Service Snapshot: Customer Experience

Customer indifference abounds and unless organisations employ a systemic approach to improving the experience, true customer loyalty is likely to remain the dream rather than an attainable goal.

Challenge

Customer perceptions of organisations are formed through a range of experiences which revolve around two core elements.  On the one hand, there are the experiences that result from intended actions and which are associated with buying and using a product or service and, on the other hand, there are those unintended ones that can occur when talking to an acquaintance about a particular brand, listening to the news or noticing an advertisement.

Consequently, the opportunities for the law of unintended consequences to raise its head are not inconsiderable. This can be further compounded when organisations operate along functional lines, where employees often work in proximity to one another but frequently work independently of each other.  The result is that the customer is treated to an organisational smorgasbord, where some elements are pleasing and others less so, rather than being led through the organisation in a coherent customer-oriented manner.

Add to all this the research findings that tell us that most customers are neither very enthusiastic about an organisation, neither are they mad with it, they are simply indifferent to it, and you could be forgiven for wondering whether it is possible to create brand momentum through a superior customer experience in today’s environment.

Solution

Achieving superior service means taking customer focus a step further.  Many organisations are good at delivering the rational elements within the marketing mix, such as great products, attractive packaging and pricing, with delivery through multiple channels, because they are already very customer focused.

Today’s fickle customers, however, take this for granted and refuse to accept anything less.

Our approach takes this fully into account and encompasses six elements.

Reality check

We use two diagnostics.  The first one reveals what you have accomplished to date and what remains left to do and the second one identifies the force that drives your business – sales for example – and shows how this shapes peoples’ attitudes and actions and how this will impact your ability to develop and implement a more client focused strategy.

Foundation for Service

Before the strategy is developed we make sure the foundations are secure.  This means making sure that there is an environment that nurtures service leadership and that a set of metrics to support and drive service quality by focussing on your clients’ actual service priorities is in place.

Strategy Development

We will help you ensure that service is the point of differentiation or a service strategy will not work.  To develop strategy we use a model we call “RFR-S”.  We will also ensure you avoid a common pitfall of only defining the scope of the service provider’s role and overlooking tasks and guidelines for front line staff.

Strategy Implementation

Our strategy implementation approach focuses on people and technology to support them.  Once employees know what is expected we use our Eclipse behavioural diagnostic to help them to improve their behaviours in order to maximise their performance.   

Metrics

It is important to create metrics for defining relationship with clients and for trend performance and tracking.
It is also vital to:

• Obtain cross-company agreement on how to deliver superior service
• Have accountability for client loyalty and responsibility
• Ensure a common approach across the silos/organisation

Service Leadership

Finally, we consider whether an enterprise solution is required with a senior person responsible for the customer experience across the organisation.

Benefits

• Diagnostics that set you off on the right road and keep you on it

• A comprehensive approach which ensures you give full consideration to all aspects of service delivery