Engineering the Customer Experience
While your competitors are busy embarking upon campaigns to attract new business, get busy creating impeccable customer experiences that will result in repeat business, glowing referrals, and higher-margin/higher-value revenue growth.
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“The more you can learn about your customer’s true problems (as well as how they talk about those problems in natural conversation), the better.”
-Lydia Vogtne
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“Customer Service” is a tired mindset that is quickly being replaced by the more holistic and creative approach of, “Customer Experience.” Companies like Disney, Nordstrom, Southwest Airlines, Starbucks, and Apple have long known the benefits of investing in the overarching customer experience. And while profitable, the return on this investment is more than monetary.
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Your front-line employees are likely operating at a level of unconscious competence. This means that while they may be doing many things well, they can’t necessarily tell you what those things are .. and this is a very dangerous place to be. If your front-line people (a.k.a., the “face” of your organization) are not conscious and aware of what they’re currently doing to positively impact the customer experience, then this favorable behavior is not predictable, repeatable, or trainable. After all, how could you possibly systemize that which remains in your blind spots?
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If you find yourself preparing to battle your customers, that’s exactly the circumstances you’ll end up attracting. Instead, think of customers as “future friends.”
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If your company is like most, then — as difficult as this may be to accept — the majority of your customers are passive. In other words they won’t just leave you for something better … they’ll leave you for something different. The solution to this perceived mediocrity is to be relentless about creating remarkable customer experiences.
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“Our mission statement about treating people with respect and dignity is not just words but a creed we live by every day. You can’t expect your employees to exceed the expectations of your customers if you don’t exceed the employees’ expectations of management.”
-Howard Schultz, CEO Starbucks Coffee
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When it comes to your organization’s quest toward impeccable customer service, you need not be alone in leading the charge. There are already people working with/for you who would make for ideal champions and leaders. You may only be a conversation away from some much-needed support.
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Even — and perhaps especially — if you’re in an industry that does not tend to prioritize impeccable customer service, that gives you a golden opportunity to lead the way. Others will eventually come to their senses, but while they’re all asleep at the wheel you can become your industry’s leader.
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Don’t take it personally. When a customer is upset about something, it sometimes has less to do with you and more to do with them. Demonstrate empathy, be a great listener, and offer resolution.
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