Customer service training benefits aged care staff across the board, from behind the desk in administration, to sales and marketing. The added experience will strengthen your reputation, enhance worker skillsets and reward aged care consumers.
The end of the financial year is a great time to invest in your customer service training. It gives you a leg-up because staff will be ready for new challenges, experiences and opportunities. Meanwhile, you will benefit from happy consumers as they reward your investments.
Stronger customer service skills
First, we acknowledge the direct customer service skills your staff will learn, no matter the department. Customer service training will strengthen their ability to:
- Build relationships
- Effectively and persuasively communicate
- Listen and be empathetic
- Solve problems
- Take responsibility for their actions
- Be patient and show self-control in challenging situations
- Adapt to new experiences
By investing in customer service skills now, you’re also investing in your workforce for the future. Staff will feel supported through training, leading to increased staff retention.
You gain customers for life
In the business world, customer lifetime value (CLV) is a metric used to measure the total revenue a business can expect from a single customer throughout the entire relationship. As many aged care providers offer a combination of home care and aged care services, this is a handy metric to be aware of.
Imagine the benefits of a customer base where you engage with them from day one. You have a happy customer – or two if it’s a couple – that enjoys your services and feels recognised. Throughout their journey, your revenue increases because they want accessible support from one provider.
You also have to spend less on customer acquisition. Your revenue can support existing customers by rewarding their loyalty with personalised and improved services. To achieve positive CLV outcomes, your staff must have the right tools to provide the service consumers want.
Increased employee motivation
We all talk about the midweek slump, but what about the midyear slump? It’s a real thing that can occur after six months of hard work. Your staff may feel demotivated, restless and fatigued after all that time. You’ll find some staff address this by taking a holiday, but for those who don’t, it’s up to you to give them a motivational push in the office.
Customer service training does just that because there’s something for staff to engage with and learn from. They can gain new skills while feeling rewarded as you offer training and education to strengthen core work abilities. If you fail to address their desire for growth and education, staff could look elsewhere for opportunities.
A greater understanding of what customers want
Aged care consumers are spoilt for choice. With a competitive service provider market, consumers can choose to look elsewhere if they find a current provider is performing poorly. You must work hard to understand what customers want, not just what they need.
Sales, marketing and administration staff will all benefit from customer service training because it pushes them to think like customers. You’re selling a service or product, so they need to be able to think like your target audience. Direct care staff receive similar training when they look at the person-centred approach to aged care, so ensure your other staff are just as knowledgeable when catering to a unique demographic.
Customers will reward your hard work
Negative customer service results in poor outcomes; one-third of consumers stop purchasing from a business after a bad experience. But if customers see your investment in customer service through the high-quality work of your staff, chances are you won’t be one of those businesses in the red. If you’re struggling to see good outcomes now, customer service training will bring out the best in your employees.
In addition, positive online feedback is essential in the digital age. By keeping your customers happy and providing a positive experience, they will reward your hard work through positive online reviews and word-of-mouth. That’s a better outcome than negative customer feedback that spreads quickly across social media.
