Three Ways To Create A Positive Customer Experience

You’d think that by now we'd have mastered the art of the customer experience. Yet, even in 2018, we all too often find ourselves at the receiving end of a frustrating encounter.

Think back on some of your recent experiences as a customer: a visit to your bank, a call to your phone provider, waiting in the Emergency Room, or even a coffee at your local cafe. How was your experience? Did it leave you feeling wowed? Or, did it have you swearing never to return, because you:   

• Found yourself having to share the same information over and over again. Wondering why on earth the organisation's systems weren't more integrated.

• We're asked to wait, even though you had an appointment scheduled - causing you to feel frustrated because your time wasn't valued.

• Were called for your turn only to discover your agent could not assist you, and that you needed to wait for an agent with the correct skills or expertise.

• Were left waiting with no idea how long an appointment or visit was going to take, and with every passing minute, you become more frustrated, angrier.

So, why do customers find themselves in these situations?

In my experience, it usually is one of the following:

• Multiple touch-points. As customers, we typically engage with various people and technologies when seeking assistance. It becomes frustrating if, at each touch-point, we are asked for the same information over again.

• Poor use of technology. Like me, you probably enjoy using self-service technologies. But when applications have bugs or a poorly designed user interface, they become a hindrance. You know the saying, ‘Technology is fantastic, but only if it works.’

• Lack of connected systems. When technologies exist in silos, customer information isn't accessible to the right people at the right time. Integrating business systems with customer journey solutions gives service staff a complete 360 view of a person, and access to real-time data.  

• Disjointed processes. A common occurrence when delivering services that require multiple appointments over an extended period. For example, patient treatments or a financial application processes might involve numerous interactions with different people. When you’re told one thing by one staff member, then another by someone else, who do you believe?
  
  

As organisations evolve their processes and technologies, inefficiencies arise. To customers, it may seem inexplicable that something so 'simple' is so complicated and frustrating. But we know that it takes a lot of work to create a remarkable customer experience.

So, what can your organisations do to create a more positive customer experience?

Here are 3 ways your organisation can start creating a more positive customer experience:

1. Review your front-end processes – Are your processes in tune with the needs of the customers? Do they have the agility to allow for varying needs of customers? Ensure customers and agents are matched based on needs and skills. And that staff have access to the systems, information and resources they need to serve your customers efficiently.

2. Choose technologies wisely – Invest in technologies that enhance your operations by integrating with existing systems to automate repetitive tasks. That combine business and third-party applications to support the overall customer experience, and provide insight into real-time data gathered throughout the customer journey.

3. Better prepare your staff – Not just in terms of customer service training, although that is of course important. I mean utilising technology and systems to ensure the right information is presented to staff members when it’s needed most. Leveraging concepts like SVOC (Single View of Customer) where the serving staff get useful insights into the customer’s preferences and information. Meaning this data is brought forward from the databases/CRMs, into the hands of the staff member standing in front of the customer.

I hope you found this article useful, and feel free to share your experience in the comments section below, or reach out to us directly.

Here’s to a future of GREATER customer experiences!