We are in a world that is fully customer centric and companies can’t afford to keep customer service as an afterthought. Long gone are the days when a company or cooperation had an upper hand, now a buyer chooses who they do and don’t want to do business with. Companies now have to do so much more so that they can be able to obtain and retain their customers.

In Kenya today, more that 60% of all businesses have shifted from just providing a service to providing an experience that ensures customer retention. Customer service has proved to be one major part of businesses that differentiates it from the rest. With the advent of social Media, it has now become easier to truck how companies and cooperations are treating their clients.

Kenyans love great customer service, and in the event they find your customer service to be pathetic they will gladly talk about it especially on twitter. Most companies that have dared to do this have experienced the wrath of their clients online. Cooperations such as KPLC, Kilimall and KCB M-PESA have in the past found themselves trending on twitter due to bad customer reviews.

In such a world, ensuring your customer service experience is amazing will go a long way in making your business succeed. In celebration of the customer service week 2019, we want to put a spotlight on a bank that has been able to keep their customers happy all year round. They don’t just do it because its customer service week but because they believe their customers deserve the best.

SBM bank formerly known as Fidelity Commercial Bank Limited has proved to be a customer centric bank. The bank was founded in 1988 and has been able to employee 1500 people (2018) according to Wikipedia. Its headquarters are in Nairobi, Kenya and have assets worth USD 706.2 million.

I know you are wondering, “Why SBM Bank?” I have had an opportunity to bank with most banks in Kenya and so far SBM bank has proved to be the most reliable and customer centric. With SBM bank, after you open an account with them they continue to delight you with great customer service. They don’t just let you wonder off to anywhere as most banks do.  They want you to open a bank account and stay, and become a part of their banking family.

SBM bank has very friendly staff that always ensure you feel you have received one of the best services in town. They also ensure that customer queries are promptly handled and have a human touch and feel to it. Scrolling on their tweet and replies section you will get to see how much customers love their service. Even though they don’t have a huge following online, they still ensure they provide the best services online. They have managed to have a twitter following of 5,190 and 14,229 followers on Facebook.

Offering a great customer service experience to your clients fuels sustainable business growth to most companies and cooperations by boosting their retention rate. It also plays a huge role in customer loyalty and referrals. When an individual has an amazing experience with your company, the likelihood of them returning again and again are so high.

It’s very important to also consider how providing poor customer service can affect your business in the long run. If your company gains popularity due to continuous bad reviews from unsatisfactory service, people will start to develop a negative view of your brand. Unsatisfied and unhappy clients are never shy about expressing their distaste of a service on the internet, and customer service horror stories are all too common. Even a single bad customer service review online can drive away new potential customers.

When you take care of your clients they will take care of you. Happy #CustomerServiceWeek2019.

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