4 years ago
July 7, 2020

6 Tips to Better Serve Your Customers During Economic Uncertainty

Your customers are the backbone of your business. Without them, you would have no one to serve. With globalization and now with the coronavirus pandemic, it’s never been more important…

Rhys Metler

Your customers are the backbone of your business. Without them, you would have no one to serve. With globalization and now with the coronavirus pandemic, it’s never been more important to make your customers the focal point of your business strategy. This starts with providing exceptional customer service. And you need to serve your customers even better during economic uncertainty.

“The coronavirus pandemic has cast a cloud of uncertainty over the globe, cost millions of people their jobs, and pushed the economy into a recession,” says Blake Morgan on Forbes.com.

“But for most of the world, life goes on—albeit in a new and uncertain way. And although many consumers might not be making as many purchases, those relationships with brands are still important. Customers are still looking for a sense of certainty and connection, and that often comes from the brands they love,” she adds.

Here are a number of tips from Toronto Sales Recruiters to help you improve how you serve your customers during the economic uncertainty brought on by COVID-19.

6 Tips to Better Serve Your Customers During Uncertain Economic Times

There is always room for improvement. You can make changes to how you serve your customers. You can make adjustments to the overall customer experience journey you provide. Use these tips to offer better service when your customers need it the most:

1. Consider the Impact on Your Customers

Economic uncertainty can have a significant impact on your customers. How much it will affect them depends on your business and industry. For example, there can be a larger difference between how things have affected B2B customers versus B2C customers. Understanding how things have changed for them will help you be in a better position to serve them. Are they affected by COVID-19? If so, how? What has changed for them?

In sales, there is always an emphasis on understanding a customer’s needs. During changes in the economy, you need to know and understand how these needs have changed.

2. Ask – How Can I Help?

A Guide to Using Memes, GIFs and Emojis on Social Media

Once you have a detailed understanding of how things are changing for your customers, you need to identify new ways you can help them. You need to be agile and adjust how you serve your customers in order to keep the relationship alive and well. If you cannot help them, they will turn to other solutions.

Here are some possible ways you can help:

  • Changes to payment structures and plans
  • Altering service packages
  • Providing expert advice and advisory services
  • Adjusting business hours
  • Changing protocol and processes to help your customers

There are countless ways you can help your customers. You just need to determine the steps you need to take to provide the most impact and better serve them.

3. Listen, Then Take Action

The type of service and what your customers need is not that difficult to figure out if you stop and listen. Let your customers provide you with guidance.  Sometimes all you need to do is ask to get a better understanding of what your customers need. Listen to their concerns and then adjust your products, services, and customer experience to better serve them. Take the initiative by connecting with and engaging your customers. Start the conversation, show them you are proactive, and want to help them through these trying times.

4. Personalization

No two customers are the same. How COVID-19 has affected them can be unique when compared to other customers. Now is the time to get personal and offer more ways to customize your offerings to better serve your customers. Build in flexibility in how you do business. For example, if you’ve offered 3 types of service packages in the past, maybe you could offer 5 now. There are many ways you can create custom solutions for your customers. Work with them on an individual basis to identify how you can offer better-personalized solutions.

5. Be Transparent

Now is not the time to put up a front. Everyone is dealing with the same uncertainty. Therefore, it’s important to be upfront and honest with your customers about how things have changed for you. Some things may have changed, others may stay exactly the same. For example, some industries have never been busier while others are struggling to stay afloat. Be open about the changes your company is making and how they will affect operations. Make it clear why you are making these decisions and how they will better serve customers.

6. Go Above and Beyond

Uncertain times are when a company shows its true colours. Now is the time to build trust and take your relationship with your customers to the next level. It’s time to go above and beyond to help your customers in their time of need.

There are many ways you can go above and beyond:

  • Offer more value
  • Be generous with your time
  • Have extra availability to answer questions and address concerns
  • Offer discounts and rebates

Read More From Our Sales Recruitment Blog

There are always ways for you to improve your customer service. Check out these recent blogs by our sales recruiters. They offer great tips and advice to help you foster a stronger and longer-lasting relationship with your sales customers:

8 Tips for Having Difficult Conversations With Customers During Uncertain Times

6 Tips to Ensure Your Sales Team Comes Out Strong After an Economic Downturn

Tips for Leveraging Technology to Close Sales Remotely

7 Tips for Closing Sales in an Economic Downturn

7 Ways to Be a Leader in a Time of Crisis


SalesForce Search is a Toronto sales recruiting company that specializes in the recruitment and placement of sales professionals. We recruit salespeople in every sector of the economy including, software, manufacturing, financial services, and medical devices. Find the right salesperson for your organization, start your search here.

Rhys Metler

Rhys is a tenacious, top performing Senior Sales Recruiter with 15+ years of focused experience in the Digital Media, Mobile, Software, Technology and B2B verticals. He has a successful track record of headhunting top performing sales candidates for some of the most exciting brands in North America. He is a Certified Recruitment Specialist (CRS) and has expert experience in prospecting new business, client retention/renewals and managing top performing sales and recruitment teams. Rhys enjoys spending quality time with his wife, son, and daughters, BBQing on a hot summer day and tropical vacations.

salesforce-popup