Some look at the coronavirus pandemic and think,”Oh boy, what do we do now? The world’s never going to be the same!”

But others look at the exact same set of circumstances, recognizing they present an incredible opportunity.

American business has made it through the Great Depression, Black Monday, the 2001 .COM crash, and lately, the Great Recession.

…And that’s just the short list of crises we’ve made it through in the past century!

We’ll undoubtedly make it through the coronavirus pandemic too.

So, how can you make the most of it, instead of running around in circles and yelling,”The sky is falling! The sky is falling!”

Here’s some simple things to focus on with your customer service team:

1. Retrain Your Workforce to Keep Customer Service Quality High

Don’t cap overtime. Let your customer service team work extra hours.

And cross-train your existing employees to make sure customers get the same high-quality service they expect from you.

What better way to make a lasting impression on your customers than to be the company who offered awesome service throughout the coronavirus pandemic?

2. Adapt Your Business Model

Some companies, and this is absolutely no joke, offer overnight delivery of their product at no additional charge.

What if that doesn’t work with your budget?

No problem! Do what you can. Maybe you can offer reduced-cost expedited delivery. Or, perhaps you offer a 20% discount on future purchases.

You have at your disposal a million different ways to improve customer service. So figure out what works with your budget, and do what you can to help your customers out.

3. Improve Your Online Ordering Processes

Market segments (such as Baby Boomers) who previously minimized the importance of ordering online or ignored it entirely, will shift towards online ordering.

They may do all or some of their shopping online. It’s hard to say what the true extent of the change will be.

But it will happen. They’re the generation with the highest potential suffer the worst effects of coronavirus after all.

So, how can you accommodate this market shift with your customer service team?

4. Humanize Your Online Customer Service

Does your customer service team see customers as people or business transactions?

Which view do your own internal business policies encourage?

Do customer service reps just recite their way through the process? Or do they take the time to listen, care and get your customers a genuine solution?

Could you be different and offer a video feed when your customers contact you online, which is something practically no company currently does?

Every little interaction needs to go under a microscope. Adapt each to help your customers feel like real, worthwhile people…because they are!

Don’t throw away this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to offer stellar customer service that skyrockets your business.

Aiming to truly be of service to your customers wins them over in droves. And that effect only increases during an extreme crisis like we find ourselves in.