Challenges While Transferring Data from Zendesk to Redshift Using Custom Code Before you write thousands of lines of code to copy your data, you need to familiarize yourself with the downside of this approach. More often than not, you will need to monitor the Zendesk APIs for changes, check your data tables to make sure all columns are being updated correctly. Additionally, you have to come up with a data validation system to ensure all your data is being transferred accurately. In an ideal world, all of this is perfectly doable. However, in today’s agile work environment, it usually means expensive engineering resources are scrambling just to stay on top of all the possible things that can go wrong. Think about the following: How will you know if an API has been changed by Zendesk?How will you find out when the Redshift is not available for writing?Do you have the resources to rewrite or update the code periodically?How quickly can you update the schema in Redshift in response to a request for more data? On the other hand, a ready-to-use platform like LIKE.TG rids you of all these complexities. This will not only provide you with analysis-ready data but will also empower you to focus on uncovering meaningful insights instead of wrangling with Zendesk data. Conclusion The flexibility you get from building your own custom solution to move data from Zendesk to Redshift comes with a high and ongoing cost in terms of engineering resources. In this article, you learned about Zendesk to Redshift Data Migration methods. You also learned about the Zendesk Software and Amazon Redshift Data warehouse. However, integrating and analyzing your data from a diverse set of data sources can be challenging and this is where LIKE.TG Data comes into the picture. Visit our Website to Explore LIKE.TG LIKE.TG is a No-code Data Pipeline and has awesome 100+ pre-built integrations that you can choose from. LIKE.TG can help you integrate your data from numerous sources such as Zendesk (Data Source Available for Free in LIKE.TG ) and load it into a destination to analyze real-time data with a BI tool and create your Dashboards. It will make your life easier and make data migration hassle-free. It is user-friendly, reliable, and secure. Want to take LIKE.TG for a spin? Sign Up for a 14-day free trial and experience the feature-rich LIKE.TG suite first hand. You can also have a look at the unbeatable pricing that will help you choose the right plan for your business needs. Share your experience of learning about Zendesk to Reshift Data Migration. Let us know in the comments below!

Modern businesses are constantly reminded that customer relationships are crucial for success. Now more than ever, customers are gravitating toward businesses that provide personalized and contextual service. As stated by Forrester, a willingness to prioritize long-term growth by building better customer relationships will be critical to business success in 2023.To asses and improve customer relations, you need a systematic way of managing customer requests and concerns. With the help of customer service software, you can unify, automate, and analyze customer service operations while keeping up with customers' demands.However, it can be challenging to determine what to look for in a software solution and to choose the right one for your business. To simplify the selection process for you, we've created a list of popular customer service software solutions and analyzed their performance within the following parameters: Feature setLearning curveEase of useUser interfaceImplementation Support offeredIntegrationsPricingContract termsAdaptability to different business models Based on our research, here's a summary of the top 10 customer service software solutions of 2023:LIKE.TG: Best overall customer service solutionZendesk: Best solution for integrating your help desk with other systemsSalesforce Service Cloud: Best customer service software for larger teamsHelp Scout: Best solution for email ticketing managementHappyFox: Best option for global knowledge base managementHiver: Best help desk for support via GmailFreshdesk: Best solution for small customer service teamsKayako: Best customer service software for live chat ticketingTeamSupport: Best support software for B2B needs 10. Helpshift: Best solution for in-app customer support Here's a look at our detailed analysis of each solution:LIKE.TG LIKE.TG helps you provide value-driven service by seamlessly connecting with customers across channels, like email, social media, messaging apps, telephony, and your help center. Thanks to an intuitive interface, it's easy to implement, and enhances the experience of customer service representatives. Whether you are a small business or a large enterprise, LIKE.TG equips your agents to offer personalized service at every step of the customer journey. Not only are your agents armed with customer context for each ticket but also always ready with a solution in hand to offer relevant and timely solutions.Decision makers can effortlessly tap into every minute detail of the ticketing journey, as well as agent performances and customer satisfaction levels, with visually appealing reports and dashboards.If you're looking for a system that is faster to implement with a minimal learning curve, won't diminish your budget, and is both flexible and scalable, LIKE.TG is the ideal choice for you.Pricing:You can explore the depth and functionality of LIKE.TG and its features with a 15-day free trial. There's also a Free plan available for basic ticketing needs. If you are a business with a small customer service team, Desk's $7 Express plan will likely be the best fit. Other editions of Desk include Standard for $14, Professional for $23, and the Enterprise plan for $40 per user per month, billed annually.Integrations: With 300+ extensions and integrations available, you can seamlessly connect LIKE.TG with other business apps.Security and compliance: LIKE.TG keeps your customers' data safe and secure by complying with ISO 9001 requirements, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (CCPA), and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).Mobile applications: To give agents more flexibility, LIKE.TG offers a mobile application. It also offers a separate app for managers, called Radar, so they can monitor service operations, even when they're on the go.Learn why LIKE.TG is a good fit for your customers, agents, and business. Zendesk Zendesk Support is a great option for teams focused on one type of customer service operation, like ticket management. It offers live chat support, telephony, analytics, and a help center as separate applications that can be included as add-ons to build a complete customer service solution. Its feature set is robust and extensive, but the platform can be complex to set up and use. This affects the implementation process and increases the learning curve for agents. Additionally, many users consider Zendesk's UI to be a bit outdated, which can make it difficult for your agents to provide contextual and personalized service.Zendesk offers a free trial for 14 days, but does not offer a free plan. If you find Zendesk to be the right fit for your business, you can subscribe to their Support Desk plans, which start at $19 and increase up to $115. If you wish to make changes to your Zendesk subscription, you can do so by making a request in writing before 30 days of the end of your present subscription cycle. Learn more about Zendesk's feature capabilities from this comparison Salesforce Service CloudSalesforce is popular for its extensive feature set. It is good for businesses managing high volumes of tickets and require multiple business apps to connect with. However, due to its complexity, it can be time-consuming and difficult to get started. Managing tickets is not very easy due to Salesforce's outdated UI. Taking a closer look at pricing, Salesforce offers a free trial but does not offer a free plan. If you are a small business, you can get started with the Essentials plan for $25. Their Enterprise plans costs $165, but does not include basic features, such as telephony, live chat, and self-service, and offers limited AI, and limited analytics. Pricing tends to snowball, making it inconvenient for businesses to continue using Salesforce, or switch to another software solution. This is why it's a good idea to explore the features, add-ons, implementation, and after-support costs associated with Salesforce before making a commitment.Find an in-depth Salesforce Service Cloud feature analysis in this comparison Help Scout Help Scout is easy to get accustomed to, as its interface largely resembles Gmail's. Its customer support resources can help you transition to the platform in no time. With email, live chat, a knowledge base, reports, and simple if-and-when workflows, Help Scout is suitable for businesses with minimal support requirements. In particular, Help Scout's customers are drawn to its mailbox feature. However, if you operate through other channels, like telephony, social media, and messaging apps, you'll have to depend on third-party integrations. Pricing starts at $20 per user, billed annually, and extends to $65 per user. Upgrading or downgrading your subscription is easier than it is with Zendesk. However, if you are looking for a solution that is customizable and scalable, you might want to reconsider Help Scout on these grounds. HappyFox HappyFox is easy to use compared to many other customer service software solutions. Its feature set is best for businesses that deal with limited channels and have small customer service teams. HappyFox allows you to include live chat, chatbots, and workflows in your support operations by subscribing to add-ons.HappyFox starts at $29 annually and can cost as much as $89 per agent. A minimum of five agents are required to sign up for a plan. You can explore the product for 30 days, but might come across roadblocks that require support teams intervention. HappyFox offers multiple contract options, and if you plan on downgrading your plan or reducing your agent count, changes will go into effect in the next billing cycle after your request is made. Large and growing businesses using HappyFox have reported app slowdowns, and limited integration options, customizability, and reporting capabilities. HiverHiver is a Gmail-based customer service solution, ideal for businesses that use Google Workspace. The support team is attentive, but some issues and bugs in the system might affect your work for a day or two. With Hiver, you can support your customers through live chat, email, WhatsApp, and telephony. Other channels, like social media and messaging apps, can be accessed through third-party integrations.Hiver does not offer many integration options. This can make it difficult to bolster your customer service platform with additional functionalities, and can get in the way of easy information retrieval and collaborative efforts. With a 7-day free trial, you can try out Hiver's highest plan. Plans range from "Lite" for $15 to "Elite" for $59. Hiver also offers a custom plan for teams that have more than 50 users. Hiver offers a pay-as-you-go service, and in terms of making changes to the plan, you can cancel your plan at any time without a fee, but "you will be billed for the current billing cycle." FreshdeskFreshdesk centralizes customer support interactions from multiple channels, like email, social media, and live chat. Its integration capabilities are similar to Zendesk's and LIKE.TG's. Its UI is refreshing, but can be overwhelming for first-time users, and can be time consuming to learn. Although the feature set is good enough for small businesses, it's difficult to scale Freshdesk to meet more extensive business needs. You can explore the product through a 21-day trial, or opt for the free plan for basic support requirements. Freshdesk's Support Desk plans range from $15 to $79. Its omnichannel support edition does not include a free plan, but ranges from $29 to $99. Omnichannel support gives you access to all support channels, but lacks native integrations with WeChat and Telegram. Analyze Freshdesk further with this comparison KayakoContextual experiences are facilitated smoothly by Kayako. It offers cloud and on-premise software. Basic functionalities, like email support, Facebook, Twitter, live chat, help center, and reporting capabilities are included. However, telephony and messaging apps, like WhatsApp and Instagram, can only be accessed through third-party integrations. Although live chat is a popular Kayako feature, the feature's customizability is limited compared to its competitors. Customers have been happy with the simplicity of Kayako's new UI, but have also complained of system slow downs and errors. Responses are not well recorded, and SLAs might be missed due to errors in the system. Learning and implementing Kayako will require assistance from the support team. Plus, It can be difficult to integrate Kayako with other software, due to its limited integration capabilities.For a small business, this option may be easy to adopt, but in terms of feature upgrades and scalability, Kayako is lacking. It offers a free trial for 14 days. TeamSupport TeamSupport is a multi-channel ticketing system that enables support via email, live chat, messaging, and remote desktop control. One of the most appreciated features of Team Support is the ability to convert commonly asked questions into knowledge base articles. However, telephony and web forms are not built-in options. According to users, TeamSupport's user interface is sluggish compared to the interfaces of other customer service software solutions. The configuration and setup can be confusing for first-time users. Plus, synchronization and system breakage issues can become a hindrance when you're connecting with customers.TeamSupport offers a 14-day free trial, but no free plan. Their plans start at $49 and extend to $119. If you wish to make changes to the number of licensed users on your TeamSupport plan, you can do so with a written request to TeamSupport at least 30 days before the next renewal term. Helpshift Helpshift is a help desk solution mainly focused on in-app support. Its live chat, knowledge base, rule-based bot, and AI that pulls articles from the KB are geared towards enhancing the gaming experience with in-app support. Helpshift also serves the fin-tech and commerce industries. It allows users to report bugs, suggest improvements, and offer feedback related to the product or service. However, the design of Helpshift's UI appears to be outdated. Connectivity issues, delays in responses, and a complex setup can drastically affect a customer's experience with Helpshift.You can explore the product through its 30-day free trial, or through its free plan. Paid plans start at $150. To access more advanced features for your unique needs, you can select Helpshift's custom pricing plan. You can upgrade at any time, but cancel only at the end of your subscription period.ConclusionWhen you choose a software solution for your business, you are investing in better customer and employee experiences. Dynamic analysis will help you make the right choice. Get started by taking advantage of free trials, and decide for yourself which customer service software solution is the best fit for your business.Disclaimer: All prices shown here are in USD. The names and logos for LIKE.TG are trademarks of LIKE.TG Corp. All other trademarks, brand names, or product names belong to their respective holders. Comparison information as of 25.04.2023

Imagine this: Three hundred people are asking the same question on your company’s website, but every agent that answers them gives a different response.This inconsistency damages your customer service’s reputation and also confuses your clients.An FAQ tool serves as a single point of contact for information, providing consumers with quick access to directions and answers on a range of subjects concerning goods, services, regulations, and more.The adoption of good FAQ software is necessary to address issues and guarantee perfect customer support.Let’s discuss FAQ tools in more detail, including their importance, features, top choices in the market, and more. What is FAQ software?FAQ software is a specialized tool designed to help businesses create, organize, manage, and publish answers to commonly asked questions.According to research by Tidio, self-service has been acknowledged by 91% of businesses as a key area for investment.By embracing the best FAQ software, businesses empower users to find answers to recurring inquiries independently.This facilitates prompt resolution and lowers the number of support tickets.FAQ software ensures that all questions receive a response and maintain consistency, especially common ones.The best FAQ software for business (2024)According to Higher Logic’s research, 79% of respondents expect companies to provide self-service support options, allowing customers to find solutions independently without needing to reach out for support.Here is a list of the best FAQ software with details of features and pricing to help you choose what fits your organization best.1. LIKE.TGThe LIKE.TG FAQ software is designed to provide clients with timely and relevant answers to their commonly asked questions, thereby ensuring a smooth support experience.This tool has made it easy for businesses to create and edit FAQ articles, categorize them for easy navigation, and integrate them seamlessly into a website or application.Starting with the generative AI-powered Copilot support, creating the best FAQ solutions has been made simple.LIKE.TG boasts powerful tools such as article summarization, AI-powered translation, an AI writing assistant, and SEO attributes.With LIKE.TG’s multilingual knowledge base support, companies can produce FAQ material in several languages to appeal to a wide range of consumers.Together with the mobile responsive platform, these two features improve the overall customer experience and make a site more accessible to customers from all countries.Powerful article editor tools, such as auto-save, multiple versioning, and instant preview, make it easy to create and edit FAQ articles.Tools such as instant search and article auto-suggestion allow end-users to easily get the information they are looking for without any strain, making their experience smoother.The platform also offers branding and customization options to match the FAQ section with the branding and design of the business, including search functionality, allowing customers to quickly find what they need.This provides analytics and reporting tools to track the performance of the FAQ solutions, identify common issues, and optimize content accordingly.LIKE.TG prioritizes security by offering single sign-on (SSO) functionality, integrating with platforms such as Office 365, OAuth 2.0, and OpenID.It also features IP restrictions and permission settings for controlling access, and it ensures compliance with AICPA SOC and GDPR standards.Ready to grant your clients instant access to the information they need with LIKE.TG FAQ software?Explore our options now with a live demo or free trial. Plus, our dedicated customer support team is here to offer assistance and guidance whenever you need it.FeaturesAI CopilotMultilingual supportPowerful article editorArticle auto-suggestionsBranding and customizationMobile responsive platformsArticle performance reporting and analyticsTemplatesInstant smart searchNo-code functionalityVersioning and version historyFile management and recoverySEO-friendlySecurity and permissionsPricingAgent-Based plansUnlimited Agents plansScale: $25 for 3 agents/monthGrowth: $50 for 3agents/monthEnterprise: $75 for 3 agents/monthEssential: $799 per monthPro: $1499 per monthBusiness: Contact us Free trial: 15 days2. Wix AnswersWix Answers is an FAQ software tool that allows businesses to create and manage a knowledge base, including FAQs, guides, tutorials, and more.Businesses can use this tool to organize and present information in a way that makes it easier for customers to locate answers on their own.FeaturesCategory managementMultilingual supportCustomizable with CSS and JavaScriptRich content editorPricingBusiness VIP: $59 per monthBusiness Unlimited: $32 per monthBusiness Basic: $27 per monthFree trial: 14 days3. StonlyStonly is an FAQ software tool that gives users guides within the FAQ, making answers easy to understand.This platform enables users to structure their content in a format that incorporates text, images, videos, and other multimedia elements.FeaturesCustomizable widgetReporting and analyticsNo-code functionalityMultilingual supportCompatibility with different devicesPricingSmall Business: $249 per month (up to 5 team members)Enterprise: Contact StonlyFree trial: 14 days4. KnowledgeOwlKnowledgeOwl is designed to simplify the process of creating and maintaining an effective FAQ section, helping businesses improve customer support and satisfaction.The platform also provides analytics to track the performance of FAQ articles and gather insights into customer behavior.FeaturesRich text editorConfigurable workflowCustomizable brandingFile management and recoveryFull-text searchPricingFlex: $79 per author/monthBusiness: $299 per author/monthEnterprise: $999 per author/monthFree trial: 30 days5. HelpjuiceHelpjuice allows businesses to produce FAQ articles, employee manuals, and guidelines with ease.Helpjuice offers analytics features that enable businesses to track user engagement and identify areas for improvement in their support documentation.FeaturesMultilingual supportFull-text editorBranding customizationContent analyticsPricingStarter: $120 up to 4 users/monthRun-Up: $200 up to 16 users/monthPremium limited: $289 up to 60 users/monthUnlimited: $659 unlimited users/monthFree trial: 14 days6. Document360Document360 is designed to allow businesses to create, manage, and present commonly asked questions with its FAQ software package.Additionally, these FAQs serve as valuable resources for customers, enabling users to find answers quickly without contacting a representative.FeaturesMultilingual supportText editorMobile responsive platformSmart searchFeedback and analyticsPricingFree: Lifetime access with limited featuresStandard: $149 per project/monthProfessional: $299 per project/monthBusiness: $399 per project/monthEnterprise: $599 per project/monthFree trial: 14 days7. GrooveGroove provides capabilities that are useful for FAQ-related work in larger customer support organizations.This FAQ tool reduces support volume by empowering users to find answers independently.FeaturesCustomization and brandingReporting and analyticsText editorPricingStandard: $16 per user/monthPlus: $36 per user/monthPro: $56 per user/monthFree trial: 30 days8. SlabSlab provides a strong knowledge management system for businesses. It simplifies organization and management by centralizing FAQs and other documentation in one location.FeaturesVersioning and version historyKnowledge sharingPage analyticsIn-content feedbackPricingFree: Up to 10 usersStartup: $6.67 per user/monthBusiness: $12.50 per user/monthEnterprise: Custom for at least 100 usersFree trial: 30 days9. SupportBeeSupportBee is an FAQ software tool that allows businesses to create, arrange, and personalize FAQ materials in a centralized knowledge base, and provide quick access to useful resources.The platform empowers businesses to deliver efficient and effective support, saving time and resources.FeaturesFull-text searchRich text editorWorkflow configurationPricingStartup: $13 per user/monthEnterprise: $17 per user/monthFree trial: 14 days10. ProProfs knowledge baseProProfs knowledge base is a software tool designed to allow users to create, organize, and update FAQs on their website or customer support portal.The platform improves user satisfaction by providing quick access to relevant informationFeaturesTemplatesCustomization and brandingReports and analyticsSecurity and permissionsPricingFree planBusiness plan: $9.99 per 100 quiz takers/monthComparison of the best FAQ softwareLet us look into our carefully designed comparison table featuring top FAQ tools, all ready and able to precisely and effectively handle your unique needs.FAQ softwareStarting priceFree trialKey featuresLIKE.TG$25 for 3 agents/month15 days15 daysAI CopilotMultilingual supportPowerful article editorArticle auto-suggestionsBranding and customizationMobile-responsive platformsArticle performance reporting and analyticsPre-made templatesInstant smart searchNo-code functionalityVersioning and version historyFile management and recoverySEO- friendlySecurity and permissionsWix Answers $59 per month14 daysCategory managementMultilingual supportCustomizable with CSS and JavaScriptRich content editorStonly$249 per month (up to 5 team members)14 daysCustomizable widgetReporting and analyticsNo-code functionalityMultilingual supportCompatibility with different devicesKnowledgeOwl$79 per author/month30 daysRich text editorConfigurable workflowCustomizable brandingFile management and recoveryFull-text searchHelpjuice$120 up to 4 users/month14 daysMultilingual supportFull-text editorBranding customizationContent analyticsDocument360Free: Lifetime access with limited features14 daysMultilingual supportText editorMobile responsive platformSmart searchFeedback and analyticsGroove$16 per user/month30 daysCustomizable knowledge baseReporting and analyticsText editorSlabFree: Up to 10 users30 daysVersioning and version historyKnowledge sharingPage analyticsIn-content feedback$13 per user/month14 daysFull-text searchRich text editorWorkflow configurationProProfs$49/author/monthTemplatesCustomization and brandingReports and analyticsSecurity and permissionsKey features to consider for FAQ softwareFor your brand self-service support to stand out, you need the help of the right FAQ solution. Below are features to consider.Multilingual supportSelect FAQ software that supports various languages if your audience is multicultural or global.By doing this, you can improve accessibility and user experience by giving information in the language that your users prefer.Customization and brandingLook for software that allows you to customize the appearance and layout of your FAQ page to match your brand’s identity and website design.Customization options may include themes, colors, fonts, and layout flexibility.Mobile responsivenessMake sure the FAQ software is responsive to different screen sizes and devices, as well as being mobile-friendly.Regardless of the device, responsive design guarantees a consistent experience.Multimedia supportThe value of your FAQs can be increased by including support for multimedia content, such as pictures, videos, or downloaded files, which can offer additional resources and visual aids to help explain difficult concepts.Reporting and analyticsGaining access to report and analytics tools lets you learn about popular search terms, FAQ performance, and user activity.You can use this data to better understand trends, enhance user experience, and optimize content.Content/text editorAdministrators may quickly generate, modify, and format frequently asked questions with this tool.Users can input text, upload media (such as photographs or videos), set text styles (such as bold or italic), and efficiently organize material.Security and privacyTo safeguard private information and user data, make sure the FAQ software complies with industry-standard security procedures.Look for features like access controls, encryption, and adherence to relevant laws (like the GDPR).Importance of FAQ software for customer supportFAQ software is important for assisting customers since it gives users the ability to self-serve and solve problems by finding answers to their queries.To keep your clients interested in your product, you must offer them outstanding service with as little human involvement as possible.Let us discuss the reasons why FAQ software is important for customer service.Reduces tickets volumeFAQ software provides quick and easy access to information and support so customers can find answers to their questions instantly without having to wait for a response from a support agent.The FAQ tool also empowers customers to solve their problems and troubleshoot issues independently, reducing frustration and improving overall customer experience and satisfaction.Saves on cost and timeBy giving users quick access to answers to often-asked questions, FAQ software facilitates customer service by lowering the need for human assistance.This reduces the workload for support employees, saving labor expenses and reducing the need for hiring more staff to handle the volume of tickets.Furthermore, a strong FAQ system saves onboarding money by reducing the amount of training new support agents must provide to address common issues.Consistency and accuracy in informationWhen customers know they can rely on the information provided in the FAQ section, they are more likely to trust the brand and its products or services.FAQ software reduces confusion and misunderstanding by ensuring that information is consistent and accurate across all channels and is up-to-date, minimizing the risk of negative customer perception of the brand.FAQ Software best practicesFor FAQ software to fulfill its intended function of giving users clear, accessible, and helpful information, it must be designed efficiently by sticking to a set of best practices.Understand your audience’s common concernsBy understanding your target audience’s traits, preferences, and difficulties, you can create FAQ material that will successfully give your customers answers.This practice not only saves time for both customers and support teams, it also enhances the overall customer experience by empowering users to find information quickly and easily.Organize your FAQ answers effectivelyAs your business grows and evolves, your FAQ section may need to accommodate new products, services, or policies.Proper organization ensures that users can easily locate relevant information and incorporate new information seamlessly without getting lost or overwhelmed by irrelevant content.This improves finding answers and reduces frustration, increasing customer satisfaction.Keep the FAQ answers clear and conciseGiving customers clear replies guarantees that they can quickly get the answers they require without having to read through long or complicated explanations.Users can better retain and recall clear, accurate FAQ solutions, reducing the number of follow-up questions.The precision and clarity of FAQ answers improves a company’s reputation and provides a satisfying, focused customer experience by projecting reliability and competence.Regularly update your FAQ answersCustomer needs, preferences, and common inquiries may change over time, or brands might have changes in their products, services, pricing, or policies.Updating your FAQs promptly helps effectively communicate these changes to your customers and ensures that the content remains relevant and addresses the most pressing questions and concerns of your customers.Additionally, updated FAQs contribute to increased customer satisfaction by providing timely and relevant information that helps users navigate the brand’s offerings.Improve your search engine optimizationYou can ensure that your FAQ tool attracts organic traffic by conducting keyword research to identify relevant search terms and phrases that users might use when looking for information related to your products or services.Incorporate these keywords naturally into your FAQ content and ensure that your FAQ content is high-quality, informative, and relevant to your target audience.How to create the best FAQ pageThere are several steps to consider when creating an FAQ database. The following is a general guide on how to write FAQ solutions.Do the necessary research and gather the most common questions from your clients.Write and assign each issue to a subject matter expert (SME) who will provide a clear, concise response.Design your FAQ so the style, voice, and tone of your page are consistent with the rest of your website by customizing it to fit your brand.Organize your FAQ page so that users can easily navigate and locate the information they need quickly.Publish your FAQ database online and make it visible to visitors.Maintain your FAQ section consistently by making updates, revisions, and enhancements over time to stay up to date with changing client demands and questions.Choosing the right FAQ software for your businessWith so many FAQ tools in the market at your disposal that offer awesome pricing or packages and more, choosing the right FAQ solution can be very challenging.The question remains: How do I know this is the right platform for my brand? Below are some tips you can use to find the best solution for your brand.Evaluate FAQ software that offers features, including content management, search capabilities, customization options, integration options, analytics, and automation.Consider the support and documentation offered by the vendor, including customer support channels, online resources, documentation, tutorials, and community forums.Ensure the FAQ software is capable of accommodating evolving needs and technology.Check the FAQ software costs, including upfront fees, subscription plans, tiers, customization, integrations, and support services that align with your budget.Research user reviews, testimonials, and recommendations from other businesses to gauge the quality and reputation of the FAQ software to make an informed decision.Frequently asked questionsThe following are examples of commonly asked questions you are likely to encounter:How are FAQs created?Answer: To build FAQs, users must first identify frequent questions and concerns they may have regarding specific topics, goods, or services.After that, a list of these inquiries is created, and each one is given a clear, understandable response.FAQs can be created using input from users, support ticket analysis or predictions about what users will require.Are FAQs the same as a knowledge base?Answer: Although their functions in supplying users with information are similar, knowledge bases and FAQs are not the same.FAQs are primarily focused on providing clear, direct answers to commonly asked questions, whereas knowledge bases are deeper data storage facilities that may also include articles, tutorials, guides, and other resources.Nevertheless, certain systems or software for FAQs may combine knowledge base and FAQ features.How can I search within an FAQ?Answer: Users can search for relevant questions and answers by entering keywords or phrases into the search tool found on many FAQ pages.The FAQ program allows users to type their inquiries into the search bar and receive relevant responses based on the terms they entered.Unlock customer support efficiency with FAQ softwareUsing FAQ software to its full potential means more than just answering questions; it means building lasting relationships and setting the path for unmatched success in the customer service industry.In the long term, this proactive approach helps firms save money by helping them effectively adapt to the shifting needs of their customers.We hope you found that this post has offered you viable options for the best FAQ solution for your company.Feel free to share your thoughts and insights in the comment section below.

Certainly, Freshdesk can prove beneficial for specific businesses, but it may not be suitable for everyone. The extensive list of features, while initially appealing, presents a major challenge, as most teams only utilize a handful of specialized capabilities, rendering the rest unnecessary.Stabilizing your customer service needs a better determination of the right help desk software for your company. This calls for understanding your needs and selecting the tools that align with them.This guide will briefly explore the top alternatives to Freshdesk, highlighting their key features, costs, and optimal use cases. Why should you look for Freshdesk Alternatives?Here are some of the reasons why consumers are looking for Freshdesk alternatives, as reviewed and updated from customer reviews, community forums, and other similar sources:Freshdesk’s sophisticated features are only accessible on higher-priced subscriptions, which may not be affordable for everyone.Some users find Freshdesk unintuitive, making it difficult to utilize efficiently.Freshdesk’s integration procedure might be tedious and time-consuming.Many customers have voiced fear that Freshdesk’s functionality may be overwhelming.These reasons make it a significant motivator for customers to seek alternatives to Freshdesk vs Zendesk.Top Freshdesk Alternatives for 2024In our list, many customer service software offers free plans or trials, allowing you to test their features and determine the best fit.Now, let’s dive into the 10 best Freshdesk alternatives and explore their key features and target audiences:1. LIKE.TGWe will, of course, toot our own horn first. LIKE.TG is a perfect help desk software alternative for Freshdesk. This is mainly because LIKE.TG is a modern, sophisticated help desk software that streamlines customer service through excellent customer support tools and self-service features.LIKE.TG includes features like:AI Copilot for customer supportRobust ticketing softwareKnowledge base softwareEfficient help desk automationExtensive help desk customizationCustomer satisfaction surveyMultilingual help deskMobile help desk appIntegrationA user-friendly customer portalTask managementInsightful reports and analyticsTop-notch securityBenefits of LIKE.TGBetter usability: LIKE.TG’s user interface is easily accessible for all its users.Unlimited agent pricing: Saves business costs by allowing unlimited agents rather than paying per agent.Free migration: LIKE.TG enables users to transfer from other customer service help desks free of charge.Best multibranding and customization support: Suitable for any business since it offers customizable customer support that users can customize according to their needs. Users can also navigate through the customer service portal to see areas they seek assistance.Emails to ticket conversion: Uses a ticketing system that enables users to track, monitor, and convert emails to tickets from customers to agents.Better customer satisfaction: Works under appropriate SLA’s thus running with the aim of satisfying customers’ needs.Multilingual help desk: Offers a multilingual help desk that bridges language barrier and enhances communication.Enhanced multilingual AI: Provides an AI feature that summarizes ticket conversion and KB articles, translates text into multiple languages, and helps in creation of SEO content articles.Efficient integration: With LIKE.TG’s integration function, users can connect their preferred tools and apps to streamline workflow, clear up clogged data, and boost productivity.Robust automation: LIKE.TG has a robust automation feature which helps in routing repetitive tasks, reducing manual effort, and increasing agent productivity.Integrated mobile help desk app: Offers an up-to-date intuitive mobile customer service app that allows users to work from any location.To know more about LIKE.TG features, refer to this video:LIKE.TG pricingLIKE.TG is a friendly help desk that saves costs for every user. Startups can enjoy free access to LIKE.TG for a full year at no cost.LIKE.TG also offers two pricing styles as follows:Agent-Based plans:Scale: $25 for 3 agents/monthGrowth: $50 for 3 agents/monthEnterprise: $75 for 3 agents/monthUnlimited Agents plans:Essential: $799 per monthPro: $1499 per monthBusiness: Contact us Number of agents: 103100Save with LIKE.TG* agent/month billed annually agent/month billed annually$240/yearScale $25 for 3 agents Additional agents at $15/moGrowth$15 for 1 agent$2,592/yearGrowth $50 for 3 agents Additional agents at $32/moPro$49 for 1 agent$4,548/yearEnterprise $75 for 3 agents Additional agents at $48/moEnterprise$79 for 1 agentTo reach out, don’t hesitate to contact the LIKE.TG support team. You can also start a 15 day free trial or arrange for a live demo.2. HubSpot Service HubHubSpot Service Hub is a cloud-based customer platform for growing businesses. It provides a suite of tools for inbound marketing, sales, and customer service with the goal of helping businesses attract, engage, and delight customers.ProsAll in one platform for marketing, sales, and customer support.Has free CRM.Easy to use.ConsNeed to pay for additional users.PricingPricing starts at $20 per month.3. IntercomIntercom is an alternative that excels in self-service support. It enables businesses to communicate and engage with their customers in real-time.It also allows businesses to have conversations with their customers at different stages of the customer journey, including customer onboarding, support, sales, and marketing.ProsSetting up Intercom takes less time.Has a robust knowledge base.Easily integrates with your website.ConsLacks in reporting and knowledge base customization compared to other options.PricingPricing starts at $99 per month.4. ZendeskZendesk is a robust customer support software suitable for enterprise companies. It is a customer service and engagement platform that provides various tools and software solutions to help businesses manage customer support, interactions, and relationships.It offers a range of features designed to streamline and enhance customer service operations.ProsServes many customization options.Has extensive and powerful reporting and analytics.Robust integration with third-party apps.Supports multiple languages.ConsQuite expensive for small businesses.PricingPricing starts at $19 per user per month.5. Salesforce Service CloudSalesforce Service Cloud is an ideal alternative for teams using Salesforce CRM. Salesforce Service Cloud seamlessly integrates with other Salesforce products to provide a better customer experience.ProsOffers extensive customization options.Easy to set up.Offers free 30-day trial.Allows integrations with over 1,000 other platforms.ConsHas no chat surveys.A bit expensive with no free plan.PricingPricing starts at $25 per user per month.6. Zoho DeskZoho Desk is a better choice for sales-focused teams. It is designed to help businesses manage and streamline their customer service operations.Zoho Desk provides a centralized platform for handling customer queries, support tickets, and other related activities. Moreover, integrating Zoho Desk with your customer service can streamline your customer service operations.ProsOffers a free plan.Provides automation on all plans.Has multiple integrations.Can be accessed on mobile (offers a mobile app).ConsCustomization can be less flexible compared to other platforms.PricingPricing starts at $18 per user per month.7. HappyFoxHappyFox is a suitable choice for teams seeking project management features. It is designed to help businesses efficiently manage and resolve customer inquiries, support tickets, and other types of requests.HappyFox provides a centralized system for tracking and organizing customer interactions, allowing businesses to streamline their support processes and enhance customer satisfaction.ProsSupports live chat.Conducts progressive surveys.Offers case management feature.ConsSome users feel the email management capabilities are insufficient.PricingPricing starts at $29 per user per month.8. Help ScoutHelp Scout is a perfect alternative for growing teams. It provides meaningful tools to enhance the user experience for customers and your team.ProsOffers an interface for tracking emails and replies.Robust tagging system.Comprehensive workflow automation feature.ConsCustomization options for the knowledge base are limited.PricingPricing starts at $20 per user per month.9. KayakoKayako is a customer service software platform that enables businesses to effectively manage and support their customers.It provides a suite of tools and features designed to streamline customer support processes and enhance the overall customer experience.ProsProvides a robust ticketing system.Has multiple departments/groups.User-friendly interface.Has an SLA Management.ConsPricing varies, and ticketing is slow.PricingContact Kayako.10. LiveAgentLiveAgent is an excellent choice for live chat support. It provides best features that increases customer support online.ProsReliable ticket management feature.Has insightful reports and analytics.Supports self-service.Has a back-end tools that make it easy to get new accounts.ConsNew features require extra pay.Complex mobile apps.PricingPricing starts at $15 per month per user.Considerations for selecting the right help deskWhile selecting the best customer service software, you need to consider different issues. The following are some of the factors to consider:Your company’s needs: First, learn what features you need. Secondly, do extensive research on the features the customer service software you want provides.Cost and pricing plans: Learn about monthly and yearly pricing plans evaluating them with your pricing plan.Customer reviews: Check on official sites and learn as you got customers’ reviews about the help desk software.Scalability: Choose a customer service software that can adapt and grow with your company. Start with a starter pack, and if it favors your growth, upgrade to growth packages or enterprise packages.Productivity: Investigate the software’s productivity. The main question you should answer is, can the software help your customer service in handling your daily routine tasks?Integration: Select a customer service software that you can integrate its features with your customer service to simplify your agents’ workload.Support: Select a customer service software that can support you 24/7.Table summary of the 10 alternatives to FreshdeskThe following is a comprehensive table summary of the top 10 Freshdesk competitors.NameFeaturesPricing planLIKE.TGAI in customer supportRobust ticketing softwareKnowledge base softwareEfficient help desk automationExtensive help desk customizationCustomer satisfaction surveyMultilingual help deskMobile help desk appIntegrationA user-friendly customer portalTask managementInsightful reports and analyticsTop-notch securityStarting at $25 for 3 agents/month.HubSpot Service hubSimple ticketingTeam mail and shared inboxReporting dashboardIntegration with sales and marketing hubStarting at $20/month/user.IntercomCustomizable messengerAutomated messagesIn-app chatTeam inboxStarting at $99/month/user.ZendeskOmnichannel SupportCustomizable DashboardsAnalyticsAI ChatbotsStarting at $19/month/user.Salesforce Service cloudAI-powered serviceCase managementIntegration with SalesforceCRMStarting at $25/month/user.Zoho DeskMultichannel supportCustomizable workflowsAI-powered chatbotsIntegrationsStarting at $18/month/user.HappyfoxTicketing systemKnowledge base creationHelp desk reportsTask management systemStarting at $29/user per month.Help scoutCollaborationCustom workflowsAutomationReportingStarting at $20/month/user.KayakoMultichannel supportCustomizable chatbotsLive chatSocial media monitoringContact Kayako.LiveAgentChat routingFile transferSocial media integrationMultilingual supportStarting at $15/month/user.Choosing the best Freshdesk alternatives!While choosing a customer service software, you need to have a clear view of the best functionalities and features, pros, cons, and pricing.In summary, the listed Freshdesk alternatives provide a range of features and pricing options to meet your company’s unique needs. By exploring these alternatives, you can find the right customer service solution that aligns with your business goals and ensures excellent customer support.If you’re looking to provide your team with a comprehensive customer service software solution that is user-friendly, affordable and provides a range of cloud-based help desk features, LIKE.TG help desk is the way to go.

Starting with the customers’ wants is the first step in understanding the experiences that they hope for from your company. If you don’t have solid information on what your clients need, how can you satisfy them? Pure guesswork will not help. Therefore, you need to rely on research conducted about the market and your competitors. Your customers will provide the most reliable information about their expectations.Many companies use customer satisfaction surveys (CSAT) to gauge customer satisfaction with their brand. These surveys also provide insight into customers’ propensity to make further purchases from the company and tell others about it.In this article, you will learn some best practices for writing CSAT surveys to improve your business. What is a customer satisfaction survey?CSAT surveys are a collection of questions used to gather different customer experience metrics from consumers to figure out their degree of satisfaction with a good, service, or company.Best practices for a perfect CSAT surveyDo you get the impression that it’s not always a good idea to ask your client to spend additional time on the phone to answer a few questions? This is because it prevents them from doing the CSAT survey on their own schedule. Most of the time, only really happy or completely dissatisfied consumers wish to share their opinions. The participation rate and, more crucially, the range of experiences are influenced by many factors around the presentation and content of a CSAT survey. Let’s look at some best practices to follow to create a good CSAT survey to raise participation rates and record a wider range of experiences.1. Provide several survey mediumsSend surveys to customers via a variety of channels, including chat and email. Instead of using real-time surveys that are offered at a time that is most suitable for the company, focus more on delayed response channels such as email or text to make it more enjoyable for consumers to take part in the survey whenever is best for them. You have a better chance of getting more responses and earning their engagement if you respect their time.2. Reduce the number of questionsAt the end of a sale or service, most customers are not disposed to taking a survey. They assume it will be long and they just want to get on with their day. Keep your survey brief—no more than three or four questions—so that they aren’t irritated by the survey. Use a survey tool that enables you to ask a few questions randomly selected from a larger pool. By doing this, you may acquire a sufficient sample size for a range of queries without overwhelming each consumer with an in-depth survey.3. Always send survey questions at an ideal timeDid you know that the success of any survey is heavily dependent on its timeliness? No one likes it when notifications pop up while they are busy doing their daily activities. Therefore, it is critical to choose an ideal time to send your surveys. Precisely, the best time to send a survey is immediately after a customer purchases your product. Similarly, you can conduct a survey after resolving a customer issue by asking questions like, “How was our customer service?” In such cases it will be easier for your customers to reply.4. Train agents to write CSAT surveysHaving a training program for creating CSAT surveys is more crucial than ever. Many organizations devote a tremendous amount of time, attention, and effort to their sales training but do not put the same amount of care into teaching agents how to write quality CSAT surveys.Identify key points that should be followed when creating a survey and make sure every agent understands them completely. For example, one of the first things to inquire about through a CSAT survey is whether the brand promises and your customers’ satisfaction line up. Knowing which questions to write and how to write them helps your company identify and work on imperfections.5. Pick the most appropriate survey metricsThere are many survey metrics you could gather. Each of these can aid your company in unique ways. Therefore, before choosing any metric to track, always identify the one that will provide the most insight into what you want to learn about your customers’ experiences. Similarly, you have to know which data can truly assist you in the development of your organization. To know more about customer experience metrics, refer to 12 Crucial Customer Experience Metrics for Your Support Team | LIKE.TG.6. Provide a reward for participation Although rewards are not a strange idea, it is rare for them to be used in CSAT surveys. Therefore, you need to be particular when offering them for completed surveys. For instance, you can use modest rewards like coupon codes for discounts on future purchases or offer an instant purchase discount.Unsurprisingly, discounts that can be applied to the purchase or service that the consumer is currently using are the most potent incentives. Moreover, it’s important to remember that customers will tolerate answering several questions more readily if the reward is bigger but be careful not to overdo it. The insights learned from the customer may not be worth the cost of the discount to the company.7. Carefully plan your survey processBefore you conduct any survey, the essential first step is to plan effectively for every process you expect to follow. For instance, you can plan for the survey to be verbal (through calls) or online (through email, dedicated forms, ticket responses, etc.), and even plan for the exact resources you need to run the survey. This helps you save time and resources since you’ll already have an image of what you want to do and how you will do it. Moreover, planning also gives you the advantage of assigning every agent their designated tasks thus easing your management load.8. Thank your consumers for their suggestionsBy carrying out CSAT surveys, you will inevitably take some course of action in response to the findings. Otherwise, why would you be doing them in the first place? Therefore, showing gratitude and letting customers know that you’ll put measures into action in accordance with their responses shows them that their feedback matters. This also promotes their continued engagement with your company. Furthermore, it shows them that you are willing to put in extra effort to meet their needs and that their needs come first.9. Use images in your surveysImages can help explain concepts that are tough to explain in words. That’s why images used sparingly and effectively can be helpful in CSAT surveys. The right images can prompt rapid understanding and boost response rates. Even something as simple as using face emojis in place of qualitative answers like “strongly dissatisfied” and “very satisfied” can be beneficial to use in your CSAT surveys.10. Measure results post-CSAT surveyBusinesses that focus on doing CSAT surveys but fail to measure customer outcomes beyond the survey end up with an incomplete picture of their customers’ experiences and satisfaction. It is therefore critical to have a final phase in which survey results are analyzed in the context of customers’ continued business with your company or lack thereof. This helps you gauge your past performance and prepare for the future.In summaryOne of the most effective ways to learn more about and understand your customers is by using CSAT surveys. The survey responses can help you improve brand awareness, customer satisfaction, and client retention. Understanding your customer’s expectations is the first step toward good customer service and a thriving business. So when writing a CSAT survey, carefully choose the questions you’ll use and pay attention to the survey design and delivery. Most importantly, be sure to utilize the feedback obtained!To enhance your success with achieving high customer satisfaction, try using LIKE.TG, modern help desk software that turns customers into fans.You can start a LIKE.TG free trial. Feel free to contact us for any inquiries.

What makes a workplace a place of work? Is it the location, the office building, the equipment, or the amenities? No, it’s the people that determine both the quality of the workplace and the future of the organization. In a 2017 study by Gallup, it was found that only 15% of the world’s one billion workers are engaged at work. It’s a downward spiral that originates with our lack of understanding of human capital management, or more specifically, employee engagement. The more engaged employees, the better it is for the organization. With effective employee engagement ideas, employees are motivated to give their best, resulting in higher profitability, better customer retention, better talent acquisition and retention, lower employee turnover, and a safer work environment. But remember: An effective employee engagement strategy is not a one-day affair. Only an ongoing process will obtain incredible results. No credit card needed Less than 5 min to set up What is Employee Engagement? Employee engagement sounds simple but goes deep. A good employee engagement strategy improves the likelihood that the relationship between the employee and the organization will be positive in nature. Engaged employees: Are self-motivated Have a clear understanding of their roles Recognize the significance of their contribution Focus on future training and development Feel that they belong to a community—that is, the organization The Benefits of an Engaged Workforce Effective employee engagement results in more motivation and better job satisfaction, and thus, a lower cost-to-value ratio for your human personnel expenditure. It goes like this: While every employee adds to the bottom line, engaged employees add that much more. This idea, also known as the service-profit chain, was introduced by Harvard researchers in the 1990s that traces business profitability and customer loyalty right back to engaged, motivated employees. Top corporate leaders know that engaged employees can help raise productivity, increase profits, enhance customer experience, foster brand loyalty, and facilitate growth. The Best Employee Engagement Strategies Below, you’ll find an outline of the steps you can take in order to ensure that the employees achieve a positive emotional connection with the organization and the work they’re assigned to do. In essence, there are three main parts: Physical: The level of complexity of work corresponds to the employees’ skill set. Emotional: Employees understand the job’s significance and put their heart into it. Mental: Employees become engrossed with their work. 1. Hire With Engagement in Mind The decisions you make during the hiring process can lead to different results in the engagement of an individual employee as well as workforce engagement across the organization. Every new hire you make has the possibility to impact how employees interact with each other, either strengthening the values of your organization or detracting from the work culture. A successful hire occurs when a new employee aligns with the organization in many different aspects, including job details as well as the company’s overall culture. Salary: Your new employee’s salary expectations should match what the company can unfailingly offer. Values: Your new hire should respect how the organization operates to attain its goals. Competency: The new hire should have the skills to meet the responsibilities of the position. Culture: The new hires should possess personal and emotional skills to be on the same page with their new colleagues and management. This doesn’t just impact current employees; new hires should be adequately prepared for their new positions, too. According to a Jobvite survey, 43% of new hires leave their jobs in the first 90 days as they felt that the role described during the process of hiring wasn’t what they experienced when they began to work. Your newest employees will evaluate their experience more carefully during the initial few weeks with your business. If you are able to provide what you promised during the hiring process, it will deepen that initial good impression and make way for employee engagement. 2. Streamline Onboarding Developing a comprehensive onboarding program can be a powerful way to improve employee engagement and support the success of new hires. A good onboarding program should: Introduce new hires to the company's mission, values, and culture: Help new hires understand the company's purpose and how they fit into the organization. Orient new hires to the organization: Provide an overview of the company's structure, processes, and systems. Connect new hires with resources and support: Ensure that new hires have access to the resources and support they need to be successful, such as training materials, a mentor, or a go-to person for questions. Provide opportunities for socialization: Help new hires get to know their coworkers and build relationships within the organization. Set clear expectations: Communicate expectations around performance, attendance, and other aspects of the job. Assess progress and provide feedback: Regularly check in with new hires to assess their progress and provide feedback to help them succeed. Your new hires are only learning to navigate the complexity and will need assistance in specific areas. Thus, your first step should be to understand their viewpoint and work towards offering an onboarding experience that will keep them engaged. According to data from ServiceNow, organizations that offer inadequate onboarding programs have twice the chance of facing employee turnover. The first impression is crucial and will have a significant impact on new employees’ expectations. 3. Clarify the Company's Mission By making the mission a central part of the corporate culture, employees are more likely to feel aligned with the company's goals and motivated to contribute to its success. When employees know the overarching goals and values of the organization, they can see how their individual roles contribute to larger objectives. To effectively communicate the company mission, management should integrate it into all aspects of the workplace, from onboarding sessions and training programs to regular team meetings and company communications. Leaders should consistently emphasize and relate back to the mission in daily interactions and decision-making processes, helping employees connect their tasks to the company's broader goals. Additionally, creating opportunities for employees to engage directly with mission-related projects or community initiatives can reinforce their commitment and understanding of the company's purpose. 4. Set SMART Goals and an Action Plan Without any goals, an organization doesn’t have a direction to follow. What does it want to achieve? What does it need to improve? What is the role of the strategy? All these questions need to be answered first. Moreover, the goals that you set need to be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely—that is, S.M.A.R.T. With tangible outcomes in mind, managers will be able to properly execute the strategy and figure out whether it is following the expected results or not Once the particular goals are in place, prepare an action plan on how to attain them. At this stage, the allocation of resources and definition of key performance indicators (KPIs) are taken care of to facilitate the measurement of progress. The effectiveness of the action plan is the responsibility of the direct supervisors. Employee engagement rates soar when they distribute the results and propose future endeavors. One of the ways to ensure this is to let your employees know how significant their contribution is. There are different ways on how to do staff recognition. Tell them how it is helping in achieving the organization’s business objectives. Simply speaking, organizations need to start making their employees feel that they matter. 5. Be People-Centric Employees are not robots; they are human. Organizations that tend to see employees as a commodity, but your employees are not another factor of production. They are prospective champions of your organization’s values and principles. Companies can become more people-centric by prioritizing employee well-being and development at the core of their business strategies. Actively listen to employee needs and feedback, providing comprehensive support systems like mental health resources, career development opportunities, and flexible working conditions. 6. Create an Office Environment Conducive to Work Giving employees a space that enhances productivity and satisfaction involves ensuring that all employees have the necessary tools, information, and training to perform their jobs effectively. First, the physical workspace should be designed to promote focus and efficiency. This means organizing workstations to minimize noise and distractions, providing ergonomic furniture, and ensuring that the office is well-lit and temperature-controlled. Adequate technology and resources, such as high-speed internet, modern computers, and effective communication tools, should be readily available to all team members. Second, maintain an open line of communication where employees can easily access the information they need and feel comfortable requesting additional support. This can be facilitated through a well-structured intranet, regular team meetings, and clear documentation of workflows and policies. 7. Offer Remote and Flexible Work Offering flexible work hours can be a powerful way to improve employee engagement and foster a positive work culture. Here are a few benefits of offering flexible hours: Improved work-life balance Increased productivity Greater employee retention Improved morale There are a few different ways you can offer flexible work hours, such as allowing employees to choose their own work schedule within certain parameters, offering flexible start and end times, or allowing employees to work remotely. 8. Promote a Strong Company Culture By prioritizing a positive and inclusive company culture, organizations can create a workplace where employees feel valued and inspired to contribute their best work. A strong company culture is built on clear values that are actively practiced and integrated into every aspect of the organization, from hiring practices to day-to-day operations and decision-making processes. Management should lead by example, embodying the company's values in their actions and communications. Regularly celebrating achievements that align with these values, such as teamwork, innovation, or customer service, can reinforce their importance. Additionally, creating opportunities for employees to connect with one another, such as team-building activities, social events, and collaborative projects, strengthens interpersonal relationships and fosters a supportive community. Lastly, encouraging open communication and feedback through town hall meetings, suggestion boxes, and regular check-ins can help maintain transparency and ensure that the culture evolves in a way that continues to meet the needs of its employees. 9. Establish a Sense of Community An organization is essentially a community; each member fulfills a specific task and serves the community as a whole. To encourage this community spirit among your employees, any engagement activity can help, from organizing a big annual event to simply taking a team out to lunch. Notwithstanding the hierarchy of the organization, it’s better to maintain a certain level of equality and unbiasedness where everyone feels they are important to the community. This philosophy is typical in the new-age technology startups where they adopt a more casual, no-walls organizational policy. Though sustaining this new business approach might be tricky, it can lead to highly engaged staff. 10. Recognize Employee Contributions Two out of three employees feel they do not get enough recognition for their work, according to Office Team data reported by Forbes. As a result, most employees will not deliver their maximum potential and may engage in unwanted behavior. And highly-trained and qualified talent will always be looking for better job offers. For this reason, it’s wise to create a recognition-rich environment where good work is rewarded with perks and incentives. At the very least, a few good words and a certificate of appreciation can go a long way in letting others feel valued for their work. 11. Invest in Career Development For many, just coming to the office, doing the work assigned, and taking the paycheck back home isn’t enough. They need to know there are sufficient growth prospects for the role they are fulfilling. If your employees feel that you don’t care about their professional development, they may begin to look for work elsewhere. Whether it’s by running a proprietary training program or sponsoring higher education for your employees, you are not only investing in the future of your company but also creating a sense of loyalty among your employees. Remember, every employee loves a company that supports them in their professional career and adds value to their personal lives. Want to retain top-notch talent in your organization? Ensure their professional growth and you will reap the benefits. Providing opportunities for employee development can be a powerful way to improve employee engagement and drive better outcomes for your business. Here are a few strategies you might consider: Offer training and development programs: Workshops, seminars, or online courses help employees learn new skills or advance their careers. Encourage continuous learning: Learning opportunities outside of formal training programs can include attending conferences, participating in webinars, or taking online courses. Set up mentorship programs: Match employees with experienced mentors who can provide guidance and support as they learn and grow. Provide opportunities for career advancement: Offer opportunities for employees to take on new challenges and responsibilities, such as leading a team or taking on a new role within the organization. Promote self-directed learning: Encourage employees to take ownership of their own development by providing them with resources and support to pursue their own learning goals. 12. Hire Quality People Managers Your secret weapon to spur employee engagement is the managers—they are the middlemen between boardroom members and the employees. In most cases, the employees interact with the top-level executives rarely, if ever, but have daily interactions with their immediate bosses. Whether they are feeling secure, angry, or ignored depends on how you manage employees. Gallup’s chairman, Jim Clifton, once said: “Employees—especially the stars—join a company and then quit their manager. It may not be the manager's fault so much as these managers have not been prepared to coach the new workforce.” While organizations can choose to educate their managers on how to better engage their employees, it’s always better to hire a capable manager first. Check their professional background and try to see if they are suited for the tricky job waiting for them. 13. Introduce Team-Building Activities Team-building activities can be a great way to improve employee engagement and foster a positive work culture. Here are a few ideas for team-building activities that you might consider:Trust-building exercises: Some of the examples include "Human Knot" or the "Trust Fall."Communication challenges: Activities that require team members to communicate effectively can help improve collaboration. Problem-solving activities: Examples might include "Escape the Room" or "Mars Mission."Outdoor activities: Getting team members out of the office can help them bond and have fun together. It can include a team hiking or camping trip, or a group outing to a ropes course or other adventure activity.Creative activities: This can be in the form of painting or art competitions, singing and dancing events, etc. It's important to choose activities that are appropriate for your team and that align with your goals for employee engagement. 14. Provide Incentives for Work Achievement Incentives can be a powerful tool for motivating and engaging employees. Here are a few ideas for incentives that you might consider Monetary rewards: bonuses, pay raises, and other financial incentives Time off: offering additional vacation days or flexible work arrangements Recognition: publicly recognize and praise employees for their hard work or send a hand-written note Professional development opportunities: training programs, mentorship opportunities, or professional certification courses. Special perks: reserved parking spot or a choice of office location Another option: a recognition and employee rewards solution, like Workmates. Our solution is customizable and offers a unique set of advantages, as an ideal recognition solution. Workmates increase employee engagement and boost productivity in the workplace. Workmates Self-Guided Tour We’ll show you how Workmates can engage everyone in your organization, transform your culture, and drive productivity to new heights. Start Now 15. Encourage Collaboration Encouraging collaboration can be a powerful way to improve employee engagement and drive better outcomes for your business. Here are a few strategies you might consider: Encourage employees from different departments or teams to work together on projects or tasks. This can help break down silos and foster a sense of teamwork. Encourage employees to share ideas and feedback with one another, and create a culture where it's safe to speak up and share perspectives. Host team-building activities or outings that encourage employees to get to know one another and work together in a more relaxed setting. Encourage a culture of collaboration and teamwork by recognizing and rewarding team contributions and successes. Utilize tools like project management software, virtual meeting platforms, and online collaboration spaces to make it easier for employees to work together and share ideas. 16. Facilitate Two-Way Communication Top business leaders generally believe in the open door policy and do not use “top-secret” information to their advantage. If organizations act secretive and only divulge information on a “need-to-know” basis, it will likely cause lower engagement rates among their employees. Transparency begets trust when employees understand how corporate decisions affect the workplace. But simply disseminating information isn’t enough. Communication should go two ways—the employees should be encouraged to share their concerns so they don’t feel ignored or unvalued. Here are a few strategies that can help your organization: Create a culture where it's safe for employees to share their ideas, concerns, and feedback. This might involve setting aside dedicated time for open discussions or establishing a suggestion box where employees can anonymously share ideas. Encourage employees to communicate openly and honestly with one another and with management. This might involve creating dedicated channels for communication, such as a team chat platform or a suggestion forum. Be open and transparent with employees about company goals, plans, and challenges. Regularly solicit feedback from employees and actively listen to their ideas and concerns. This might involve hosting team meetings or one-on-one conversations with employees. As a leader, model open and honest communication by being approachable and transparent in your own communication style. 17. Utilize HR Software Implementing HR software can be a powerful way to improve employee engagement and streamline HR processes. Here are a few ways that HR software can support employee engagement: HR software can help automate and streamline HR processes, such as payroll, benefits management, and time and attendance tracking. This can help reduce the administrative burden for HR staff and free up more time for engagement and development efforts. Many HR software platforms offer features such as team chat, task management, and document sharing, which can help facilitate communication and collaboration among employees. HR software can provide employees with access to self-service tools, such as a portal for viewing and updating personal information or requesting time off. This can help empower employees and improve their overall experience with HR. Some HR software platforms offer tools for setting and tracking performance goals, which can help employees stay focused and motivated. Many HR software platforms offer features such as learning management systems, which can help employees access training materials and track their progress. 18. Conduct Employee Surveys Circulate questionnaires and surveys that permit your employees to express their opinions and concerns. The more you ask for their opinions, the more they feel esteemed, entitled, respected, and like they belong to the organization. Conduct the survey in such a way that it will yield the most thoughtful, timely responses. The catch here is to keep the surveys short and conduct frequent employee-pulse surveys. This lets employees think properly and reply at a higher rate. Additionally, it’s a great idea to build a habit of transparency and share the results. Sharing all the data collected from surveys will demonstrate transparency and help you to engage employees. 19. Engage Departing Employees Offer appropriate transparency when offboarding an employee. Each will have their own reasons why they depart. The appropriate details provided by the team members when they depart can aid the rest of the employees in processing the change without making cynical guesswork. Apart from that, recognize your employees’ reasons why they are leaving voluntarily. When you understand and categorize the reasons employees leave, it will help your organization to improve. If any engaged employees are leaving voluntarily, stay connected with them. You can consider curating alumni networks to be in contact with past employees. It will give you access to expanded networking and employment opportunities. Plus, it might make some employees come back to your organization with new skills and experiences when new positions open up. Try Workmates Interactive Demo Click through it yourself withinteractive demo. Try It Now About the Author This article is written by our marketing team at LIKE.TG. LIKE.TG is dedicated to providing powerful solutions for your HR teams and creating an exceptional employee experience. Our aim is to help your company improve employee engagement, onboarding, and to save you valuable time!

Your customers may be negatively affected by a mistake you or your company has made, so you urgently need a crisis management strategy.Certainly, apologizing to customers is the first step taken to pacify irate customers by showing accountability for a mistake. Moreover, asking for forgiveness helps pave the way back to a smooth relationship.A sincere apology emails to customers can do wonders and even increase client loyalty when they see your commitment to their satisfaction.In this blog, we will discuss how to draft an apology letter to customers using proper and effective methods. The importance of writing effective apology emails to customersWriting apology emails to unhappy customers is an effective customer interaction strategy that can turn a negative situation into a positive one.It provides you with an opportunity to show empathy to customers and demonstrate to them that your company acknowledges its mistake, takes responsibility for it, and is committed to rectifying the situation.Sending an apology email to customers is crucial in restoring trust in your brand, reshaping their perceptions, and mending your relationship with them.Additionally, they can help to prevent the customer from sharing their bad customer service experience with others, which could potentially harm your company’s reputation.Essential tips on how to write an apology email88% of clients believe that the experience provided by a company is as significant as its product or service.Here are some straightforward guidelines on how to apologize to customers while conveying sincerity in any apology email to clients.Listen attentively and get a clear picture of the problemListening shows your willingness to find a workable solution. Ensure you understand a customer’s issue as they explain.To understand the seriousness of the issue, gather all possible information from them and ask any questions. You must do this before you apologize to customers.If you don’t know the details and just send an apology email because it’s required, your customers will know.They will become irritated because it appears that you don’t really mean the apology and don’t have enough respect to listen to them.Paying close attention to clients enables them to discuss their concerns and helps in comprehending them effectively.Providing a precise response can alleviate the customer’s frustration and allow them to listen and accept your apology.Recognize the issues’ impactRegardless of what issue the customer has, the support agent should recognize the difficulty their or the company’s error has caused the customer.If it’s a really critical issue, inform the customer that you fully realize the amount of disruption it can cause to their regular workflow process. Consequently, this will help the customer to believe that their issue is being treated seriously and real effort is being made to find a feasible solution.You should specifically acknowledge the hardship when you apologize to customers. It is your understanding and sympathetic manner that will ultimately show the customer your respect for their time.Learn from customer’s feedbackInform your customers that you have taken note of the issues they mentioned in their feedback and assure them that you are working diligently to address them.In addition, use the customer’s feedback to improve your products or services and prevent similar issues from occurring in the future.For more on reasons customer feedback is important for your business, read this blog.Think from client’s perspectiveAgents should realize that a client’s reaction is not personal. A client may have had a hard day for some other reason even before encountering an issue with your company or brands.Agents shouldn’t overreact in such circumstances. They should attempt to imagine the issue from the client’s perception.You can teach agents to pay attention to client concerns quietly and talk calmly once the clients finish speaking.Taking offense to a client’s frustration and bad attitude only worsens the situation. Knowing how to keep distance between themselves and their customers’ emotions will help their apologies be more sincere.Don’t use template responsesWhen agents apologize to customers using template apology emails that portray no concern or empathy; it hurts rather than help your company.You run the risk of losing such clients and need to consider how they might affect other potential clients if they openly express their opinions.You cannot afford to allow negative reviews to spread in social media sites. In these circumstances, an apology email to clients and acknowledgement of the error are essential.Avoid sending any apology emails to customers with these types of templates.We apologize for the inconvenience; our team is investigating.I’m sorry for the trouble.I apologize for the negative experience. To speak with a support representative, dial this number.Take responsibility and be serious in your effortsWhen dealing with a furious and unhappy customer, apologize to customers well. Remember that you are representing your company as a whole, not just one individual.Act appropriately because his response will depend on what you do. It doesn’t matter if you weren’t the cause of the problem.The client wants a company representative to accept responsibility before offering a workable solution.ToneIt’s crucial to get the apology’s tone right to express that you sincerely understand your customer’s perspectives and you are making an effort to resolve their problem.So, as you assure the client that you will personally handle the issue,Be firmProfessionalUpbeatDefinitely, this positive approach will let them relax while understanding that their problem is still being taken seriously.Assure and ensure it won’t happen againYou’ve dealt with a consumer who has already wasted enough time trying to get the right solution. Subsequently,You’ve taken care of their issueExpressed regretSucceeded in keeping themNow is the time to reassure them that no one else will have the same problem and to thank them for helping to improve your product or service, if applicable.In order to make your reassurance truth, it’s crucial that you conduct a complete root cause investigation of the issue with all relevant internal teams.Follow upYou should follow-up with your customer to see if all problems have been resolved and if they are receiving the best customer service possible.Consequently, by following up, you can convert a disgruntled consumer into a loyal one of your brand.Read our blog to learn more about customer follow-up strategies.10 Examples and templates of apology letters to customersDelivering exceptional customer service involves not just meeting expectations but also taking responsibility when things go wrong.The following list contains examples of apology emails to customers to help you effectively express regret and initiate damage control. You should, of course, always seek advice from your company’s legal team for any serious issues.1. Apology letter for mistakesYou can send the following apology email to customers to seek their forgiveness for any mistake you may have made, for instance, miscommunication, undelivered emails or messages, or unexpected changes in policies or terms of service.Apologies for Our MisgivingsDear [Customer Name],We are extremely sorry for [List the issues and issue details with date]. We understand how this must have affected your operations.We will take the necessary measures to ensure that such an issue never reoccurs.Thank you for your patience.Sincerely, [Your Name]2. Apology letter to an unsatisfied customerWhen you distribute surveys to customers and receive negative responses, it’s crucial to follow up with those who provided the negative feedback. You can utilize the customer apology email example below to express your appreciation for their feedback and delve deeper into the cause of their discontent.Apologies For Falling Short of Your ExpectationsHi [Customer Name],Thank you for sharing your feedback with us. We are sorry to learn that you are unhappy with our [List product details]. To help us improve our product, we’d appreciate it if you could take a moment to let us know what led to your poor experience.We would love to have a chance to serve you and our other customers better in future. We look forward to your response.Thank you,[Your Name]3. Mass apology letterCertain actions carried out by your business can affect a large number of customers. This could happen if, for instance, you disseminate inaccurate information to your clients through email. To rectify such a situation, you can use this mass apology email and update the addresses of your customers.An Update on [Issue at hand]To our valuable [Company name] customers,In our previous email, we stated that [incorrect info]. In fact, [correct info].We would like to apologize for any inconvenience the incorrect information in that email might have caused you.Rest assured, [Company name] is committed to preventing such occurrences in the future. Our goal is to provide you with the best service possible. We appreciate your patience and continued support.Best regards,[Your name]4. “Sorry for the late response” apology emailIt is commonplace to receive customer complaints along the customer journey. How fast you respond and apologize for the inconvenience can have a significant impact on the situation.You need to demonstrate that you respect their time and take their issues seriously. You can use the following apology email to customers for delaying to respond:Sorry for the Late ResponseDear [Customer Name],Although we strive to provide the best customer experience, it’s evident we’ve fallen short in this instance, with our late response to your issue.Please accept our heartfelt apologies for the frustration and stress this must have caused while you waited for us to get back to you.We have created a support ticket of your issue with top priority, and our team is currently working on it. Your issue is to be resolved within [Give duration]. Thank you for understanding.Sincerely,[Your Name]5. Apology follow-up emailAfter saying sorry and proposing a solution to a customer’s problem, it is recommended to follow up with an email to confirm that the issue was fully resolved.You can use the following customer apology email as a follow-up.Follow-Up on [Issue]Dear [Customer Name],We trust that the solution we offered has successfully resolved the issue you reported. We assure you that we will take every possible measure to prevent its recurrence.Your feedback is invaluable to us, and we encourage you to continue sharing your thoughts on how we can enhance our services. Should you have any more questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us.Thank you once again for your patience and cooperation as we worked through resolving your issue.Sincerely,[Your Name]6. Apology letter for shipping a defective productCustomers’ expectations can be completely shattered upon receiving a defective product. The product may have been damaged during delivery or simply been of poor quality. Regardless of the circumstances, it is essential that you apologize to the customer for the negative experience.You can deploy the following customer apology email:Apology for the Inconvenience Hello [Customer Name],We want to sincerely apologize for the inconvenience you experienced when you received a defective product as part of your order [Order ID] on [Delivery date].Assuring the quality of our products is of utmost importance to us, and we ensure that our products meet high standards before dispatching them. We have informed our quality control and logistics teams about this issue to prevent such instances in the future.To rectify this error, we would like to extend the following options to you:We can arrange for the same product to be shipped to you immediately at no extra cost.Provide a full refund through this form.Please feel free to reach out if you need any further assistance or have any other questions. We greatly appreciate your patience during this time.Best Regards,[Your Name]7. Apology letter for when an agent was unfriendly or impoliteIt is only normal that, in the course of business, an agent might have been unfriendly to a customer. This following customer apology email will help you make amends and possibly retain the client.Apology for Unprofessional ConductDear [Customer Name],We deeply regret hearing about your unsatisfactory encounter with a member of our team. We appreciate you alerting us to this issue. Please accept our heartfelt apologies for this circumstance.Please be aware that our customer service teams consistently participate in training programs to ensure they are equipped to assist customers in a professional and empathetic manner. While such incidents are uncommon, we strive to prevent them from happening in the future.Should you have any questions or further comments, please feel free to contact us at [Your contact number].Regards,[Your Name]8. Apology email for delivering a product lateAt times, unexpected events such as unfavorable weather conditions or accidents may result in delayed product delivery to customers. This can undermine customer confidence in your brand and may even lead them to cease doing business with you. In such instances, you can utilize this customer service apology email template to manage these situations effectively.Apologies for Late Product DeliveryDear [Customer Name],Our sincerest apologies for the delay in delivering your order for [Product Name/ID]. We acknowledge it was supposed to reach you on [Promised Delivery Date]. Regrettably, unexpected technical issues prevented us from achieving this.Rest assured, your product will be delivered by [New Delivery Date]. We greatly value your patience during this time.Sincerely,[Your Name]9. Apology letter for scheduling conflictsThere are instances when staff members might have overlapping appointments with clients, necessitating prioritizing one over the other. This can lead to customer dissatisfaction and potential damage to your brand’s image. To handle such situations, consider using the following sample apology email.An Update on Your Next Appointment Dear [Customer Name],I regret to inform you that [ team member] unfortunately has an unforeseen conflict and is now unavailable for your scheduled appointment on [date].We’d like to work with you to find a new suitable date and time. Kindly visit our [website/app or give us a call] to choose an alternative date and time that work for you.We apologize for the inconvenience. Thank you for your understanding and flexibility, and we look forward to seeing you soon.Sincerely,[Your Name]10. Apologizing for an unexpected disruption in serviceWhenever your business experiences unpredicted disruptions such as website downtime, it’s recommended to send apology emails to customers as quickly as possible. Doing so can alleviate the burden on your support agents of managing numerous calls and emails inquiring about the incident.You can use this sample apology email to communicate your regret and inform customers about the outage.We’re Sorry for the Unexpected [Outage type]Dear [Customer name],We apologize for the inconvenience, but we are presently dealing with [Outage details]. If you’ve attempted to access our website in recent hours, you likely encountered [an error]. Our team of experts is working diligently to rectify the problem and restore the website to full functionality as swiftly as possible.We anticipate the issue to be fully resolved by [Mention time]. We sincerely apologize for any trouble this outage might have caused you and appreciate your continued trust in shopping with us!Sincerely,[Your Name]Rebuild customer relations with a heartfelt apology emails to customersEvery business makes mistakes. However, how you choose to handle these errors can distinguish your company from your competitors.Use these strategies in your customer apology emails to customers and observe the understanding they create.Try using LIKE.TG, which helps you to manage customer issues and store templates easily in your customer support.Check out our LIKE.TG free trial to see how it can improve your support operations. Schedule a live demo with one of our product experts to explore how LIKE.TG can be tailored to meet the specific needs of your business.For any questions, please contact our LIKE.TG support team.

The worst mistake a company or a manager can ever make is making their employees not as productive as they could be! Research has indicated that over 55% of professionals in India feel stressed at work (source: LinkedIn survey). Work-life balance (34%), discontent with the incomes (32%), and unsatisfactory career growth (25%) are the significant factors that gang up on and overwhelm employees. To say nothing of adjusting to remote working environments made it hard for many to swim with the tide during the pandemic. There is a mile-long chasm between employees' wants and what they are getting to cope with stress in their working environments. (Unfortunately, this happens pretty often!) Employees are falling into the abyss of stress and productivity. Stress: Something more than the loss of productivity at work A small amount of stress is good in the workplace, but sometimes it gets overwhelming. On-job stress can affect a person's capabilities and productivity and lead to higher incidences of making blunders at work. Before you get into the solutions of helping employees deal with stress, here are some of the benefits of low-stress work environments: Lower company costs: Excessive and constant stress can lead to burnout. Which, then, has the potential to break your business down. A study by Mental Health America indicates that workplace mental health problems result in as much as USD 500 billion of lost productivity annually. Reduced absenteeism: It is a duck soup to understand that a healthier mind and body leads to lesser leaves and better engagement of the employees with the company. When employees know how to train their minds, they tend to be more punctual at their workplace due to increased focus. Higher retention rate: Employees tend to stick to a company longer when they know their employers care for their mental health and well-being. Thus, leading to a lower attrition rate. Improved performance: Too much stress is a monster! It reduces creativity, drains energy, and makes it hard to focus on the task at hand. Connected company culture: The number of overstressed employees is directly proportional to the degree of happiness at the workplace. The employees feel more connected to the companies when they feel that their mental and physical health is being taken care of at their workplace. Employers need to examine the environment they are creating for them and the source of the stress for their employees. As a leader, here is how you can help your employees bring down the tensity at work. 10 tips for reducing stress at work Use these tips for enhancing your work environment to reduce stress: What Is A Recruitment Strategy, And Why Do You Need It? The fundamental definition of a recruitment strategy is the plan that explains what role you are hiring for, how much time you have, what tools you are going to use, and the requirements for successful candidates. When it comes to recruitment strategies, the "one size fits all" approach doesn't work. Depending on your company's goal, the time frame, and other factors, the right recruitment strategy may differ from case to case. Therefore, instead of having a specific path in mind that you follow in every situation, you may want to develop creative ideas that can streamline your recruitment process. However, all these ideas need to follow your company's overall goal, be implementable, and be easy to communicate. If carefully planned and implemented, recruiting strategies will help you position yourself in the job market as a reliable employer, helping you attract the people you are looking for. 1. Employee engagement is your secret weapon ResearchandMarkets shows that the global employee engagement and feedback software market is poised to reach USD 1,908.3 million by 2027 at a CAGR of 11.8% from 2021-2027. The market research indicates the growing trend of employee engagement across a broad spectrum of industries. Quizzes and hackathons are the blockbusters for employee engagement activities, but Business Simulation games are the new disruption in the market. They are now extensively used by corporations to educate, train and engage their employees. To put it simply, business simulation games give insights into the management process by providing real-world scenarios. Combining learning with gamified virtual programs and engagements eventually upskill the employees and improve their focus on everyday tasks. Inquizitive, an organization-wide quiz contest by Reliance and Ideathon, a collection of various challenging and exciting activities by Mahindra First Choice Wheels, are the perfect examples of how to engage employees. 2. Give your listening skills a workout Wrap your head around a simple fundamental principle - Don't hear, listen. Perhaps, the most basic and essential way to connect to your employee is to listen. Invite employees for open discussions or one-to-one meetings; talk about their challenges and concerns. This way, you narrow down their source of stress and take the necessary steps to cope with the stress. Great leaders like Satya Nadella (CEO, Microsoft) and Jens Hofma (CEO, Pizza Hut) believe in respectful, believable, and honest communication with their employees. 3. Setting goals: Begin with the end in mind Realistic and attainable goals help employees unlock a positive mindset, release creative ideas, and energy for goal attainment. Showing them how to plan, strategize and set similar pragmatic goals can ensure that the employees understand what's expected of them. It will help them save time, improve their performance, and strengthen the business. SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-based) framework is one such way to help them unleash their best potential and relieve stress at work. 4. Let's accept - surroundings influence productivity Studies show that changing the work environment and aesthetics has a positive effect on the employees. Get your creative juices flowing and play around with the setting of the office. Make the office a little more alive by getting plants, creating opportunities for movement, building a break room, and designing a layout that meets your employers' needs. For instance, Google offices make sure that their employees can relax and refuel during breaks. Fun fact: Do you know that Google has kitchens everywhere? Yes, because nobody is allowed to be more than 100 meters away from food! 5. Frustration happens; it's okay to conduct venting sessions! "I just cannot take this job anymore." Everyone has been there, done that! Yes, sooner or later, employees can become saturated and disengaged and end up venting out emotions to their colleagues. It can spread negativity and bring down the morale of the entire team. But when done right, it can work wonders. Here's how. Organize workplace venting sessions where employees can post their concerns anonymously. However, on the other hand, motivate them to come up with solutions. This will meet their need to be seen and heard and help them focus on their work better. 6. Your office should not feel like a cell; give flexibility After experiencing a remote work environment for more than a year, everyone knows that workplace flexibility now dominates the future of work. Instead of babysitting the employees, allow them to select their schedules and mode of working. This freedom will help them create a work-life balance and will make them feel less stressed. Netflix outshines big names like Google and Apple when it comes to flexibility and convenience. Known for supporting its employees in their professional and personal lives, Netflix benefits programs are centered around creating flexibility for employees. 7. Implement mindfulness in the workplace Charting a purposeful path to the next normal should be a pressing priority for every firm irrespective of its size, which can be achieved by practicing mindfulness. Intuit, an American business specializing in financial software, is an ideal example of implementing mindfulness at the workplace. Their Well Minds program promotes mindfulness and resilience by providing tools to help calm the minds of their employees so that they can perform better. Further, their one-to-one counseling support helps with stress management. 8. Recognized employees are equivalent to happy employees As a leader, it is vital to understand the principles of employee recognition and motivate others in the team to practice it in the workplace. Be on the lookout for opportunities to praise your employees. It will not only help them increase their productivity but also lead to higher retention of quality employees. Try your hands on verbal recognition and written compliments, organize group lunches, or give them gift cards/bonuses! 9. Healthy snacking (nom, nom) Healthy snacking has long been a cornerstone of reducing stress. Educate your employees about healthy snacking and make sure they have access to such stress-buster food at work. Here are some suggestions for foods to snack on that can ease off the work stress: Berries Citrus fruits Dark chocolates Nuts Yogurt 10. Practice vulnerable leadership Showing your vulnerable side at work is not a weakness. Don't shut people out and let your authenticity stay intact because it is human nature to trust authentic people more. Remember, when the employees don't trust the manager, the company suffers. Admit your mistakes, take criticism, have an open-door policy, and connect with your team. Be a modern leader! These are some ways you can try to eliminate stress from the employees and make your company a great place to work. Remember, your people are your product. Take time out to focus on the well-being of your employees, and they will reciprocate a thousand times! Author Bio: Dare2Compete, Dare2Compete lets recruiters gamify learning, engagements, and hiring while connecting them with students, professionals, educators, and other learners.

At some point, we all have been a new customer at a company and got a warm reception. But what differentiates a good first impression from a memorable one?It’s the welcome message that makes you feel like you’ve made the right decision. The impact of a well-written welcome message in setting the tone for any relationship cannot be underestimated.Let’s discuss the value of welcoming messages, how to write them, and how they can help establish enduring relationships. What is a welcome message?Welcome messages are simple messages sent to new customers when they create an account or visit your website for the first time.Welcome messages can be much more than just friendly greetings because of their flexibility. They present an opportunity to make a connection with your target audience.A welcome message sent to a new customer will serve as the starting point for all future interactions with them.Welcome messages, whether sent by text, email, or your website, assist in creating a good first impression and set the tone for further communications.How to write a welcome message for customersA few basic principles need to be followed while writing a welcome message to make sure it is interesting, informative, and sets the proper tone for your connection with the receiver.Start with a warm greeting and show appreciation for their purchase or subscription to make your customers feel comfortable and valued.Introduce your business and highlight key benefits clearly and what to expect. Offer support and contact information.Close on a positive note that shows your excitement and readiness to help.Other guidelines for creating effective welcome messages:Make your message short and to the point.Use a friendly and approachable tone.Tell your customers how to get started.Make sure you address the recipient appropriately.End your message with anticipation of a long-lasting relationship.These steps will contribute to strengthening customer relationships and improving brand perception.Welcome message templates and examplesA well-crafted welcome message can do wonders for building a positive customer relations with new clients.Compose a welcome message that not only informs but also engages customers, setting the stage for a positive and long-lasting relationship.The following are pieces of a good welcome message examples that can be combined as appropriate for your business.Warm greetingNew customers don’t want to feel like just a number added to a company list. They expect to be acknowledged as individuals in their every interaction with the business.Best practices:Addressing your customers by their names makes the greeting feel more comfortable.Use a friendly tone to make the recipient feel welcome and appreciated.Keep the greeting short and to the point, ensuring it is easy to read and understand.Example:Hello [Customer’s Name],Welcome to our community!GratitudeCustomers want to feel valued from the start. A simple welcome message to customers that says thank you for choosing your company shows that you appreciate their decision.Best practices:Make it clear that their presence or business is important to you.Show excitement for the current relationship and future engagements.Personalize the message, if possible, with something specific about their interaction so far.Example:We appreciate that you chose us for your [product/service]. We value your trust and confidence in us.IntroductionWhen customers interact with your business for the first time, you should tell them a little about the company.Your welcome message should be able to provide a clear understanding of what you offer, in case they did not grasp the breadth of it.Prepare them to take full advantage of all the benefits that come with a relationship with your company.Best practices:Give a brief overview of your company or product.Highlight the main benefits the customer will receive from your product or service.Tell the customer what to expect: e.g., a follow-up email or onboarding process.Example:Hello [Customer Name],Welcome to the [Company name] family, where we take great satisfaction in helping people like you achieve [Desired outcome] through our [Products/Services].Here is what awaits you:[Benefit 1]: We offer [Specific feature/service] that will help you [Specific positive outcome].[Benefit 2]: Enjoy the convenience of [Specific feature/service], which allows you to [Specific positive outcome].Your success is our priority.Regards,Give customers clear instructionsCustomers sometimes need a guide through their initial stages to ensure they feel supported and informed.The goal of the next step is to make it easy for new customers to get started and have a positive experience.Your welcome message can include links and simple steps customers need to take, such as account activation.Best practices:Give the consumer links to all the information they need to use your product or service.Use a numbered list to organize any step-by-step instructions.Example:Hello [Customer Name],Greetings from [Service Name]! It’s a pleasure to have you join us. To get started with our service:Sign in: Using your registered email address, log into your account [here].Create a profile: Complete your profile by adding the requested information [here].Familiarize yourself with our features: Check out our [Features Page] to learn more about what we have to offer.You can now get things going and [use the product]Resources and supportYour welcome message should cater to different learning styles by providing a mix of resources such as FAQs, tutorials, videos, and user guides, along with contact details for customer care, and encourage them to get in touch if they need assistance.This ensures they have a smooth and positive experience from the start, making it easier for them to engage with your business.Best practices:Link to detailed guides and tutorials.List all available support channels.Provide links to your social media accounts for additional tips and updates.Example:Hello [Customer Name],Welcome to [Your Company]! It’s a pleasure having you on board. To help you get started, here are some resources we think you’ll find useful:User guide: Our comprehensive user guide [link] will walk you through everything you need to know.FAQs: Find answers to common questions in our FAQ section [link].Support: Our support team is here to help. Contact us via email at [Email address], call us at [phone number], or start a live chat support [link].Community: Join our community forum [link] to connect with other users and share your experiences.Social media: Follow us on [Social media platform] for updates and tips: [handle].If you need any assistance, don’t hesitate to reach out. We’re here to make your experience with [Your Company] as smooth and enjoyable as possible.Best regards,Encouragement and reassuranceGetting started with a business might be anxiety-inducing. Customers may be unsure about using your goods or service and may have questions or concerns.A well-drafted welcome message that reassures customers can soothe these fears and create a more welcoming atmosphere.Best practices:Clearly state the benefits they’ll gain.Encourage them to participate actively, reassuring them that their involvement is valuable and appreciated.Reassure them that help is readily available.Example:Hi [Customer Name],Welcome to [Company/Community]! We’re thrilled to have you with us. We’re here to support you every step of the way. If you have any questions or need assistance, don’t hesitate to reach out to our support team.—-We’re excited to see all the great things you’ll achieve here!Warm regardsPersonalizationCustomers value a level of care and attention that goes beyond ordinary greetings. If applicable, customize your welcome message to showcase how your products or service can address their specific needs.Best practices:Address your customer by name.Be specific by mentioning how they joined and what products they bought.Use a friendly and inviting tone.Example:Hi [Name],Welcome to [Company]!We’re excited to have you join our community.—Feel free to explore our [specific feature of what they purchased] and let us know if there’s anything we can do to help you get started.Thanks for choosing us, [Name].Call to actionEncourage the customer to take specific actions in your welcome message, such as reading about specific features, making a purchase, or joining a community.Best practices:Clearly state what you want your customers to do next, e.g., join a forumUse short, punchy phrases that are easy to remember and act on.Example:Hello [Customer Name],—Ready to streamline your workflow? Check out this tutorial on how to make the most of [top feature].Engage a returning customerAlthough a welcome message may be designed for new customers, a returning customer equally deserves a warm re-engagement.A simple “Welcome back” with their name shows you remember them, making them feel they are valued.Best practices:Thank them for their continuing interest and acknowledge their previous business.Use past purchase history or preferences to suggest relevant products or helpful content they might enjoy.Make it as simple as possible for them to proceed. Provide buttons or links that take users straight to the information or product they would find interesting.Example:Subject: Welcome Back to [Your Brand], [Customer’s Name]!Welcome back to [Your Brand]! We’re thrilled to see you again and appreciate your continued trust in us.To show our gratitude, we’re excited to offer you an exclusive [discount/offer] on your next purchase. Simply use code WELCOME20 at checkout to enjoy 20% off!Ask for feedbackWhen a customer interacts with your business for the first time, you might want to know how they heard about you.Your welcome message can humbly request this information, as long as it’s easy and optional for the customer to comply.Best practices:Keep the feedback request short and focused on specific areas.Express gratitude for their willingness to help you improve.Example:Subject: We Value Your FeedbackHi [Customer’s Name],Welcome to [Your Brand]!We’re so happy to have you here and are eager to give you the greatest experience we can.Would you mind taking a minute to let us know how you discovered us and how we’re doing? Your opinions will drive our improvement.(Insert link to survey here)Why are welcome messages important?A well-crafted welcome message is a simple yet powerful tool for creating a memorable and positive customer experience, ultimately contributing to their satisfaction.Boost customer engagementWelcome messages can effectively guide customers to explore your products, services, or platform features.By offering helpful information and clear calls to action, you can encourage new users to engage with your offerings, boosting their familiarity and comfort.Create a good first impressionAn effective welcome message creates a favorable first impression. These messages set the tone for further communications and reassure customers that assistance is readily available.Customers who have a good first impression of your brand are more likely to return, as well as give you the benefit of the doubt if something goes wrong.Improve customer experienceA polished and professional welcome message puts your customers at ease. Inviting customers to join customer communities or loyalty programs creates a sense of connection and belonging.A focus on client feedback or incidents creates a sense of community and shared experiences.Personalization shows that your customers are not just numbers. All of this contributes to a good customer experience.Set your company apart from competitorsWith an attractive welcome message that highlights your unique value and customer-focused approach, you can stand out in a crowded market.Created to make an impact, it’s important to make a name for yourself and develop deep relationships.Additionally, providing special offers or resources offers value and encourages gratitude and a sense of belonging right away.Provide important information to customersIt’s common for new customers to need assistance in getting started with your services.Welcome messages are a great method to give consumers important information that will help them navigate their purchase efficiently, such as product feature guides, account creation instructions, or tips.Customers will feel appreciated and supported when they receive a well-written welcome message that attends to their needs.A happy customer journey is made easier by this favorable first encounter, which also raises the possibility of repeated business and referrals.Welcome messages for a better customer experienceTo improve consumer engagement and make a good first impression for your company, write a welcome message that works.You can establish trust with your visitors, encourage them to investigate your offers, and create the foundation for a long-lasting customer connection by crafting warm, customized, and helpful messages.Are you ready to write interesting welcome messages that make a lasting impression? Put these strategies into practice right now, and use LIKE.TG to keep all your customer communication organized.Feel free to schedule a live demo or free trial to get you started. Contact us if you need any help or have any questions.I hope this blog post was helpful. Feel free to share your insights in the comment section below. Your feedback will be highly appreciated.

Hiring the top available talent is a challenge to this day. It doesn’t matter whether you are an HR professional or an HR manager or a recruiter, it is pretty normal to find yourself swamped with challenges involved in the recruitment process. These days recruitment is more than only posting a job vacancy and hoping that the ideal candidate will apply. It is all about optimizing and streamlining the whole process right from job requisition to the actual job offer. Here are some common recruitment challenges and their solutions. Attracting and engaging the best talent: More than 70% of the HR team members spend valuable time trying to figure out the best available candidate for their roles. They spend an endless amount of time going through the CVs only to find that none of them is a perfect match. To avoid this problem, you need to go back to the beginning to create job descriptions that are engaging to try and convert the top available talent. You need to avoid overused jargon, gender bias, and outdated job requirements. Raise and extend the candidate reach: One of the common problems involved in recruitment is reaching the right candidates. You need to broaden the talent pool and improve job visibility. However, due to scarce resources and tools, this can be difficult for the hiring teams. You need to have a remote recruitment strategy in place for this. There are hiring platforms available with a wide range of free and paid job boards. It is easy to cross-post on several channels and it is hassle-free. Management of candidate influx: This challenge is present for all the recruiters struggling to find a proper balance between decreasing the time for recruitment and managing hundreds of resumes. After the impact of COVID19 subsides, the recruiters will be faced with a flood of inbound candidates. It can be overwhelming especially when there are no right resources available for managing and optimizing the incoming applicants. You can use an applicant tracking system to optimize the hiring process. Maintaining a top employer brand: Employer branding these days is an essential component of the recruitment process. However, several companies out there are not leveraging this. Many companies are struggling to maintain a positive employer brand. They use lackluster candidate communication, outdated processes, inefficient interviews, and lengthy application forms for their HR practices. You need to grab the attention of your candidates and show them why they should select you as an employer. Providing an enjoyable candidate experience: If a candidate is faced with a negative experience, they will not only reject an offer but will also have many bad things to say about a company online. There are these kinds of challenges involved in the recruitment process and the hiring teams need to concentrate on them. The recruitment process is the first real contact made by the candidate with your organization. Ensure that you live up to their expectations. A dreary and slow process is where the top talent will be lost. Ensure a human touch: Technology has a crucial role to play in the hiring process. Most recruiters are relying on it after the advent of remote work. Technology allows them to optimize all the recruitment functions at the back end. However, on the front end, a human touch is necessary. You do not want the candidates to feel that they are interacting with machines and robots. You need to add a human touch to the entire process. You can use video assessment for helping you out. Hiring quickly: Most hiring teams are looking to hire new talent as quickly as possible. This is because these vacant situations can cost you a lot of money and they also result in a delay in operations. Still, depending on your area of operations, sometimes recruitment can take many months. This puts additional pressure on the frustrated hiring teams and recruiters. Taking a long time to recruit someone might be a by-product of talent shortage as qualified candidates are not available many times. Sometimes, the recruitment process goes on for a long time or many times the hiring teams struggle to agree. This can cause the best candidate to find a good job elsewhere. For avoiding these delays, you need to consider your recruitment process and ask yourself, are these hiring stages really necessary? Are we looking for candidates in the right areas? Are we working towards filling the vacancy with candidate pipelines? Are we communicating fast enough with each other and the candidates? All these queries can be replied to by using the recruitment metrics from the ATS or Applicant Tracking System you own. Many times, it is pretty natural to take a long time to hire. This is true especially when you are hiring difficult-to-fill roles. Explain this situation to the recruiting team and set your expectations early on. Make them aware of what a realistic timeline is. Highlight the significance of recruiting carefully for roles when a bad hire may cost a lot of money. To learn more about recruitment methods, download our ebook now. Download now Use of data-driven hiring: Businesses may use recruitment data and metrics for continuous improvement in their recruitment process and for making informed decisions. However, the collection and processing of data can turn out to be a big hassle. Maintaining spreadsheets is one of the ways of tracking all recruitment data. However, these methods are subject to human errors and they can be non-compliant. This makes it difficult to track the data and trends properly. The hiring teams have to find ways of compiling and efficiently organizing the data and streamlining the operations. You may store data and use systems such as ATS for exporting helpful reports. You can also utilize recruitment marketing software or Google Analytics for this purpose. There is no need to track all the available recruitment metrics. You can conduct a conversation with the senior management for settling for some key metrics that will make sense to you and your organization. Develop a strong employer brand: Having a good employer brand helps attract and engage better talent. Companies that can invest in employer branding have a better chance of making a high-quality hire. Still, this is a complicated process that includes many things such as making sure that, the candidates are receiving a positive experience with your organization. This promotes the culture of your organization over social media. This is a collective and continuous effort that needs you to come out of your normal duties and then secure buy-in from co-workers. Keep in mind to reply courteously to online reviews which can either be good or bad. Provide the means to the co-workers allowing them to tell your story about their work and what they enjoy doing. For instance, they may enjoy the experience if you use videos and blogs. Above all, you need to be projecting yourself as a good employer and it shows. Fair recruitment: There are several organizations out there that struggle to hire and attract a diverse set of candidates. The main reason for this problem is an unconscious bias for the candidates. It is mandatory to provide equal opportunity to all the candidates but not only that it is necessary to recruit objectively. It helps hire the most suitable candidates for a job without having to face the interference of stereotypes. It will result in having an all-inclusive workplace that displays to the prospective candidates that you have a meritocracy in your organization. It also allows you to benefit from the positive aspects of having diversity. You need to use objective hiring techniques such as remote recruitment strategies for this such as structured interviews or working with an international PEO firm. Conclusion You might feel a bit daunted by all these things. However, some of these recruitment challenges are common in many workplaces and at some point, in time you will face them. All recruitment teams have a fair share of challenges therefore, you should not feel discouraged if you are faced with them as well. By using these solutions, you can overcome the recruitment mountains and stay ahead of the curve as they say. If you are facing more problems than just some of these recruitment challenges, you can get help from hiring platforms to automate the hiring process.

Providing the best customer service has become a key target for most businesses. When clients have a great experience with the customer service of any company, they tend to stay loyal to its brand.The standards of customer service that your business offers determine your customers’ satisfaction.Any slight customer service mistakes can make clients switch to your competitors’ brands. Clients always opt to do business with companies that value and service them best.For this reason, it is vital to know the mistakes in customer service you’re making and strive to fix them.This article discusses the most common customer service mistakes for any business and the solutions to curb or do away with them. Reasons for correcting customer service mistakesClients are inclined more toward companies that provide the best customer service experiences.When the level of customer service decreases, they often opt for competitors that offer better experiences. This leads to a decrease in the growth rate since profits will decrease.The following reasons are the driving force for always correcting customer service mistakes.a. Increase customer satisfaction levelWhen clients have a smooth experience with your customer service team, with fewer or no mistakes, they become more satisfied with the services you offer.b. Increase customer retention rateCustomers love quality customer service. The better the quality of the service, the higher the chances of these clients sticking to the brands of the same company. Customers will always choose the company that offers value.c. Increase in overall performance of a companyAn increase in customer satisfaction leads to client loyalty to a company. This translates to an assured increase in the way the business performs as profits increase.d. Improve business reputation on online platformsClients are the best free marketers of any business since they have actual experience with the company.When their customer service experience is good, they will recommend it to others.Equally, if the level of customer service is poor, they will discourage others from doing business with the company.Common customer service mistakesCompanies strive to provide exemplary customer service to their clients. However, mistakes are bound to happen that will make clients not have the best experience.These customer service mistakes include:1. Not actively listening to customersA Microsoft study reveals that brands that actively solicit and appreciate customer feedback are viewed more positively by 77% of consumers.Having great active listening skills is key in customer service. Support agents should listen to and consider their clients:OpinionsComplaintsSuggestionsFeedbackThis will help them to get insight into what these clients prefer or need.For this reason, the support team should listen and take the right and necessary actions.In addition, support agents should also listen keenly in order to provide the right answers or responses to clients’ questions or concerns.This will ensure continued customer satisfaction.2. Not training your customer support team often leading to customer service mistakesOne common customer experience mistake is a lack of proper, adequate, and regular training for agents.When the support team has limited resources to which they can refer, it renders them somewhat incompetent.They often fail to get the right solutions for client issues and might respond with wrong information.Agents need regular training on how to interact and handle customers and their issues in a proper way.Companies need to teach and empower their agents with the right knowledge on all processes. This will ensure they serve the clients while being informed. This will leave clients more satisfied with the customer experience.In addition, agents can be taught how to interact with clients in a courteous, friendly, and professional manner, which will increase their confidence in the business.3. Failing to deliver what you promisedIt is said, “A promise made is a promise kept.” The customer service mistake made by most businesses is that they fail to deliver as per their promises.When you make a commitment with a client to deliver within a given period, make sure to follow through. If your product description cites that it performs certain functions, ensure that is exactly what it does.If you say that you offer a given service, ensure the quality is as good as you have mentioned, if not better.Failure to deliver what you promised reduces the level of trust that a client has in a business. It also disappoints and leaves the client less satisfied with the customer service.4. Passing clients around from one agent to another many timesTossing clients from one support agent to the next can be very upsetting and frustrating to them. Unfortunately, this is a common practice among most businesses.Clients often get reassigned to different agents in an effort to resolve their issue. This can go on till the agent with the abilities to provide the right solution is identified.Clients get frustrated since the issue takes more time to resolve or get a response. Thus, customer satisfaction is reduced.In addition, passing clients around makes them assume that the agents are not skilled enough. This might make them opt for competitors.For this reason, it is vital to have a workflow that is well defined to avoid this customer service mistake.One solution can be to have an automated workflow, which helps to define the roles and duties of each support agent and the right agents for each issue.5. Lack of proactive customer support solutionsGood customer service entails being preemptive in how you offer solutions to problems. Agents should reach out to clients first and take all the necessary measures to avoid future mishaps before they happen.However, one customer service mistake is that some support agents are usually unable to predict and resolve customer issues on time.Agents need to know what the clients need even before they reach out or inquire about anything. This helps to keep clients in the loop on the current events of a business. As a result, it increases customer satisfaction.6. Unavailable for customers at the time they need assistanceOne of the customer service mistakes made by the agents is not being present at all times to provide clients with the support they need.Customers prefer fast responses and resolutions. Most companies have clients located in different time zones.For companies that have a defined work schedule this becomes an issue for their clients in other time zones.This is because their chances of reaching the support team before they leave will be low and limited.As a result, their issues go unresolved longer than expected and urgent issues become pain points.They might then shift to competitors that have a customer service team that is always present.This calls for a 24/7 support in order to assist all clients wherever they are, at any time.This will result in increased customer satisfaction and experience due to availability and fast response time.7. Not offering personalized customer service experiencesEvery customer service experience should be unique and customized to address each specific customer issue. Clients prefer businesses that offer personalized customer service.One customer experience mistake is to not consider what each client needs and prefers. Failure to offer a personal experience reduces customer satisfaction levels. In addition, clients do not feel valued.Each interaction between a client and a support agent should have an added personal touch to it.8. Delays in providing support to customersAccording to 96% of customers, rapid customer service is essential in their decision to stay loyal to a brand.When clients contact a support team for whatever reason, they always expect a quick response. This is not always the case.At times, the support team makes the customer service mistake of not answering the clients fast enough.These delays can either be:Putting the clients on hold for too longIgnoring the clients completelyWhen the support agents fail to or delay to provide updates on the progress of an issue’s resolution, that counts as a mistake too.This is a wrong gesture, as it portrays that you don’t care about the clients and their pain points. This greatly reduces your clients’ satisfaction. As a result, they end up shifting to competitors who care more about them.9. Choosing and using the wrong communication channelsCustomers reach out to the support team using different channels based on what they prefer.With the evolving digital communication channels, most companies need to adapt and use different ones to interact with their clients.If the options for contacting support agents for assistance are limited, clients are bound to be frustrated.Companies can choose several communication channels that most of their clients use in order to make their services easily accessible.These can include options such as:EmailsSocial media platformsThese will improve the customer experience because customers can have easy access to the company’s support team.10. Not storing and reviewing customer data historyWhen dealing with many customers, it is important to store and review the data history from any interaction.However, this has been a major issue since most companies fail to keep records of previous interactions with customers.As a result, clients are forced to repeat all the information that had previously been mentioned. This proves to be very hectic for clients and time consuming. This reduces their level of satisfaction.What can cause customer service mistakes?Customer service mistakes can stem from various factors, ranging from human error to systemic issues within an organization. Some common causes of customer service mistakes include:Lack of training: Inadequate training can lead to insufficient knowledge about products, services, or company policies. Without proper training, agents may struggle to address customer inquiries effectively, resulting in misinformation or misunderstandings.Understaffing or inadequate resources: Insufficient staffing or resources can lead to overworked employees and longer wait times. Overloaded agents may struggle to provide adequate attention and support to each customer, leading to dissatisfaction.Inconsistent processes: Lack of standardized processes or inconsistent procedures for handling customer inquiries can result in errors and inconsistencies in service delivery. Without clear guidelines in place, agents may struggle to address customer issues efficiently.System or technology failures: Technical issues with customer service systems, such as CRMs or databases, can lead to delays or inaccurate information being provided to clients.Poor communication skills: Communication breakdowns, misunderstandings, or language barriers between customers and support agents can lead to errors in conveying information or resolving issues. Ineffective communication skills, such as unclear explanations or failure to actively listen to customers, can worsen the problem.How do I avoid mistakes in customer service?Avoiding customer service mistakes is key for maintaining a positive relationship with clients and ensuring their satisfaction. Here are several strategies to help you prevent common customer service errors:Provide comprehensive training: Offer in-depth training to customer service representatives on product knowledge, company policies, communication skills, problem-solving techniques, and the use of customer service tools and systems.Employ standardized processes: Implement standardized processes and workflows for handling customer inquiries, escalations, and issue resolution. Clearly define roles, responsibilities, and escalation paths to ensure efficiency.Use robust systems and tools: Invest in modern, user-friendly customer service systems, tools, and software that enable agents to manage customer interactions, track inquiries, and collaborate with team members.Provide adequate resources: Allocate sufficient staffing, technology, and other resources to support customer service operations. Ensure that agents have the necessary resources and support to handle peak volumes and complex inquiries effectively.Avoid customer service mistakes to create flawless customer service experiencesProvide the best customer experience and increase your customers’ loyalty, trust, and level of satisfaction by avoiding common customer service mistakes.Identify the mistakes your support team makes and look for possible solutions to counter them for the best customer service.With LIKE.TG, offer your customers the best customer service. Try the LIKE.TG free trial package and counter all possible customer service mistakes.If you have any questions, contact the LIKE.TG support team. Please contact us to arrange a live demo and see how LIKE.TG can be tailored to meet your business needs.

Get ready to experience even higher levels of efficiency and streamlined customer support with the amazing, game-changing new features included in the LIKE.TG May feature updates!Experience powerful, cutting-edge latest features, like:Multilingual help deskMultilingual knowledge baseActivity module enhancementsNew contact dashboardInsights on raw data behind different dashboardsAdvanced ticket search enhancementsLaunching soon: Generative AI feature powered by ChatGPTLet’s learn more about the latest features in LIKE.TG! LIKE.TG May release updatesThe following feature updates have been added to the LIKE.TG product to improve customer support experience.Multilingual help deskCustomers who don’t speak English can now enjoy LIKE.TG with the new support for multiple languages. This multilingual help desk smooths interactions between support agents and clients by allowing them to set up the help desk in their preferred language.Currently, LIKE.TG can be customized to the following languages:EnglishGermanFrenchSpanishItalianPortugueseCzechNote: More languages will be supported by LIKE.TG in the near future.The multilingual support options have been added to the following features: customer portal, fields and forms, embeddable widgets and forms, email notification templates, and satisfaction surveys.Multilingual knowledge baseCommunication and information sharing in the LIKE.TG knowledge base tool has also been elevated with support for multiple languages. Clients can now effectively communicate in their preferred language.What’s more, content in the knowledge base can now be written in multiple languages. This ensures a personalized and engaging experience for end users.The key new features of multilingual support in the knowledge base include:a. Primary and secondary language supportAllows multiple language support in the help center. This enables you to quickly and easily set up your help center in your customers’ preferred languages.b. Translate categories and sectionsTranslate the categories and sections in your knowledge base so users with non-English languages can find relevant information fast.Translating the categories and sections of your knowledge base into multiple languages ensures a wider audience can access your knowledge base.c. SEO metadata for different languagesSet up SEO metadata like titles and descriptions in an article’s specific language.d. Article translation statusTrack the status of your article translations as either outdated or up to date. This makes it easy for authors to identify which articles require further work to keep clients supplied with current and accurate information.e. Keep different article versions and restore options in various languagesMaintain several versions of your articles in various languages. You can restore the articles to previous versions if necessary.f. Language-specific history and metricsMonitor your knowledge base article performance to ensure you optimize your content for better customer service.g. Multilingual tags and search optionsUsers can search for and tag articles in the help center in multiple languages.h. Search function improvementsWe have improved how search queries are processed and how search results are ranked to make the search function more effective and efficient.i. Knowledge base access restrictionsLimit who can access and view the knowledge base portal. You can allow either all users or just logged-in users.New features in activity modulePerforming activities within the ticketing system has been made easier with the following new features in the activity module:Attach files and images in comments: More easily share information and collaborate with othersFilter activities: Filter activities based on their type, date, and status to find any needed information.Add watchers to activities: Watchers get notifications whenever a new comment is added to an activity.Activity module filter in the global search page: Searching for activities in the global search page to easily find activities relevant to your work.Mention agents in comments: Get the right user’s attention.Clone activities: Create new activities based on those that already exist.New Activities tab in contact profile pageA new Activities tab has been added to the contact profile page in BoldDesk. It provides a list of all activities linked to a specific contact so you can quickly view that contact’s recent activities.New reports and analytics feature: Contact DashboardA new Contact Dashboard has been added to the reports and analytics of LIKE.TG for visualizing data based on contacts and contact groups.With this dashboard, you can see statistics about requests, tickets, and SLAs. You can also apply filters to inspect specific data sets.Insights into raw data behind different dashboardsYou can now view the raw data used to generate charts and graphs for SLA and agent performance dashboards. This gives you a deeper view of your customer service information.New advanced ticket filter optionsTo help you find tickets, new fields have been added to the advanced filter in the ticket module.These new fields include:Last Modified By: Filters tickets based on the last person to modify them.Last Replied By: Filters tickets based on the last person to reply to them.Ticket External Reference ID: Filters tickets using external reference IDs.Not All operator in the Tag field: Excludes all tickets with the specified tags.Multiple selection of the Subject field for keyword filtering: Allows you to search for tickets that have multiple keywords in the subject line.New generative AI integration coming soonA new generative AI feature powered by ChatGPT integration will be launching soon! This new feature will have the following exceptional capabilities:RephrasingShorteningElaborationGrammar CorrectionSummarizationSummaryWith these exciting feature updates to LIKE.TG, your customer support operations will thrive! Clients and support agents alike will have incredible experiences with the new features, like the multilanguage support and advanced ticket search options.With LIKE.TG, elevate your support team’s productivity with a highly efficient ticketing system and provide the best customer experience possible with the new features added in this release.Request a live demo or give these latest features a try with a LIKE.TG free trial. Reach out to our LIKE.TG support team if you have any questions.

The pandemic completely changed how the world functioned. According to ILO Monitor, 114 million people lost their jobs globally. Such a severe health crisis followed by employment loss is unlike anything we have experienced before. From astrophysicists to primary school teachers, nearly every professional had to switch to a remote work environment almost overnight. And understandably, positive employee morale took a hit amidst all the chaos and fatalities brought by Coronavirus. There is no doubt that working from home offers a plethora of benefits for both the organization and employees. The organization can considerably reduce operational costs, while employees can work from their homes’ comfort and save up commuting expenses. But it’s been over a year since the pandemic started, and there is no certainty about when it will come to an end. Now more than ever, it’s imperative that HR managers offer employees the support they need. And here are some effective ways your organization can do that. 1. Refrain from Laying Off Employees Mass layoffs have a serious impact on employee morale. While the employees who managed to retain their position may feel a moment of relief, they are likely to live in fear of being next in line for losing their jobs. As previously mentioned, tens of millions of people lost their jobs because of the pandemic. If your organization has reached a point where it’s necessary to downsize, you should consider alternatives to mass layoffs. You can suggest reducing work hours or transferring idle employees to other departments. It can also save your organization from going through the exhausting process of layoffs. 2. Keep Employees in the Loop Humans are naturally wired to resist change. And considering how rapidly things have changed because of the Covid-19 outbreak, your employees might be on edge about how their roles will change. It is crucial to keep the employees in the loop about the organization’s plan of action for the pandemic. Otherwise, employees might resort to gossiping and believing false rumors, which can propagate unnecessary panic. Employees will be able to concentrate on work rather than getting distracted by what’s transpiring through the grapevine. The leaders and managers should make it a point to communicate facts clearly. In a crisis, the best way is to lead with truth. If the organization is struggling and may have to take downsizing measures, your employees should be prepared for it. HR mistakes impact your entire organization. Learn how to avoid the 12 most common mistakes with our free ebook. Download now 3. Follow Safety Guidelines This pandemic can only be contained if everyone is following health and safety guidelines issued by official healthcare authorities. Whether you work in an industry where telecommuting is not possible or you’re planning to resume in-office operations soon, the health and safety of your employees should be a top priority. Equip the workplace with basic amenities such as hand sanitizers and hand soaps. Furthermore, it’s important to rearrange the office layout to make sure there is adequate distance between employees. And of course, wearing masks should be mandatory. 4. Offer Essential Medical Resources The constant fear of contracting Coronavirus or infecting a loved one can be a great source of stress. This is the time to think about offering your employees additional medical resources. Providing employees better medical coverage will be appreciated by them and boost employee morale. 5. Host Virtual Get Together With traveling restrictions and social distancing measures, many people are unable to see their family or friends on a regular basis. Therefore, with all the lockdowns and stay-at-home orders, your staff is experiencing isolation like never before. Lack of social interaction can have a significant impact on a person’s mood, well-being, and productivity. The HR department must find creative ways to host virtual get together for employees. From Happy Hours on Fridays to Trivia Night, planning virtual events every week can help you ensure high morale. You can also explore virtual team-building activities to improve collaboration and communication among team members. 6. Establish Better Channels of Communication The way this virus has affected the world was completely unpredictable and unexpected. With fake news and other false information circulating on the internet, HR should take the initiative to provide employees with reliable information from official sources. Creating and sharing a weekly newsletter containing information regarding the pandemic can help alleviate anxiety. Clear communication plays a key role in seamless business operations. Establishing better two-way channels of communication is all the more important now. HR managers should take on the responsibility to routinely talk to individual employees to address their concerns. Meeting with too many people can make it difficult for some of the staff to share their thoughts. It would be best to follow the 2-pizza rule for meetings to quickly resolve issues and ensure that no one is left behind. 7. Improve Flexibility It’s quite possible that your employees are taking care of a child, a sick parent, or dealing with their own health issues. Leading with empathy is indispensable in these testing times. Rather than expecting employees to immediately respond to every email or Slack message, allow them more flexibility to manage their schedule. Several organizations have introduced a flextime work policy. This involves setting a number of core work hours and giving the employees the freedom to choose their starting and ending times. A compressed workweek is another great alternative to conventional 9-5 work hours. This allows employees to complete their standard 40-hour workweek in less than five days and enjoy a long weekend. 8. Prioritize Work-Life Balance When employees are working from home, it can become difficult to distinguish between work and personal life. Employees may continue to work, despite completing their work for the day. Managers and supervisors should avoid asking for updates or calling employees after work hours. Just because they’re at home doesn’t mean they have to be on-call 24/7. Prioritizing work-life balance is necessary to avoid burnout. Just saying that you care about your employees’ mental health is not enough. It should be an essential part of your company culture. Lead by example and share different ways you are taking care of your mental health. Regularly check in with your employees with a simple ‘how are you?’. Just like email personalization makes customers feel special, it’s also effective in making employees feel seen. 9. Celebrate Personal Wins These days there isn't much optimistic news to look up to. When every day feels the same, your employees can fall into a funk. This can severely impact their productivity and quality of work. The HR department can introduce some positivity into employees’ day-to-day lives by celebrating personal wins. Start a newsletter and ask employees to share their achievements, no matter how big or small. Whether a staff member adopted a kitten or someone got to meet their family after months, it’s worth sharing! 10. Encourage Time Off Since employees are working from home and probably can’t travel anywhere, why would they need leaves? Well, even if employees are not going to Europe on vacation, they still need time off to rest and revitalize. Encourage employees to utilize their paid leaves. The Bottom Line The anxiety and stress of these uncertain times are seriously affecting employee morale. Disengaged and unmotivated employees will produce poor quality work, which can be detrimental to your business. This pandemic is an opportunity for organizations to showcase how much they value their employees. About Author: Becky Halls is a Co-Founder of Hyperise, a Hyper personalization toolkit for B2B marketers. She’s an experienced Growth Marketer, passionate about product design/development and online marketing.

Security is a crucial aspect of any organization’s customer support functions. It deals with protecting sensitive customer information, ensuring the privacy and confidentiality of communication, and maintaining the overall trust between customers and the company.Studies indicate that data security and privacy issues are a concern for 79% of consumers.With the increasing dependence on digital channels for customer interactions and the growing threats to data security, it is essential to understand and implement robust customer service security practices.In this blog, we will discuss what customer service security is, the potential risks, and advice on enhancing your customer service security measures. What is customer service security?Customer service security refers to the measures and practices implemented by a company to protect the sensitive information of its customers and ensure their privacy and safety while interacting with customer support representatives.A strong privacy policy makes a company more trustworthy to 90% of individuals.Information security is crucial for maintaining customer trust and ensuring compliance with data protection regulations.Common security attack strategies against your support staffBusiness success heavily relies on customer trust, which can be quickly undermined by security breaches and data loss incidents. With that in mind, let’s look at some common ways customer service security can be compromised.DigitallyDigital dangers are unauthorized access, theft, or manipulation of electronic data, systems, or networks, causing:Data breaches: Unauthorized access to customer data can lead to data breaches, compromising sensitive information.Disruption in service: Viruses can cause disruptions in customer service operations, such as network outages or system failures, resulting in delays or interruptions in service delivery.Hackers impersonate your employees or customersThrough email or phone scams, impersonators can gain unauthorized access to customers’ personal and financial information. This data can be used for fraudulent activities, including unauthorized transactions and identity theft.Impersonators can trick customers into revealing sensitive information by posing as legitimate customer service staff. They may also send emails or text messages containing malicious links or attachments, which, when clicked or opened, can result in the installation of malware and the theft of personal information.Some industries are more prone to this sort of scam, especially ones with vulnerable customers in confusing, emotional situations. Scammers will use emotional manipulation and a false sense of urgency to maliciously:Exploit customer vulnerabilities.Gain unauthorized access to sensitive information.Commit fraud.If this involves access to your systems, it can result in data breaches, financial losses, reputational damage for the company.Compromises involving physical aspectsPhysical compromises, such as unauthorized access to customer service facilities or workstations, can lead to the same security problems as remote unauthorized access to your digital systems.It can also result in the theft or damage of critical equipment, such as computers, servers, or communication devices, and can disrupt the operations of the customer service department.How to improve customer service securityThe foremost objective of customer service security is to safeguard customer data, including personal and financial information, from unauthorized access, theft, or misuse.Let’s discuss 10 ways to improve customer security.1. Establish a department for managing security risksComprehending your cybersecurity stance will enable you to implement a risk management program. Businesses need an expert or a team of experts to assess their risks and the steps needed to mitigate them.The purpose of a security risk management department is to:Evaluate risks by analyzing the probability of different types of threats.Identify and apply appropriate risk reduction methods.Keep track of internal data usage.Security risk managers can create efficient, next-generation network security tactics to prevent potential cyber hazards and their consequences.2. Develop a strategy for securityTo enhance safety measures within your support team, it is crucial to consistently implement and update a strategy that minimizes potential risk.Having a well-defined plan for dealing with potential attacks, too, can significantly improve the speed and efficiency of your response.This plan should secure data following a breach and outline the necessary steps to resolve the situation.A readily available checklist outlining the signs of a breach and the steps to take in the event of such a security issue will significantly increase the chances of a prompt and secure response.3. Educate and train your employees on data protection and securityA global survey revealed that 60% of company executives possess an inadequate comprehension of the risk of data breaches via third parties.Furthermore, 20% demonstrated little to no understanding of these risks at all (PWC). Essentially, your employees are unconsciously making your business susceptible to threats from within.To begin, it is crucial to establish a security awareness program within your organization. Regular and consistent training sessions are essential components of your strategy to prevent cybercrime.Ensure that your entire support team is trained on the importance of information security and confirm their awareness of all legal obligations. Instruct them on the appropriate course of action in case of a suspected attack and methods for maintaining data security.4. Ensure appropriate preventive measures are takenSome of the preventive measures you can undertake are:Keep your software up to date: Software updates usually comprise security patches, which can aid in safeguarding your systems against recognized vulnerabilities.Use authentication protocols: Authentication aims to ensure that clients are, indeed, who they claim to be.Regular security audits: Regularly perform security evaluations and audits to pinpoint possible weaknesses and opportunities for enhancement in your customer service systems and procedures.5. Monitor the access and modifications made by agentsLimit employee access to customer data to a need-to-know basis. This can aid in preventing unauthorized entry and minimizing the likelihood of data breach incidents.When customer service representatives require access, recording their entry to and alterations of client data will aid in detecting fraud and identifying hazardous situations sooner.6. Ensure that support teams are well informedEstablish clear lines of communication among support teams, management, and other departments to ensure that any security concerns or incidents are promptly addressed. Encourage open discussions about potential security risks and how to mitigate them.7. Remind clients of safe communication practicesOne of the best ways to ensure the safety and security of your customers’ data is by frequently reminding them to only communicate through official channels.If it is the case for your company, reassure customers that your company will never initiate contact via phone, email, or text asking for sensitive information such as passwords, credit card numbers, or social security numbers. Have this reminder prominently featured in your customer portal and possibly as an add-on to official communications.8. Avoid sharing personal and sensitive dataThis applies to both employees and customers. According to a study conducted by SafetyDetectives, email is the source of 92% of malware. Clients should refrain from sending emails containing their passwords or credit card details in plain text.Employees should equally avoid requesting customers to disclose any personal information unless it is absolutely essential and through secure pathways.9. Incorporate security features into your toolsWhenever feasible, incorporate secure mechanisms within your systems instead of depending on individuals to manually adhere to the correct protocols.Implementing multi-factor authentication (MFA) might be an effective solution for enhancing the security of your customer service.10. Enable automatic password resettingAvoid requiring your customers to email for a password reset, as it poses a security threat. Instead, invest in software that automates the password reset process and requests security information from customers to confirm their identity.Why is customer service security important?Customer service security protects both your customers and your business from potential harm.Here’s a breakdown of why it’s important:Safeguarding customer data: Customer service interactions often involve sensitive information like addresses, credit card numbers, and account details. Robust security measures ensure this personal data is protected from unauthorized access, breaches, or leaks.Preventing fraud and identity theft: Hackers and scammers may target or impersonate customer service representatives to gain access to accounts or personal information. Strong security protocols minimize the risk of fraudulent activity and identity theft.Maintaining customer trust: Customers entrust their data to your business when they seek support. When you have a reputation for high security standards, it builds public trust in your brand.Ensuring compliance with regulations: Many regions have data privacy regulations that require specific safety precautions for customer information. Robust customer service security helps ensure your business complies with these regulations and avoids potential fines or legal repercussions.Enhance your customer service security with proven strategiesGiven the rising number of cyberattacks and the high stakes involved in protecting customer information, customer service security should be a top priority for any organization.By adopting these robust security measures and fostering a culture of security awareness, organizations can safeguard customer data, maintain trust, and ensure the overall success of their customer service operations.Enhance your customer service security with the SOC 2® Type 2-certified help desk software, LIKE.TG. Register for a free trial and discover its potential for your team. If you need assistance or have any questions, the LIKE.TG support team is constantly at your service. To learn more about how LIKE.TG can be customized to suit your business requirements, contact us to arrange a live demo.Related blogs10 Ultimate Strategies to Identify and Overcome Customer Pain Points7 Best Techniques to Improve Customer ExperienceGuidelines for Customer Service for Any BusinessStrategies to Provide Efficient Customer Service

One of the most frustrating parts of recruitment is employee retention. Keeping hold of talent requires constant hard work. If your employers don’t feel valued, or you’re not helping them grow professionally, they will look elsewhere. Luckily, there are plenty of things you can do to help make your employees feel valued while promoting progression. Through professional development, employees will get something out of working with you. According to Udemy, 42% of people rate professional growth as the most important factor when deciding where to work. When you’re putting your HR plans into place, you should incorporate some or all of the following employee growth strategies. Provide Professional Coaching Business leaders can nurture employee development by providing coaching and mentoring programs. Rather than bombarding staff with a constant stream of orders, they should work with employees to build a strong professional relationship. This works the same way as coaching does, and requires a management system based on effective education, direction, and communication. Although you should be taking on the principles of coaching within your management, this isn’t always attainable within small businesses. Therefore, you can outsource employee coaching to a company like Placement to help them achieve professional growth. Through Placement.com, your staff can access fully vetted work coaches who can support them in achieving their goals. You can offer this service as a benefit of employment to all new employees and avoid problems with hiring new employees. Offer Regular Feedback Carrying out monthly employee appraisals is important. However, why should an employee only get useful feedback once a month? The answer is simple - they shouldn’t. Instead, you should strive to offer regular feedback in real-time. Wakefield Research carried out a study and found that 90% of employees would benefit from having their shortcomings highlighted regularly. If you wait until the annual review to offer feedback, you aren’t offering enough time for your workforce to grow. As a business leader, you need to work with your HR team on a way to monitor employees and assess their strengths and weaknesses. Then, whether it’s you or a member of the management team, someone needs to relay the findings to employees. By doing this, you will find work improves and productivity remains high. Cross-Train Staff These days, with high amounts of work taking place online, there is a fine line between roles. Therefore, businesses should focus on teaching all areas of the business. For example, a project manager can put a plan into place, but they likely don’t have hands-on experience of front-line sales. Offering the opportunity to cross-train will help to create a working culture built on mutual appreciation and communication. One of the most obvious places to look for this divide is in restaurants. Historically, chefs belittle the work of the server and vice versa. The chef will view their work as more tiring and demanding, which it is physically. However, the server needs to deal with people all day while running around headless. In this instance, restaurants should cross-train their staff. When each side experiences the other, they immediately gain an understanding which helps the business run more effectively. To delve deeper into the major hurdles faced by HR professionals in this dynamic industry, check out 8 Major Challenges for HR in the Food and Beverage Industry. Conferencing and Networking Whether it’s online or calls for a business trip, you should send your staff to conferences. While they’re away, they will meet like-minded people that they can learn from. Further, they will learn from external sources and thought leaders and be able to bring back their knowledge to benefit your business. Plus, who doesn’t love to get paid to get away from the mundane? Recognize Achievements Making people feel important is a great asset for boosting employee retention rates. As a business, you can do this by celebrating achievements regularly with a staff recognition tool. When someone does well, and they are told so, they are more likely to be productive in the future. When you reward exceptional rewards, you need to set the bar. You can do this by introducing different levels of achievement, and throwing in a fantastic reward at the higher end. By doing this, you will create a culture based on working hard and reaping excellent rewards. If you keep the rewards exciting and celebrate achievements regularly, you will build up a loyal workforce. Further, you may find that other people hear about the way your company works. No credit card needed Less than 5 min to set up Soft Skill Development The world of work is built on skill. Soft skills refer to those related to personality traits that allow for success. Although you may not know they’re called soft skills, you will have heard of them. They include time management, communication, delegation, leadership, and many more. You need to begin recognizing these soft skills and providing sufficient training to enhance them. Doing this will help you boost productivity across the entire workforce. Soft skills are vital but they are often overlooked. You can have an employee who has been at the company for years, knows their job, and gets work done but isn’t cut out for management. Alternatively, you can have fantastic leadership qualities but not be the most efficient worker. However, these qualities would set them apart perfectly for the world of delegation. Productivity is imperative, but soft skills are what counts towards creating an amazing work atmosphere. Create Challenging Projects People love to be challenged because it demonstrates capability. Therefore, assign special projects to groups that call for teamwork. Throughout the process they will share skills, learn from each other, and show their abilities. If you attach rewards and feedback to the exercise, you’re onto a winner. Learning Management Systems A Learning Management System (LMS) does what it sounds like it should. They offer a scalable solution to businesses to provide and monitor employee growth. Through the LMS, you can create learning materials and track progress. Then, if you need to have evidence of staff training, you can generate reports. Streamlining the learning process using an LMS will save considerable amounts of time and revenue. Rather than hire numerous professionals, you can create materials for everything all in one place. Say goodbye to lengthy staff training sessions, and hello to efficient professional development Consistently Find Growth Opportunities The way the world works is changing all the time, and there will constantly be new and valid needs of the employee. As a successful business, you should keep up to date with HR trends. No business should create a professional and development strategy in the beginning and never update it. Employees are a business’s most important asset; therefore, they should be treated in high regard. Be Transparent No matter what you do, some employees will only be satisfied if they know that they’re working towards a promotion. Rather than dangling the carrot and never delivering, you should be 100% transparent on how much room for progression there is. That way, if an employee wants to stay, they know what they’re getting themselves into. Employee retention rates are one of the most difficult aspects of recruitment. To keep hold of your employees, you need to provide personal and professional development. You can do this by regular feedback, celebrating excellence, training staff, and allowing opportunities for networking. There are many more employee retention strategies than those listed above. However, if you take on the advice above, you are on to a great start. Author Bio: This article is written by our marketing team at LIKE.TG. LIKE.TG is a leading provider of HR solutions, including recruiting, onboarding, employee engagement, and intranet software. Our aim is to help your company improve employee engagement, employee productivity, and to save you valuable time! HR Mistakes Impact Your Entire Organizaion Lear how to avoid the 12 most common mistakes with our free ebook Download Now hbspt.cta.load(549864, '728c69f5-dcbd-411d-845d-945a82deaa2e', {"useNewLoader":"true","region":"na1"}); if(checkPopupCookie("popupcookie-wm","close-wm-popup")) { setCookie('popupcookie-wm', 'close-wm-popup', "10"); }; $('#close-homepage-popup').click(function () { $('.homepage-popup').fadeOut() $('.homepage-mobile-overlay').fadeOut(); }); $('.homepage-mobile-overlay').click(function (e) { $('.homepage-mobile-overlay').fadeOut(); $('.homepage-popup').fadeOut(); }); $('.btn.btn--orange-action').click(function (e) { setCookie('popupcookie-hrc', 'close-hrc-popup', "10"); $('.homepage-mobile-overlay').fadeOut(); $('.homepage-popup').fadeOut(); });

Have you ever wondered why certain teams perform better than others? It all comes down to the strategies you use to improve team productivity in your business.Imagine this: lengthy lines, angry customers, and lost chances all because of low team productivity. To see real results, strategizing is important.In this article, we’ll discuss what team productivity is, ideas on how to increase it, identify improvement opportunities, and more. What is team productivity?Team productivity refers to the collective efficiency and effectiveness of a group of employees working together toward achieving a single purpose.It is a measure of how successfully a team uses time, expertise, and equipment to achieve specific goals. This also includes how well team members work together and communicate to complete tasks.How to increase team productivityThe key to helping teams reach their full potential is to cultivate an atmosphere that supports them.By doing this, the team’s output rises, and they can become experts in providing outstanding customer care.Following are a few achievable methods to build a productive team.Set realistic goals and expectations for your teamSetting challenging yet attainable goals inspires team members to give their best work.Employees are more likely to remain interested and dedicated to their work when they see that their efforts are leading to worthwhile results. You can help your team set goals by:Evaluating the abilities, talents, and workload of your team to establish the current state of affairs.Breaking down larger objectives into smaller, more doable tasks with progress indicators.Reviewing progress frequently and make necessary goal adjustments to keep the team on course.Involving team members in goal setting to increase motivation and a sense of ownership.Throughout the project lifecycle, keep an eye on the progress metrics, using project management tools to automate data collecting where you can.This offers an organized, data-driven method to track performance, identify achievements, fix flaws, and promote ongoing development.Team members with well-defined objectives also feel more accountable to each other as every member accepts responsibility for their actions and is aware of their part in reaching the objectives.This accountability helps team members develop a sense of dependability because they know they can rely on one another to achieve their common goals.Clarify each person’s roleEveryone is more likely to take responsibility for their work and produce outcomes when they are aware of what is expected of them.Members of a team can concentrate their efforts more efficiently if they understand their roles and how they fit into the larger goals.You can:Create detailed job descriptions that include key responsibilities, necessary skills, and performance metrics.Ensure that each team member is well-suited to their task by assigning roles according to their strengths and expertise.Clearly define responsibilities for every role for every project, including deadlines.Straightforward role definitions avoid misunderstandings and guarantee that activities are performed without needless overlap or gaps.This encourages teamwork in the workplace as everyone strives to achieve the same objective.Regularly train your employeesIndustries change quickly; new techniques, technology, and best practices emerge regularly. Train staff members regularly to improve team productivity by:Giving them access to online coursesOrganizing skill-development workshopsCreating mentorship programsEmployees who receive regular training can perform more productively when equipped with the most recent developments and trends in their industry.Workers can sharpen current skills, acquire new ones, and become professional at their jobs.Provide the right resources and toolsWorkflows are streamlined and pointless manual chores are eliminated with the correct resources and tools.Utilizing the right technology can significantly enhance team productivity by reducing time spent on coordination and administration and by improving the quality of work produced.A business can invest in help desk software that can help their teams centralize their work, improve communication, automate repetitive tasks, and enhance the quality of their outputs.We, of course, recommend considering LIKE.TG, which has features such as:Ticketing systemTask managementShared inboxAutomationAI (Artificial intelligence)The right combination of resources not only boosts productivity but also fosters a more collaborative and innovative work environment.Promote a positive workplace cultureWork-life balance and employee well-being are given priority in a positive workplace culture, which can greatly lower stress and prevent burnout.Employees can remain focused, involved, and productive in their jobs in supportive environments that give them, for example, flexible work schedules and acknowledgment of accomplishments.Stronger client relationships and excellent customer service are also results of increased employee happiness, which eventually increases productivity and encourages repeat business.Encourage open communicationEstablished communication routes allow team members to share ideas, concerns, and information. Having a place to post this communication and encouragement to do so keeps everyone apprised of project progress.When people are at ease expressing their questions and viewpoints, teamwork improves significantly.According to Simonandsimon’s research, 97% of employees claim that communication has a daily impact on their ability to complete tasksTo increase team productivity, businesses should consider implementing the following strategies:Managers and team leaders should lead by example by being transparent, approachable, and open to suggestions.Have frequent team meetings to discuss tasks, difficulties, and accomplishments, encouraging team members to share their thoughts.Use communication platforms such as Microsoft Teams, Gmail shared inbox, or Slack to facilitate seamless communication.Provide avenues for feedback that are both official and informal, such as suggestion boxes, anonymous questionnaires, or one-on-one check-ins.When members are in communication, it allows them to address conflicts and misunderstandings promptly and constructively.It allows them to find common ground and work towards a resolution, minimizing disruptions to productivity.Create team-building activitiesThese activities are designed to strengthen bonds between team members, increase cooperation, and improve group communication, contributing to increased team productivity.These exercises help team members learn about each other’s working styles, strengths, and weaknesses, fostering mutual understanding and improving overall team performance.Some of these team-building activities are:Volunteer work and community serviceGroup problem-solving challengesIcebreaker sessionsWorkshops and training sessionsRegular meetingsReward your team for their contributionsTeams are more driven to give their best work when they are aware that their efforts and contributions are appreciated. You can reward your team by:Acknowledging team members’ accomplishments in meetings or internal newsletters.Organizing celebrations for project completions, anniversaries, and personal achievements.Offering customized rewards such as wellness programs or hobby-related gifts.Providing employees with clear paths for career development and promotions.This inspiration improve employee satisfaction and pushes them to pursue excellence in their work.Additionally, reward systems can encourage healthy competition among teams, encouraging them to excel and surpass their performance targets.Don’t overlook the competitionBy comparing your performance metrics with those of your top competitors, you can find gaps in your performance and set reasonable goals.Businesses can conduct a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis of competitors regularly to learn about them.This knowledge aids in setting up your group to perform better than competitors.Strategic planning benefits from competitive analysis, which draws attention to new opportunities and risks.Monitor performance and feedbackEmployees are more likely to coordinate their efforts with company objectives when they are aware of what is expected of them, how their performance will be evaluated, and how they are doing at regular intervals.Performance monitoring helps team members identify their strengths and weaknesses, set growth objectives, and establish targets for advancement.Performance can be monitored through:Time tracking and productivity toolsReporting and analytics toolsMonitoring performance not only helps in achieving organizational goals but also enhances individual growth and team productivity.Benefits of having a highly productive teamIncreasing team productivity has numerous advantages for a company, impacting everything from worker happiness to operational effectiveness.Builds trust among employeesWhen a team is productive, members consistently meet their deadlines and deliver high-quality work.This reliability helps build trust as employees know they can depend on each other to fulfill their responsibilities.Promotes creativityHaving efficient communication procedures helps productive teams collaborate, empowering members to take ownership of their projects and think creatively.Creates a positive work environmentSuccessful results and regular accomplishments raise morale and provide a positive feedback loop that inspires teams to aim even higher.Productive teams are excellent at allocating and managing responsibilities, avoiding personal overload, and lowering the danger of burnout.Increases company revenueA productive team can generate more products or complete more services in the same time, which allows its business to grow its sales without increasing operating costs.Additionally, increased productivity frequently leads to a better customer service experience, which raises customer retention rates.Improves company reputationProductive teams mean more efficient shipping, deployment, and customer service. This leads to positive reviews and recommendations from customers.Your company’s good reputation may lead to strategic relationships and collaborations because other businesses will see you as a reliable and capable partner.How to measure team productivityEvaluate the efficiency and effectiveness of a team’s combined efforts to accomplish particular goals.This assists businesses in determining areas for development and putting plans into action to enhance overall performance.The following techniques are frequently used to gauge the productivity of a team:Time-based metrics: Keep track of how well the team uses its time to complete assignments. This could entail calculating lead times, cycle times, or the average handle time on particular tasks.Output-based metrics: Analyze the team’s observable outputs within a timeframe. This could be the quantity of goods produced, lines of code written, reports produced, or assignments finished.Utilization rates: Assess how well the team is using its resources (such as personnel, supplies, and software). This aids in evaluating how well resources are distributed and used to meet productivity targets.Key performance indicators (KPIs): Set up and track customer service KPIs that are closely linked to the goals of the team. Metrics like sales totals, customer satisfaction ratings, the number of units produced, project completion rate, etc., could be among them.Improve team productivity for explosive business growth!Team productivity requires a comprehensive approach that involves using time monitoring and productivity tools, creating clear job descriptions, assigning jobs according to individual talents, and guaranteeing that agents have access to the tools and training they need.You can build a more responsible, focused, and effective team by creating a culture where every team member is aware of their role and how they fit into overall goals.The complete strategy should not only boost individual performance, but also drive the team’s overall success, producing better results and long-term production.Are you prepared to increase team productivity and achieve remarkable outcomes?Embrace a culture of continuous improvement, streamline your operations, and use LIKE.TG to invest in the development of your agents.For a first-hand experience, schedule a demo or begin a free trial. Please get in contact with us at any time; we are always happy to offer more support.Was this blog post helpful? Feel free to leave your suggestions or feedback in the comments section below. Your input is highly appreciated.