The business world isn’t always customer-oriented. If you look at comments across social media, for example, you’ll see complaint after complaint about poor customer service. If you want your clients to have an excellent customer experience (CX), you have to really grasp what your users want and deliver beyond.
Why Is CX Satisfaction Important?
PWC’s Consumer Intelligence report indicates 73% of people consider customer experience as part of their buying decisions. If you don’t get CX right, you may risk leads running into your competitors’ arms. You could also drive away current customers.
CX is a vital part of the success of any company, but there are big misunderstandings some customers have about it. One marketer’s biggest misunderstanding may not be another’s, so we’ll look at a few.
Misunderstanding #1: CX Is Customer Service
Although customer service can be part of CX, it is not the same. Service is more how your agents interact with your clients, and what your policies are—does the customer come first? However, CX encompasses everything from the impression you make when a visitor lands on your website to whether you follow-up after the sale.
When working to improve CX, you should start by analyzing every touchpoint you have with a customer. Is each functioning at top performance levels? How can you improve? You should also survey your customers and ask what might improve their interactions with you.
Misunderstanding #2: CX Must Be Hands-On
You don’t have to spend all your time catering to your patrons to ensure they have an excellent CX. People are growing more and more comfortable with technology, so automating repetitive tasks makes sense.
Today’s artificial intelligence (AI) integrates with other types of software services to give users a seamless experience. The customer wants to pull up their order history on your website, so AI seeks out the information from your inventory management system and gives it to the end user in a flash.
Look at the things you do that are extremely repetitive or can be easily automated. Perhaps you want to add a chatbot to your site. You can program the bot with answers to some of the most common questions asked by customers and potential customers.
Misunderstanding # 3: You Have to Spend a Fortune for CX
Experts predict CX technology spending will hit $641 billion this year. Even though there are plenty of softwares and devices you can implement, you don’t have to spend a lot of money to have excellent CX.
Some of the things you can implement on a dime include better customer service training, cutting the clutter from your website and implementing client-first policies. Think about what you’d want as a consumer and offer that to keep your patrons happy.
Misunderstanding #4: We Understand Our Users Already
Companies that do a lot of product testing and marketing may feel they already have an excellent understanding of who their customers are. Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case. The people who test your products and those who buy them may have different demographics.
Your client-base will also change over time. The people you started with and understand well may shift and change over a number of years. Even since the pandemic, many people’s priorities have shifted. Your audience may mature and change. Take the time to do regular surveys and fully understand the buyer persona you’re serving.
Does CX Really Matter?
You might think CX takes care of itself if you’re doing everything else well. However, you need a solid plan or you may miss opportunities to make an excellent impression. You want customers to see that you didn’t just do what was necessary but went above and beyond. They’ll tell others about their experience and you’ll gain word-of-mouth marketing for free.
Eleanor Hecks is the editor of Designerly Magazine. Eleanor was the creative director and occasional blog writer at a prominent digital marketing agency before becoming her own boss in 2018. She lives in Philadelphia with her husband and dog, Bear.