For an industry held up by its customer service teams, it’s important to take a step back and recognize those brands that are doing it right in an effort to glean strategies that might work for you.
These are the top five brands winning at customer service in 2023, according to Hubspot:
Chewy
Chewy is an online retailer of pet supplies including food, toys, treats and other pet-related products. Here’s a snapshot of the most recent ratings for Chewy:
| Newsweek Rankings |
| Category: Pet Food and Pet-Related Products (Online) |
| Rank: 1 |
| Score: 9.16 |
| ASCI Score |
| Category: Online Retailers |
| Category Average: 80 |
| Score: 85 |
Why their customer service shines
Chewy’s “Customers First” philosophy is designed for customer satisfaction. It provides 24/7 expert support and the company has a “100% Unconditional Satisfaction Guaranteed Policy” on every order.
The company also values its customers and truly works to build lifelong connections with them. One of the things it’s very well known for is its empathy—especially when a customer is dealing with the loss of their pet. Chewy has been known to send heartfelt cards, pet portraits and flowers to grieving customers.
The company also provides refunds for pet products that were purchased but are no longer needed. This not only humanizes Chewy as a brand, but it shows that it cares far beyond the buyer-business relationship.
Trader Joe’s
Trader Joe’s is a chain of neighborhood grocery stores across the U.S. known for its low prices on unique food items. This list has some of the best. Here’s a snapshot of the most recent ratings for Trader Joe’s:
| Newsweek Rankings |
| Category: Discount Supermarkets |
| Rank: 1 |
| Score: 8.98 |
| ASCI Score |
| Category: Supermarkets |
| Category Average: 76 |
| Score: 84 |
Why their customer service shines
Trader Joe’s has a commitment to providing high-quality products at affordable prices to create value for its customers. It works to create a safe, welcoming, inclusive and respectful environment for both customers and employees.
Trader Joe’s also gives back to local food agencies in the communities it serves. Plus, customer-facing employees at Trader Joe’s are known for being extremely personable, talkative, relatable and helpful.
Lush
Lush is a handmade cosmetics retailer that specializes in making ethically-sourced and low-waste bath, body, skin, and hair products. Here’s a snapshot of the most recent ratings for Lush:
| Newsweek Rankings |
| Category: Perfume and Cosmetics |
| Rank: 1 |
| Score: 8.85 |
| ASCI Score |
| N/A |
Why their customer service shines
The Lush “We Believe” framework shapes the way the company does business. Here are some of the highlights:
- “We believe in happy people making happy soap.”
- “We believe all people should enjoy freedom of movement across the world.”
- “We believe the customer is always right.”
A lot of what Lush does to delight customers is through its products. It uses fresh, organic and vegetarian ingredients. The company is transparent about what’s in its products and when they were made. Lush values honesty and integrity toward its customers. And that’s one of the key attributes that makes its customer service special.
The stores also look fantastic and smell incredible when you walk past, so that’s a great experience on its own.
Starbucks
Starbucks is a coffee company. Well, it started as such but has since evolved into a purveyor of innovative coffee- and tea-based drinks and breakfast items. Here’s a snapshot of the most recent ratings for Starbucks:
| Newsweek Rankings |
| Category: Coffeehouse Chains |
| Rank: 1 |
| Score: 8.53 |
| ASCI Score |
| Category: Fast Food Restaurants |
| Category Average: 76 |
| Score: 77 |
Why their customer service shines
Starbucks aspires to be “people positive,” which means it’s invested in the humanity and well-being of its communities, partners and customers.
Its founder, Howard Schultz, sums it up nicely: “We are not in the coffee business serving people but in the people business serving coffee.”
Starbucks wins at customer service because the company focuses on perfecting the quality of the customer experience. Its people-first mentality is why so many people can’t start the day without their Starbucks fix.
Duolingo
Duolingo is a language learning app that provides educational programs with bite-sized lessons for over 30 languages. Here’s a snapshot of the most recent ratings for Duolingo:
| Newsweek Rankings |
| Category: Language E-Learning Platform |
| Rank: 1 |
| Score: 8.46 |
| ASCI Score |
| N/A |
Why their customer service shines
Duolingo provides personalized instructions for aspiring language learners across the world. Its machine learning algorithms adapt to create specialized learning material for each individual user.
The company also recognizes that learning isn’t one size fits all. Duolingo offers a variety of experiences to support interaction, conversation and reading and listening comprehension.
The company meets their customers where they are in their educational journey, and this is likely why more than 500 million users turn to Duolingo for their language learning needs.
While we’re on the subject, the famous Duo (the app’s sometimes scary but always encouraging owl) refuses to let you miss a day of learning.