How to Improve Customer Experience?

As an employee at a Fortune 500 company I know and understand the importance of customer experience at the workplace especially in the Retail sector. Most businesses spend millions of dollars on the latest technology to improve customer experience.

In this blog I am going to share my tips to improve customer experience in your business. Why do you need to improve customer service you ask? 

Let’s face it if you have a business -you have customers and to be profitable you not only want your customers to keep coming back to you for their business needs but you also want to get new customers.

As you know most businesses are competing against each other in an ever shrinking market. So businesses differentiate themselves by their brand or customer service.

But what is customer service?

3 important qualities of customer service?

There are three  important qualities of customer service and ways to improve customer experience: “customer first”, professionalism and patience. Although customer service varies from customer to customer, as long as you’re following these guidelines, you’re on the right track.

As long as you have the best interest of your ‘customer’ at heart and aren’t trying to dupe into upselling but are genuinely interested in listening to their issue you are good.

For example: Amazon will recommend an author or a book based on your shopping history.

Professionalism counts especially if you have a customer facing business, for example a Jewelry store. You might think ‘oh if they want to buy they will, I dont need to sell a walk-in customer.

Try Tiffany’s. For example, as soon as you walk in you are greeted by an Associate who goes on to inquire about your needs and makes recommendations.

Are their Associates dressed shabbily? No.

Why are they dressed up professionally?

Simple answer because a customer who is walking in Tiffany’s is going to spend an exorbitant amount to purchase a gift item. The Customer would not part his hard earned money to some sleazy salesperson.

Perception is everything.

So, If you have a business make sure your employees are dressed professionally as it reflects on business and ultimately on you the owner.

Patience in customer service is interconnected with listening skills. A salesperson will never go far if he/she only likes to talk and not listen.

You have to instill in your employees the value of listening patiently to customers. Listening and patience will not allow your employees to improve their service to the customer but help the customer get the perfect product/service he needs.

This will also help to improve your sales.

Examples of Great Customer Experience to improve Sales

Starbucks: Gamified Loyalty Program:

The brand leveraged the concept of gamification to enhance the Starbuck’s experience and in turn drive sales as well. 

Gaurav Menon

Coca Cola: Personalization

What Coca-Cola did

Personalizing a product by branding it with the customer’s name is the most simple and effective way to stand out and get noticed

animitevabg

How do you focus on a customer experience?

There are several ways you can focus on customer experience. As a business owner or a Manager you must have  a clear vision of your company’s goals.

I am a great believer in setting goals especially SMART Goals.

As a business consultant who has helped hundreds of business I would suggest you make framework for the improvement of Customer Service that includes your vision & ways to achieve it.

Ask your customers and employees for feedback and use it constructively without penalzing employees. Act on the feedback.

Infact this would be the time to appreciate Customers and Employees with Branded gifts.

How to Improve Customer Experience? Click To Tweet

How can customer experience be improved in the workplace?

Here are a few tips to provide top customer support and gain loyal customers.

1. Practice Active Listening. As a business owner/Manager or an employee you have to learn to practice listening. 
2. Learn to Empathise With Your Customers. When you are listening actively you are actively building a relationship with your customer or employee and thereby you can engage with him by empathizing or appreciating.
3. Use Positive Language. Always answer an inquiry with a positive response. Even when the answer is going to be NO start with a Yes.

1. Improve Your Technical Skills. In Todays world in person customer service also relies on technology so make sure your business, your employees and your customers feel that they are engaged in a modern business. 
2. Know Your Products and Services. New employees who are not aware of the products & services try to wade through queries leading to confusion. Employees development is important.

1. Invest in training and development: Employees development is important
2. Empower employees to solve problems on their own. Encourage employees to solve problems following your Business guidelines and stand by them. Reward them with gifts.
3. Communicate Clearly. Your employees should be very clear in your business goals. The fact that you emphasize on great Customer service more than anything else should be clear.
4. Measure and analyze customer and employees feedback.

Conclusion

To conclude all business owners/managers/employees need to improve their customer service skills. There are many ways to improve these customer impacting skills as I have shown.

Which one of these ideas were you familiar with?

Which one of them was new to you? How did you improve your business?

Do share your ideas below as we all want to learn from each other.

How to Improve Customer Experience? Click To Tweet