While many business owners think their company is doing an above average job keeping customers happy, a recent Hub Spot survey indicates otherwise. It might shock you to know that only 10 percent of customers give the companies they regularly do business with high marks for providing a great customer experience. We highlight eight common barriers to an exceptional customer experience -and their solutions – below.
Make it simple for your customers to get help:
When a customer has an issue to resolve, he or she doesn’t want to sit through a five-minute spiel about how the company is there to delight them. It can come across as annoying when a customer service representative seems too eager to impress. Customers just want to solve the problem or not experience it in the first place.
Don’t settle for the status quo:
It might seem contradictory to follow the above with advice that you still need to try to wow the customer to stand out from the competition. There is simply a time and a place to do it. That small window of time when you have captured a prospect’s attention is the perfect time to show how you’re different and better.
Consider common customer issues from multiple angles:
The more solutions your team can come up with, the more likely it is to hit on something that will improve the customer experience. Businesses need to approach the problem-solving session with the goal of meeting the unmet needs of the customer and not making things easier for the company.
Technology isn’t always the answer:
Downloadable applications have made things more efficient for businesses and customers but they’re not always appropriate. Before rushing into development, consider if a more personal approach would provide a better customer experience.
Post-sale support needs to be a high priority:
Offering technical support, refunds, account adjustments, and free advice on using a product can go a long way toward helping your company earn the customer loyalty it desires.
Associate a positive experience with your brand:
It doesn’t take a lot of money to help customers think of your brand when they have a certain experience. For example, a company that sells specialty teas could send a sample of a new type of tea a few times a year and thank customers for their past purchases. People will soon associate drinking the company’s tea with feeling appreciated.
Implement social listening:
Give customers plenty of ways to communicate their concerns and compliments with your company. This could be on a social media platform, an invitation to leave a review, on a forum, or even through postal mail or a phone call. The results of what you hear can help you deliver a truly great customer experience.
Consider your business model:
If you conduct business entirely online, allow multiple ways for customers to reach you through that venue. If you sell upscale coffee in a shop where people meet to discuss art and politics, continually look for ways to speak to those concerns. The point is to scale your current business model to improve the customer experience.
If you’d like to discuss strategies to improve your customers’ experience, Business Partner Alliance is here for you. We provide targeted coaching, consulting and business advisory services to help small and medium sized business owners achieve new heights. We put our passion and experience to work to help business people achieve their goals. Let’s meet for coffee to see how we can work together.
Emory Ware