Customer Experience 
Most businesses depend on excellent customer service to grow and succeed. According to Forrester’s Global Customer Experience Index 2025 rankings, ongoing challenges continue to impact how customers perceive CX quality.
The report notes that the disparity between the customer experience brands intend to deliver and what customers actually experience is widening, with only 3% of companies currently being customer-obsessed and putting their customers’ needs front and center. This creates significant opportunities for businesses that prioritize customer service excellence.
This guide outlines 17 essential customer service tips to help your team deliver outstanding experiences that drive customer loyalty and business growth.
Why Excellent Customer Service Matters
The business impact of superior customer service cannot be overstated. Businesses with the highest customer satisfaction scores return double the shareholder value and 3x higher growth than their peers. According to research by Bain & Company, increasing customer retention rates by 5% can increase profits by as much as 95%, but according to a report by PwC, 1 in 3 consumers say they would stop doing business with a brand they loved after one bad experience.
For small businesses and startups, excellent customer service becomes even more critical as a competitive differentiator when competing against larger enterprises with more resources.
17 Essential Customer Service Tips
Delivering great customer service improves the bottom line through better customer retention and referrals. Here are a few tips to get you started on the journey.
1. Show empathy
Empathy means recognizing the emotion behind a customer’s words and responding in a way that shows you understand. A short phrase like “I can see why this is frustrating for you” can calm tension and open space for problem-solving.
Build empathy exercises into team training. Role-play scenarios where an order arrives late or a feature doesn’t work as expected, and practice responding with patience and understanding. For example:
- Customer: “I’ve been waiting two weeks, and I’m really frustrated.”
- Don’t say: “Just wait a few more days and you’ll get it.”
- Better response: “I understand how frustrating that must feel. Let’s see how I can speed this up for you.”
Simple role-play exercises like this help agents practice empathy in real-world situations without needing expensive training.
2. Use positive language
Customers often focus less on what you said and more on how you said it. Customer service phrases shape perception, so even when sharing unfavorable news, a positive tone shows that you’re trying to help.
Create a “positive alternatives” cheat sheet. List common negative phrases and rewrite them with solutions in mind, so team members have quick replacements to use in real conversations.
Below are a few examples of how to transform negative statements:
- Instead of “We can’t do that,” try “Here’s what we can do…”
- Replace “That’s not my job” with “Let me connect you with the right specialist.”
- Change “You didn’t…” to “Let’s work together to…”
3. Communicate clearly
Miscommunication is one of the biggest drivers of frustration. Customers want answers that are simple, direct, and free from jargon. Clarity saves time for both sides and builds trust.
Encourage team members to summarize solutions in plain words. Ask them to end calls or chats with a quick recap: “Here’s what we’ve done, and here’s what happens next.” This approach is especially suitable for startups building their customer service foundations.
4. Know your product & services
When a customer reaches out, they expect you to know your product better than anyone. A confident answer builds trust, while uncertainty signals inexperience.
For example, if a customer asks, “Does this plan include international calls?” don’t say, “I’m not sure, maybe check online?”
A better reply is, “Yes, the Premium plan covers calls to 25 countries. I can email you the full list if you’d like.” And in case the agent doesn’t know, they can say, “That’s a great question. Let me confirm that for you so I can give you the right information.”
Both responses show confidence and keep the customer assured. But product expertise is important to enable informed recommendations and faster problem resolution. Maintain an internal FAQ or searchable knowledge base. Pair it with short refresher sessions whenever products or policies change, so no one falls behind.
5. Focus on first-call resolution
Every extra call or email adds to customer frustration. Solving issues the first time makes customers feel valued and reduces support costs.
Ken McMahon, Chief Customer Officer at Nextiva, explains, “In contact center voice channels, organizations are behind if they are still using hardware telephony infrastructure. Businesses need to rapidly adapt their contact center as a service (CCaaS), or they will cease being relevant in the customer experience.”
Cost-effective customer experience platforms help businesses achieve better first-call resolution rates by providing agents with unified dashboards that show customer history, orders, and open tickets in one place.
If a customer says, “I’ve already explained this twice. Do I need to start over again?” agents with access to a unified dashboard can respond confidently: “I’ve pulled up your earlier notes, so you don’t have to repeat yourself. Let’s continue from where we left off.”
This shows respect for the customer’s time and prevents them from being bounced between departments.
6. Set proper expectations
Setting realistic expectations up front makes customers more forgiving if delays happen. When businesses overpromise and underdeliver, trust erodes. Be transparent about timelines, capabilities, and potential outcomes.
Provide realistic timeframes, explain processes step by step, and proactively communicate progress. If a fix will take three days, say so clearly and follow up if anything changes. Customers appreciate honesty more than vague reassurance. This approach is especially effective for small businesses building long-term customer relationships.
7. Personalize the customer experience
Personalization makes customers feel recognized instead of treated like a number. According to McKinsey & Company, 71% of customers expect brands to offer personalized interactions, and 76% become frustrated when they do not. In fact, research from Salesforce shows that 88% of online shoppers, including 96% of Generation Z and 97% of Millennials, prefer personalized experiences.
It can be as simple as remembering their last order or suggesting products that fit their past behavior.
Use customer data to recommend next steps or thank repeat buyers with small loyalty gestures. For example, “I saw you purchased this last month. Would you like tips on getting the most out of it?”
Small businesses have a natural advantage in personalization; take advantage of it by:
- Drawing on past interactions and preferences
- Customizing recommendations based on customer history
- Recognizing customer loyalty and retention
8. Anticipate customer needs
Proactive customer service often means solving problems before customers even notice them. Anticipation shows you’re paying attention and builds confidence in your brand.
Use customer data to track common support patterns. If you know customers usually struggle during setup, send a short how-to video or checklist right after purchase to prevent unnecessary tickets.
Monitor customer behavior for early warning signs, provide relevant resources based on customer journey stage, and implement automated notifications for important updates.
9. Be proactive with retention
Waiting until a customer is angry or leaving is too late. Proactive outreach helps catch small frustrations early. Nearly unanimously, 96% of respondents said their leadership team considers CX a critical factor for business success. 67% of CX leaders say it’s easier to get approval for CX investments today, as reported by Nextiva’s CX Trends 2025.
Use surveys or analytics to spot signs of declining engagement. Reach out with a quick check-in, a helpful tip, or a personalized offer that reminds them why they chose you in the first place.
10. Go the extra mile
Exceeding expectations doesn’t have to mean spending more money. Sometimes, it’s about thoughtful follow-ups or offering something useful that the customer didn’t expect. A Salesforce Research report found that 91% of customers are more likely to make a repeat purchase.
After resolving an issue, send a short message to confirm everything is still working. Add a link to a resource or guide that helps them avoid future problems. This is especially helpful for startups and small businesses to build a strong reputation.
11. Maintain a positive attitude
A calm and upbeat approach can shift the mood of even a difficult interaction. Customers pick up on tone as much as words.
Train your team to pause before responding when dealing with upset customers. A short breath helps reset tone and ensures the reply comes across as thoughtful rather than defensive.
If a customer says, “This is the worst service I’ve had,” don’t react with, “That’s not fair.” A better response is, “I’m sorry you feel this way. Let’s go through the issue together and get it fixed.” Positivity helps redirect the conversation.
12. Take customer feedback
Feedback is the quickest way to see your service from the customer’s point of view. It highlights gaps you may not notice internally. It also shows that you value your customers’ opinions.
Use simple tools like post-chat surveys, star ratings, or social media polls to improve the service quality. Make sure you act on the feedback and share improvements back with your customers so they know their voice matters.
Effective feedback strategies are particularly suitable for small businesses that want to quickly iterate and improve their service delivery.
13. Embrace continuous learning
Customer expectations shift quickly, especially with new tools like AI entering service workflows. Teams that learn continuously adapt faster and perform better.
According to Gartrner, by 2025, customer service leaders will prioritize using conversational generative AI to revolutionize customer interactions and support business growth through strategic upselling and cross-selling.
Encourage regular skill-building and offer training on AI and automation tools, communication skills, and industry best practices to increase customer satisfaction. Rotate training topics between technology, communication, and product knowledge so employees don’t just improve in one area.
14. Celebrate successes
Recognition strengthens morale and reinforces positive habits. If your employees feel appreciated, they naturally deliver better service.
Share positive customer stories in team meetings, send shoutouts for great work, or build a small reward system that highlights consistent effort. Companies that use employee experience develop more successful innovations, see twice the revenue growth, and achieve twice the net promoter score (NPS) of their competitors.
15. Invest in customer service skills
Strong customer service requires more than product knowledge. Employees need to handle conflict, solve problems, and explain solutions clearly. Skilled employees with technical product knowledge contribute to CX success.
Invest in short, practical training programs. Focus on versatile skills like advanced communication techniques, including empathy, problem-solving, and active listening, that benefit any customer interaction. Small businesses can maximize the ROI of their training by focusing on versatile skills applicable to various types of customer interactions.
16. Leverage technology strategically
Technology can speed up service, but it should support humans, not replace them entirely. Customers want convenience with a human touch when needed. By 2025, 85% of customer interactions will be handled without human intervention. Companies that use AI report a 25% increase in customer satisfaction (Gartner).
Use chatbots for routine questions, but ensure complex cases quickly connect to real people. Choose tools that give your team complete customer context in one place. The best customer experience platforms typically combine AI-powered routing, unified customer data, self-service options, and real-time analytics in affordable, scalable packages.
Advanced customer experience solutions help small businesses compete with larger companies by offering enterprise-level features at affordable prices.
17. Track your customer service performance
While 94% of respondents report a positive ROI on CX investments, according to Nextiva’s CX Trends Report, you can’t know your own return without tracking performance.
Tracking your customer service performance shows what’s working and where to focus improvements. Measure what is most important to your customers and business goals.
Pick a small set of metrics like customer satisfaction score (CSAT), net promoter score (NPS), first contact resolution rate (FCR), and average resolution time (ART). Review them monthly, discuss trends with your team, and adjust processes based on the data.
Implementing Customer Service Tips With the Right Tools
Successfully implementing these customer service tips requires the right combination of training, processes, and technology. Top-rated customer experience solutions for small businesses typically provide:
- Omnichannel communication capabilities
- Integrated customer data management
- Performance analytics and reporting
- Scalable pricing models
53% of businesses say they handle most support interactions through email, 48% say voice, 38% say live chat, and 38% say text messaging. Interactions via social media channels make up 25% of support requests.
For businesses serious about customer service excellence, platforms like Nextiva’s unified customer experience management system bring all interactions into one AI-powered platform, helping teams deliver consistent experiences across all touchpoints.
Moving Forward With Customer Service Excellence
Customer service excellence requires ongoing commitment and the right strategic approach.
Start by evaluating your current customer service capabilities against these 17 tips. Identify areas for improvement and develop a plan that combines skill development, process optimization, and strategic technology adoption.
The businesses that succeed long-term are those that consistently deliver exceptional customer experiences through well-trained teams, proven processes, and tools that increase customer satisfaction at every touchpoint.
Ready to improve your customer service? Begin with one or two tips that align with your immediate business needs, then gradually expand your capabilities as you see results and build momentum.
Customer service done right.
Learn how Nextiva can help you improve your customer experience today.
