Clients interact with organizations daily, these interactions are what define customer experience. But, businesses are now operating in an age of instant gratification. This has forced them to turn customer experience into a business priority compared to days when it was considered a luxury. There’s a CIM Course with an elective in customer experience that covers this expansively. You can enroll for it here.
However, there are people that do not think it is important. They run their businesses on methods which is tagged as “old school”. They offer services and goods at their convenience. If you are one of them then this article is definitely not for you. As marketers you need to be able to adopt to changes in the industry. Ensuring a superb customer experience is one of those changes.
Here are reasons why Customer experience is important:
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The digital age movement
A few years ago, when brick and mortar businesses were all the rage, they could get away with a lot. All they had to do was put up a sign with their operation hours. If a supermarket closed at 5PM it was 5PM not 5:01 PM. Clients understood this and obeyed the rules.
Now, businesses have moved online. Whether they are fully operational online or they are just creating a digital presence they have opened themselves onto a platform that never sleeps. When it comes to online platforms, the one thing clients expect is instant responses. These responses shape the customer experience and informs their perception about businesses.
By working on faster response online, a business creates positive customer experience, which could lead to conversions later.
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Standing out
Walk around Moi Avenue on any day, well except Sunday. What you will see is a line of storefronts that open up into more stores and stalls. Everyone seems to be in the business of selling shoes, clothes, perfumes or phones. They play loud music to attract customers, some barge on the streets and try to convince passersby that they need to buy products from them. The same can be replicated across businesses all over the country regardless of industry.
What does this show you?
That competition is stiff.
Neon lights, loud music or middlemen will only add to the commotion. What a business needs at this point is put in place a good customer experience at different touchpoint their customer could possibly come across. People are attracted to places that make them feel delighted to be there. Great customer experience will turn clients into your own personal ambassadors. And we all know what personal recommendations can do for a business right? It’s like magic!
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A good crisis strategy
You’re one mistake away from a public crisis. Recently on the news a restaurant trended across social media. Finally this trend ended into a public protest and threatened boycott to the said restaurant. Allegedly, a male employee had insinuated to a breast feeding lady that she could not do it at the establishment. He allegedly went ahead to inform the lady that if she must, she should do it in a toilet. The public outcry that resulted almost brought the restaurant to its knees.
Now, you’re probably wondering what this has to do with customer experience. Everything. Customer experience is not just about responding fast to messages and creating a delightful environment. It is also about the ability to be human and transparent. In such a crisis people will look at the aggrieved and the business.
As a business this is where you admit your shortcomings, show people that you are human too and prone to mistakes. Allowing them the truth makes them feel appreciated. And do you know what this does? It creates a general feeling of positive customer experience. You end up averting a crisis, appeasing both sides and still retaining clients.
Win-Win
