Is the customer experience as personal as it can be? Customers and the professionals delivering the experiences just might agree on the answer.
Customers are seldom 100% satisfied with their experiences. And it turns out, customer experience professionals recognize the need for improvement.
About half of customer experience professionals felt their strategies were falling short of goals, according to the Loyalty360 Annual CX Landscape: State of the Industry Report.
“It was evident that brands were struggling to define customer experience in an exhaustive, yet simple enough way that would unify their entire organization around the customer,” said Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360.
Why it’s difficult
Customers expect a seamless experience across all channels at every touch point, and that’s often where companies struggle: With so many people and personalities involved in the total experience, it can be difficult to provide the same level of service at every point.
“When you’re spending money as the consumer you want to make sure that all of your touch points with a brand are somewhat rewarding and convenient, and up to some extent, even fun,” said Artemio Garza, chief marketing officer at Meineke, who will speak at the Engagement & Experience Expo.
Here are three unique ways companies have personalized and streamlined the customer experience:
1. Blend the online and in-person experience
As more and more customers “showroom” — check out products in local stores, then buy them online at a lower price — companies have found that their only chance to stay ahead is to wow customers with personal attention when they’re in the store.
For instance, Michigan-based furniture store Gorman’s uses online technology to its advantage to win customers in its stores, where they offer a personalized, expert experience. In some cases, employees pull out iPads to help customers comparison shop — and see that they’re better off getting customized products and service from within Gorman’s. From there, employees also keep in touch with the customers they met via email and social media.
2. Get personal quickly
You can give customers one-of-a-kind experiences quickly when you know what they’ve done, requested, seen or liked in the past.
To that end, Greylock Federal Credit Union uses software to flash customer-specific reminders on the computer screens of its front-line customer service representatives.
For instance, when a rep answers a phone call, and keys in the customer’s information, the software spits back specifics about the customer and his or her history.
Some things it could tell the rep:
- “He doesn’t have a debit card”
- “He was sent a mailer about X, Y and Z,” or
- “He’s had several short-term loans.”
That way, the rep would know to steer clear or talk about the benefits of debit cards. Or the rep might go into more detail about the products highlighted in a recent mailer.
3. Train them
The more customers know about your products and services, the more likely it is they’ll be satisfied with their experiences across the board.
Sage, an Irvine, CA, software company, offers training that customers can personalize as much as they’d like.
One of the most popular is the online peer-to-peer community. Customers can throw out questions to other Sage customers who might be in the same industry, using the same product or, most importantly, facing the same issue. That helps break it down to about the most personalized experience ever. Sage service or technical pros can jump in to help when necessary, too.
They also offer “Sage University.” Customers can sign up for webinars on the products they use.
