As with any business strategy, there is need to streamline all aspects of the company to increase revenue. With a customer experience strategy, a brand can enhance satisfaction on the part of the buyer that leaves them feeling valued and loyal to the brand. What then does that entail?
Have a vision and core values
Not having an end goal in mind is one of the many ways a company loses direction. As with any strategy, that of customer experience requires a vision that the company hopes to actualize. From the vision, that is, the customer experience a company wishes to extend to their target market, it can be broken down into core values that need communicating throughout the company. Take for example an ICBC Victoria BC firm that processes personal injury claims; the person at the reception should give the same customer experience to those walking in through the front door as the person in finance doing the billing.
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Company culture and brand personality
As in the illustration provided, it is the core values that shape service delivery. Mostly, they become part of the company culture and guide behavior. They also govern the brand personality; the emotions a brand name evokes in the general public. Dominos and Chipotle don’t evoke the same feeling. Having a unique voice and offering a different experience (and one that people love) sets brands apart, creating something that potential customers will want to embrace.
Knowing your target market
Not all customers are created equal; an aspect the customer service support team ought to understand. There need to be profiled in place that guides the responses the team provides; one person will prefer to be taken step by step through a process while another would be happy to be directed to a manual for them to figure it out alone. With these profiles, the experience becomes tailored to each person. Creating a customer log allows agents are dealing with a repeat customer know how always to get their customer service experience right.
Creating an emotional connection
While establishing an emotional connection is important, it is the brand personality that guides how you connect with a customer. How an injury lawyer connects with a client is not the same way a Starbucks attendant will. One will employ sympathy while the other will use cheer. Both might ask “what can I do for you today” but how they say it will vary. It is this aspect that should, along with the core values, be entrenched in the company dynamics.
Go beyond the call of duty
Part of the emotional experience is having a customer feeling valued. It requires teaching customer service support staff to go above and beyond. If it’s clear, someone is having a rough day, adding a personal note or an extra something on the side goes along way. Not only will the person’s mood be uplifted, out of gratitude they will remain loyal to a brand that careers for them. As always, a team should be quick to act on feedback even when it comes at a slight inconvenience.
