Whether you are undertaking a SWOT analysis for a call center business or other customer service operation, the process involves identifying what customer service represents for you and your organization in terms of procedures, behaviors, motivations and attitudes. It means analyzing your entire customer service process at every level and stage in terms of its existing strengths and weaknesses. Then you must consider how it might be manipulated and improved to meet potential opportunities and overcome possible threats.

Tip

SWOT stands for Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. Evaluating these factors helps determine internal characteristics and external influences of your business.

SWOT Analysis of Customer Service Purpose 

A SWOT analysis of customer service is a means of helping you identify what is currently strong or weak about your service levels. It helps you to build upon those strengths and overcome any weaknesses by identifying potential opportunities which may be open to you. At the same time this analysis helps you recognize potential threats which may undermine your position.

As a strategic business tool, a SWOT analysis first addresses the overall nature of your customer service before dealing with specific details of implementation at a later stage.

Understanding Customer Service Components

The starting point of a SWOT analysis is establishing a clear picture of all the key variables and processes that comprise customer service in your department or organization. This varies greatly across organizations depending on their size, nature of business, geographical position and service channels. It may also differ between teams and individuals, depending on their role, experience and understanding of what customer service means.

Obtain Customer Feedback

Getting clear input from customers about what they like and dislike about your service style and levels is crucial before you undertake a SWOT analysis. This will highlight the points that are important to them (strengths and weaknesses) and may provide you with suggestions for new ways of servicing their needs (opportunities), as well as giving you a feel for the possible consequences of failing to improve (threats).

Assess Strengths and Weaknesses

Customer service strengths are those things that you consistently excel in, and those which you do better than your competitors. However, customer service strengths ultimately relate to customer perceptions — it is their view of what you do well rather than your own which is important. Strengths might include a fast issue response time, low hold time or high customer satisfaction rating on surveys you conduct.

Weaknesses are areas of customer service that need improvement. Once identified, it is important to establish the reasons for poor performance. Weaknesses found while conducting a customer SWOT analysis example might include poor staff training, inadequate delivery mechanisms or unreliable technology. Weaknesses in some areas of customer service may cancel out strengths in others which is why the delivery chain should be analyzed as a whole.

Look for Opportunities

Customer service opportunities relate both to technology that might improve existing service levels or to completely new service processes. As well as using any customer input about possible improvements or developments, seek innovative solutions from your own staff and suppliers. You should also look at what your competitors are doing. Even consider what other organizations in different business sectors are doing in customer service terms — much of it may be transferable to your organization.

Assess Any Threats

Lack of understanding of changing customer expectations and needs is one of the biggest threats for customer service, alongside competitor activity and innovation from new entrants to the market. In this step of the customer service SWOT analysis, using specific customer service measures is a good way of analyzing how much customer service is perceived to improve or decline year on year. This can reveal how much of a threat is posed by poor performance.

Formulate Your Objectives

Once identified, strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats should be used to formulate specific objectives and an action plan for improving customer service levels. Objectives should aim to build upon strengths and reduce weaknesses by taking advantage of opportunities for improvement. This will reduce the potential impact of some or all of the associated threats. Good communication and customer service training may be needed to enable people to meet these objectives.