Customer Communication Strategy: 6 Best Practices
The difference between loyal customers and a lost opportunity often comes down to how well you communicate. A single negative interaction can lead to a 50% chance of a customer never returning.
To turn those statistics around, having an effective customer communication strategy is a must. It’s not just about responding to queries but crafting experiences that resonate and build trust.
As businesses evolve, so too must their customer communication efforts. Here’s a guide to transforming your customer service quality from average to outstanding with six key practices that will upgrade your communication game and ensure your customers stay engaged and satisfied.
What is customer communication?
Customer communication refers to how a business interacts with its customers throughout their journey. It encompasses all touchpoints and channels to exchange information, support and engagement between a company and its clientele. An effective customer communication management strategy ensures these interactions are clear, consistent and valuable.
This two-way dialogue can take many forms, including:
- Emails
- Video calls
- Phone calls
- Live chat sessions
- Self-service portals
- SMS or text messages
- Social media interactions
- Face-to-face conversations
- Automated chatbot responses
The goal of customer communication is to build strong relationships, identify and fix customer pain points, provide timely support and ultimately improve the overall customer experience. By implementing a well-crafted customer communication strategy, you can improve customer satisfaction, loyalty and retention while also gathering valuable feedback to drive continuous improvement.
6 best practices for the best customer communication strategy
A good and effective customer communication strategy almost guarantees stronger relationships and increased loyalty. Here are six ways to implement it.
Omnichannel communication
Omnichannel communication connects every touchpoint—social media, email, phone calls and in-person interactions—into a smooth, unified experience.
An omnichannel customer support platform ensures that when a potential customer starts a conversation via live chat on your website and later switches to email or phone, the interaction continues seamlessly across multiple communication channels.
This eliminates the need for customers to repeat information and creates a more intuitive, satisfying experience, making it feel as if you're anticipating their needs.
By integrating data from all customer communications into a centralized platform, businesses can tailor conversations to individual preferences, making potential customers feel understood and valued.
To implement omnichannel customer support effectively:
- Assess your current communication channels
- Develop a consistent brand voice for all platforms
- Use customer data to personalize interactions
- Set clear goals to track your success
Live chat tools
Live chat tools are essential for engaging with customers in real time. They help turn casual visitors into active customers by providing instant support and information.
For instance, if a visitor is looking at your pricing page and hesitates, a chat button in the bottom-right corner can offer immediate assistance, providing answers that help ease customer concerns and guide them toward a purchase.
To make the most of live chat, it's important to:
- Automate customer communication by using AI-powered customer support software and prepared answers for common questions
- Training your customer service team to handle multiple chats at once and know your products well
- Connecting the chat tool with your CRM to provide personalized responses
- Asking for feedback after chats to improve your service
- Ensuring the chat interface works well on mobile devices for customers using smartphones
By following these practices, you can step up your communications with customers and build stronger, more positive relationships.
Personalized customer communication
When you personalize your communication, you're not just engaging with customers—you're addressing their specific needs, preferences and pain points.
This approach not only meets expectations but also enhances the overall customer journey, making each interaction feel more meaningful. Personalization helps customers feel valued and understood, which strengthens trust and loyalty.
To personalize effectively:
- Segment your customers: Categorize them based on shared characteristics, such as age, purchase history, or stage in their buying journey. For instance, a new customer might need more guidance, while a returning customer may appreciate exclusive offers or loyalty rewards.
- Use customer data: Use the information you have about each customer to customize your messages. Additionally, proactive communication plays a vital role in personalization. Rather than waiting for customers to reach out, anticipate their needs and send timely, relevant information or solutions, further enhancing their journey.
- Adjust your language: Change your tone and style based on the customer’s profile. Younger customers might appreciate a more casual, friendly approach, while older customers may prefer formal and respectful communication.
- Communicate through preferred channels: Some customers prefer emails, while others might prefer text messages. Use the channels they’re most comfortable with.
- Experiment and test: Finally, experiment and test different types of content to understand what resonates best with your audience. A/B testing subject lines, offers, or even messaging tones can help refine your communication strategy, making each interaction a step toward improving the overall customer journey.
Educate customers through learning materials or blog
Educating your customers through learning materials and blogs allows your customers to use your products more effectively, which increases their satisfaction and engagement. By providing self-service options, such as detailed guides, how-to videos, automated knowledge base responses and FAQs, you empower your customers to find solutions independently, reducing the need for direct support.
This proactive approach also establishes your brand as an authoritative source building trust and positioning you as an expert in your industry.
To create effective educational content, start by understanding your customers' needs. Analyze common questions they ask or conduct surveys to determine what information they find most valuable.
This feedback allows you to develop targeted content that addresses specific pain points and interests. For instance, if customers frequently ask how to integrate your product with existing systems, creating a step-by-step blog post or video tutorial would directly meet their needs.
Keeping your content current is also essential. Regularly update it to reflect new developments, features, or industry trends. This shows that you are attentive to changes and committed to providing relevant information.
Monitor customer communication metrics
Keeping an eye on your customer communication metrics is like checking your business's vital signs. It helps you spot what's working well and what needs a fix. You get a clear picture of how well you're serving your customers by tracking critical customer service KPIs like response times, customer satisfaction score and call durations.
Why does this matter?
When you know these metrics, you can make smarter decisions to improve customer service communication. You might realize you need more staff during busy times, or that your email responses are too slow. Happy customers tend to stick around longer, boosting their customer lifetime value and spending more over time. So, tracking these metrics can directly impact your bottom line.
Here's how to get started:
- Set clear goals for each metric you want to track
- Use software that automatically collects and analyzes this data
- Regularly review your numbers and look for trends
- Train your support team on why these metrics matter and how to improve them
Collect customer feedback
You can get feedback from websites like G2 (see the pic above), but you can also gather valuable insights directly from your customers. Actively seeking their opinions allows you to better understand their needs and preferences, leading to stronger customer relationships and better business outcomes.
The process of collecting feedback builds trust and transparency. Customers appreciate when businesses take their opinions seriously and act on them. This openness often turns regular customers into loyal advocates who feel invested in your company's success.
Their suggestions can also help you identify areas for improvement in your products or services.
To effectively collect customer feedback:
- Use various channels: Implement surveys, social media polls and gather input during customer interactions
- Simplify the process: Create short, easy-to-complete feedback forms to encourage participation
- Act on the input: Implement changes based on feedback and communicate these improvements to customers
- Analyze regularly: Review feedback consistently to identify recurring themes and trends
Examples of successful customer service communication strategies
These case studies show how companies improved customer communication strategies by adapting to customer needs and using technology to elevate their customer service productivity by creating seamless, personalized experiences.
Estée Lauder
Estée Lauder, a global leader in beauty and cosmetics, improved its customer service by switching to a digital-first model using Glassix's unified messaging platform, moving away from a traditional call center approach.
Key achievements:
- Over 70% of customer inquiries quickly shifted to WhatsApp for business
- Agents could handle multiple inquiries at once, reducing wait times without lowering service quality
- Glassix integrated with Estée Lauder's CRM, giving a full view of customer interactions across all channels
- The platform handled everything from order changes to beauty advice in one place
- During the pandemic, it ensured business continuity and improved customer service while stores were closed
Zohar Shemesh, head of Omnichannel messaging at Estée Lauder EMEA, highlighted that this digital shift brought the company’s founder's word-of-mouth vision into the digital age, improving customer engagement and satisfaction.
Hertz
Hertz is the world's largest car rental corporation and Glassix's unified messaging platform helped them meet the increasing demand for digital communication from customers, especially those who prefer instant messaging and social media.
Key achievements:
- Customers quickly adopted digital channels, shifting from phone calls to WhatsApp and email
- A Live Chat widget on the website allowed digital reservations and full service
- The team grew from 10 to dozens of digital agents to handle high demand
- The company managed hundreds of daily inquiries, including international and road service requests
- They smoothly transitioned to remote work during the pandemic without losing service quality
- A chatbot was introduced to handle a range of customer services autonomously
Ariel Keshir, Hertz’s director of data communication and information security, noted that Glassix exceeded their expectations with its ease of use and broad capabilities. This digital shift has made Hertz a leader in customer service innovation in the car rental industry, improving both customer experience and efficiency.
Vert Hotels
Integrating Glassix's unified messaging platform enabled Vert Hotels, part of the Africa Israel Hotels group, to provide a seamless and efficient guest experience while aligning with its sustainability goals.
Key achievements:
- Glassix brought all inquiries from social media, chat, WhatsApp and more into one easy-to-use interface.
- A chatbot was introduced to handle common questions and bookings around the clock, reducing the need for human agents.
- The chatbot provided quick, accurate responses, improving customer service and booking efficiency.
- If the chatbot couldn't resolve an issue, it smoothly passed the request to a human agent via WhatsApp or Messenger.
- The digital solution supported Vert Hotels’ sustainability goals by cutting down on paper use.
Alexandra Eliyahu, Director of Digital at Africa Israel Hotels highlighted that the chatbot and unified messaging approach not only aligned with their sustainability efforts but also set a new standard in customer service within the Israeli hotel industry.
Holmes Place
Holmes Place, a leading fitness club chain with over 140,000 members in Israel, faced the challenge of managing a surge in inquiries during the pandemic. They needed a solution that could efficiently handle member questions and provide quick, reliable information. That's how they decided to try Glassix's unified messaging platform.
Key achievements:
- One WhatsApp number handles inquiries for all 53 clubs
- The chatbot answers 35% of member questions without needing human help, reducing phone calls and easing agent workload
- It provides details on business hours, health guidelines, training times and administrative issues
- Digital messaging and social media channels cut wait times and improve service
- Club members and managers appreciate the system for its efficiency and improved service
Gabi Mordo from Holmes Place highlighted that Glassix's solution not only reduced the volume of phone calls but also offered an innovative and empowering customer experience.
Ready to bring your customer communication strategy to the next level?
Improving your customer communication skills can make a huge difference in how you connect with your audience and improve satisfaction. The case studies of Estée Lauder, Hertz, Vert Hotels and Holmes Place show exactly how advanced tools and strategies can lead to real improvements.
Glassix can help you achieve these results by:
- Centralizing communication: Connect all your customer interactions—social media, email, phone and chat—into one easy-to-manage platform.
- Automating responses: Use chatbots to handle routine inquiries, freeing up your team to focus on more complex issues.
- Streamlining processes: Track metrics to understand what’s working and where you need to adjust, so you can make data-driven decisions.
- Customizing customer experiences: Tailor your interactions based on customer data to make every communication more relevant and engaging.
Ready to see how it works for you? Start your free trial with Glassix and take the next step towards transforming your customer communication today!
FAQs
What is a customer communications strategy?
A customer communication strategy is a structured plan that defines how a business engages with its customers across different channels and touchpoints. It ensures that all interactions are clear, consistent and effective, helping to build strong relationships and meet customer needs.
What are the 4 types of communication strategies?
Informative communication: Sharing information about products, services, or company updates.
Persuasive communication: Encouraging customers to take specific actions, such as purchasing or engaging with a brand.
Feedback communication: Gathering customer opinions and insights to improve products and services.
Relationship-building communication: Fostering long-term relationships through personalized interactions and support.
What are the 3 main elements of a communications strategy
The 3 main elements of a communications strategy are:
Audience: Identify who you’re talking to, what they like and what information they need
Message: Create clear and engaging messages that align with your goals and brand
Channel: Choose the best ways to deliver your messages to your audience
What are the 3 P's of communication strategy?
The 3 P's of communication strategy are: Push: Promote products directly to stores or sellers to get them to offer the items Pull: Attract customers directly to create demand, encouraging stores to stock the products Profile: Build a positive image through public relations, advertising and sponsorships to improve how people see your organization
