By 2020 it is estimated that customers will manage 85% of their relationship with a business without interacting with a human. And with 89% of businesses competing predominantly on customer experience (CX) within a matter of a few years, now might just be the right time to consider the importance of CX and how it will affect your business.
Huge shifts in technology and marketing practices over the last 10 years means that CX will soon be the central focus of each and every company that is determined to stay relevant and stand out. The Internet has changed the business landscape forever – the locally run business can compete with a multi-national organisation. For many consumers researching and purchasing online there may not even appear to be much difference between the two so the place where you can differentiate your business is in the customer experience you provide.
‘86% of buyers will pay more for a better CX, but only 1% of customers feel that vendors consistently meet their expectations.’
Offer a better customer experience and you will achieve more customers, customers who repurchase, customers who don’t switch to the competition, and customers who will recommend you.
CX doesn’t need to involve complex, long-term or expensive investments either – it can be a matter of just changing or enhancing current policies to ensure that each and every customer receives and remembers a great customer experience.
Some top tips for creating a great customer experience:
- Don’t argue with customers. We all know that the customer isn’t always right but determine if the fight is worth losing potential customers.
- Be flexible in your policies. Even if it gets to the point where you need to say no to a customer’s request, say it with dignity and respect.
- Keep your promises, all of them, each and every time.
- Listen to your customers and respond accordingly to their requirements and desires.
- Be available – utilise solutions such as live chat functions and have processes in place to respond in a timely manner to emails and social media comments and messages.
- Don’t be insultingly exclusive or you will just put customers off-side and alienate new clients.
- Control your digital presence, including social media postings. Don’t just delete negative comments, respond to them and embrace the opportunity to turn the experience into a positive one.
And an extra tip that might seem a little outside the box when talking about CX – treat your employees well. You can’t treat your own team poorly and then expect then to treat customers well and go above and beyond to ensure your clients receive a fantastic customer experience they will rave about.
Remember this – without customers you have no business, regardless of whether you are a B2B or a B2C business. All businesses need a human to make a purchase decision and more and more that decision is made based on the customer experience they receive.
If you require assistance with your website functionality, social media on content creation to make sure you are providing the very best customer experience possible, contact the Website Design Centre team today.
