New customers are super exciting, but nothing beats the value of a long-term partnership. Here are some agent-specific tips for retaining customers, and keeping them happy for the long haul.

Build Strong Personalized Relationships
It’s worth it to take the extra effort when it comes to setting the groundwork for a partnership. Start by understanding their needs, preferences, and pain points. This helps you become a trusted advisor to them, going beyond basic transactions and entering the realm of trusted expert who can provide advice on routing, cost-saving strategies, and industry trends. Once a relationship has been formed, be sure to stay frequent and dependable with your communication, checking in on the regular to keep them informed on shipments, addressing any concerns properly, and fostering a sense of partnership.

Demonstrate Your Dependability
From the get-go, it pays to be prompt and precise. Simplify your procedures so that tasks like quoting, booking, tracking, and paperwork take minimal time and are as accurate as possible. This creates credibility with your customer and lets them know you’re the expert they’re seeking who will help them move their freight with expertise and ease. Transparency is key—keep customers informed throughout the shipping process with real-time tracking and proactive communication about any potential delays.

Leverage Technology & Automation
Utilizing technology for repetitive tasks frees up your time to focus on building your customer relationships and providing personalized service. Take advantage of real-time tracking tools (we offer these to our agents at Sureway) to make life easier for everyone. If you’re able, leverage data analytics to better understand customer behavior and tailor your services to their specific needs.

Practice Proactive Communication
Being a great communicator is not optional in the world of customer retention. Freight agents should make a habit of anticipating issues so that you can get ahead of your customer’s concerns. If setbacks should arise in the transportation process, be up front and open about them—transparency is key. No matter the problem, have a problem-solver mindset and offer a genuine concern as well as potential solutions.

Deliver Additional Value
Once you’ve mastered customer service, it’s time to make a lasting impression with value-added services. These can come in the form of competitive rates that benefit your customers, or you can offer additional services such as warehousing, insurance recommendations, or other related assistance.

By going the distance one step at a time, you’ll gain the trust of people who want to hear from you again and again. That’s the difference of being a partner instead of just a vendor. Do you have a long-term customer mindset? Learn more about raising your freight agent expertise to its highest potential with Sureway.