A key ingredient to a successful business is to know how to keep your customers happy.
And there’s one key way to keep them happy: having a point of contact in your company!
Studies show that 43% of customers are more likely to buy something from a brand after a good customer service experience. A solid plan for point-of-contact positions in your business is a positive way to invest in good customer service and overall service.
So, if you’re wondering what a point of contact is, we’ve got you covered.
In this article, we’ll look into:
- What is a point of contact
- 8 examples of a point of contact
- 6 ways to improve a point of contact
Let’s dive right in.
What Is Point of Contact?
Before we discuss the different types of point of contact in detail, let’s first understand what a point of contact is.
A point of contact is someone you designate to be the main person or point with whom another person or business will communicate. This could include answering a phone call, coordinating a project, or resolving a tech issue.
The point of contact will be the person who hears the customer or business and resolves the issue or connects them with the appropriate person who can.
However, the point of contact does not just pass the customer/business to someone else. They are a part of the entire conversation, whether by email or phone, so they can stay in the loop of the whole process and keep the customer/business updated on the status of whatever they are working on.
8 examples of point of contact
If you want to excel at something, you’ve got to take a deep dive into everything about the subject. Just like you would learn digital marketing as a communications professional, should you learn the top examples of point of contact and how you should apply them in your business?
So, let’s take a look at those now, shall we?
1. Customer Service Rep
A customer service representative is one of the most common point of contact positions. Almost every company has one nowadays. If you have any kind of issue, you will send a message to them, and they will help you resolve it.
It can be common for customer service reps to hear your issue and send you over to the next person and department. However, as a business, you can take this as a lesson learned and find a way for your customer service rep to help the customer from start to finish.
That way, the customer doesn’t get frustrated by having to tell someone new the story again for the millionth time. Customers will feel heard when the customer service rep is integral to the resolution process. This emphasizes the importance of hiring the perfect sales employee who can handle customer interactions with a comprehensive understanding and responsiveness.
2. Receptionist
A receptionist is a great point of contact when someone has a brick-and-mortar business. The first person, a customer, will see when they walk into an office is probably a receptionist or someone checking in customers.
Since it would be hard for this version of a point of contact to be with the customer every step of the way, other strategies can help this role be quite successful at being a point of contact.
For example, give receptionists superb training so they can connect the customer with the correct person without having to be shuffled around. By empowering the receptionist with the information they need, this role can excel at being a point of contact.
3. Technical Support Hotline
People who call a technical support hotline are probably already upset that they must call about something in the first place.
Being the point of contact when working with tech support can be a challenge. However, with the right attitude and personality, this role can help the company they work for see positive outcomes.
4. Sales Rep
Another common point of contact is a sales rep. This role generally interacts with customers and prospects to sell products or services.
As a business, you want to invest heavily in this point of contact as it can make or break what is coming into the company.
5. Account Manager
An account manager is a point of contact who manages an account and the relationship between the business and the customer. They help the customer with any needs they may have and look ahead at the customer’s accounts to see if there’s anything they might need in the future.
When a business has account managers, customers can reach out to the same person each time and build a relationship that garners trust.
6. Social Media Manager
This version of a point of contact is relatively new, as social media has grown significantly in the past few years. A social media manager is the person behind the screen answering messages on your social account.
If you don’t have a social media manager yet, you might consider hiring one externally to manage your accounts. It’s an excellent point of contact for your company.
7. Project Manager
This point of contact will manage projects and communicate with the business and the customer to ensure a smooth project. It’s important to know the difference between this role and an account manager, just as you would know the difference between a lawyer and an attorney.
They sound similar, but they are, in fact, different. An account manager manages an existing account, while a project manager focuses solely on one project. Both may work with a client together, which is fine and recommended.
8. Business Development Manager
A business development manager will be the point of contact for a customer who is new to the business and will establish and maintain the relationship.
This person will seek new clients and then get them on board with an account manager once they’re established as a customer.
6 Ways to Improve Point of Contact
As you can see, having a point of contact is essential to your company’s success. These roles will be very forward-facing and deal with customers directly. If you already have these roles in place, one of the best things you can do is learn how to improve them and set them up for success.
1. Offer a centralized way for your point of contact to communicate
If you have not invested in a Customer Relationship Management tool, now is the time to do it. A good CRM will allow the different roles of your points of contact to view who has spoken with a customer and where they stand in the pipeline.
Instead of reading through long email chains or spending a lot of time on calls trying to understand what the customer needs and who has been speaking to them, a CRM allows them to see everything from one centralized location.
2. Consider offering 24/7 availability for some of your point of contacts
There are some roles that you might consider having on-call 24/7 to provide additional service to your customers. Tech support and customer service reps are great roles that would do well when available 24/7.
This allows greater flexibility for your customers and, of course, happier outcomes when issues are resolved faster than they normally are.
3. Offer multi-channel support
If your website is the only way customers and prospects can reach you, you may need to consider offering multi-channel support. By that, we mean offering additional avenues for your customers to reach you, such as social media, automated chat features, etc.
If you do go this route, be sure to optimize content for mobile viewing so you can give your customers the best content at all times.
4. Invest in training for your point of contact
Every job position needs training; that’s just a fact. However, for the roles in your business that are the point of contact for your company, you may want to consider some additional training.
Learning empathy and how to use it in the workplace is an example of training that could make or break these roles.
5. Don’t shy away from automation
AI has its pros and cons. However, one of the pros it has brought us is the automation features. If you’re looking for a way to expedite service or provide quick answers to commonly asked questions, consider using AI as chatbots.
Don’t let AI replace your point of contact; just use it effectively in a way that your customers will find useful. That way, if automation cannot provide them the answer they are looking for, they can immediately be connected with the point of contact.
6. Offer multi-lingual support
For your point of contact positions, try to hire employees who speak additional languages. This will be extremely helpful for roles such as customer service, tech support, sales reps, or any position that requires communication.
Clients will appreciate the additional accessibility that is available to them.
Final thoughts on the point of contact
An effective point of contact can be a game changer for a business. If you can hire and invest in high-level point-of-contact positions, you can set yourself up for the next level of success.
Happy customers make for a thriving business, so allow your customers and prospects to have excellent point of contact positions to which they can reach out.
If you’re looking for ways to improve your website, let us help! Book a one-on-one coaching call for SEO training today!
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