Nothing drives success like a happy client. After all, customers who enjoy doing business with you may tend to return to buy more products or services, while those who don’t may not.

The good news is that providing an exceptional customer experience (CX) can be easy if you hire the right people, listen to your clients, and make a consistent effort to keep them satisfied.

The importance of CX

Customer experience encompasses all the interactions a client has with your company throughout their journey with you—from their very first impressions via your marketing or visiting your website, through the sales process, to using your products and services. By fostering your brand’s CX, you can create satisfied customers, making them more likely to become repeat, loyal clients who help build your brand.

Improve your UX

The user experience (UX) of your product or website figures prominently into your CX. If your product’s design is overly complicated or if your website is difficult to navigate, your CX will suffer and you may lose customers. One way to avoid this is by regularly testing and evaluating the look and functionality of your products and website. You could also provide customers with useful product manuals and demonstrations through platforms like blogs or YouTube.

Improve the journey

Another powerful strategy for boosting your CX is to map your entire CX journey and identify spots where you can elevate it—if any step is subpar, customers’ relationship with your brand could suffer. John Formica, customer experience coach and author of the book Making the Customer Experience Magical Now!, points to the Walt Disney Company as a prime example of a business that expertly finesses its CX. For instance, at Walt Disney World, all cast members are trained to value guests’ happiness, so much so that if you stop to snap a photo with your family by the Cinderella Castle, one will gladly take it for you regardless of what they’re doing.

Once you have your CX journey mapped, focus on getting to know every aspect of it. Part of this should involve seeking outside perspectives, as others may be able to notice things you can’t. Regularly run your employees through the journey, asking them to pinpoint its strengths and weaknesses, and solicit customers’ opinions about it through surveys, social media, email, or in-person interactions. Then take what you learn to make improvements that will benefit your customers.

Leverage your CRM

Your customer relationship management (CRM) system can be an extremely useful tool for augmenting your CX. For example, your sales professionals could use information collected via your lead generation tools to pursue new clients. A CRM would also enable you to analyze your customers’ purchase history to determine what additional products and services they may want to buy.

Formica stresses that CRM data is most beneficial when utilized throughout your clients’ entire journey with you, even after the sale. He uses his to send clients his Magic Minute newsletter, which he fills with free, helpful information, as a way to constantly stay in touch with them. “Many businesses put in a lot of time and effort trying to get the sale, and then they mess up the customer experience,” he notes.

Empower your employees

A business’s culture can impact customers’ happiness as well. Look for ways to gauge your employees’ satisfaction, such as by making an anonymous suggestion box available or by asking them to participate in engagement surveys. Additionally, when taking on new staff, choose personnel who match your company’s personality and values. “Most businesses hire people and then try to mold them to fit the culture during the onboarding process,” Formica explains. “It’s like trying to put a square peg into a round hole—it doesn’t fit. You should hire for culture instead.”

For example, Disney emphasizes its extremely high customer-centric focus during its recruitment process, which actually leads some potential candidates to leave before even filling out an application. “If you want your company to be customer-experience oriented, you have to hire people who believe in that,” Formica says. Once you get the right employees, be sure to provide training that models the behavior you want from them and, as a result, produces the results you’re looking for.

Reward loyalty

Companies that have extremely dedicated fans—like Starbucks and Sephora—have customer-loyalty programs that treat them to discounts and perks for repeat business. That’s because such programs can make your customers feel recognized, add value to their experiences with your company, and distinguish you from your competition. Mull over how you can provide your customers with incentives for their loyalty—perhaps you can give them extra discounts, provide them with exclusive access to new events or products, or celebrate their birthdays with special perks. Just about anyone would appreciate being an “insider” with a brand or company they love and respect.

Provide excellent customer support

Even if you do everything you can to provide your customers with the best possible experiences, there will be times when they need assistance or want to voice a complaint. To make sure you’re prepared for such communication, you should prioritize building the most effective customer-support infrastructure you can and offer several ways for your customers to reach out, whether it’s by phone or through email or social media. And always willingly listen to your clients’ feedback, respond to their inquiries promptly, and take quick and active steps to remedy mistakes or dissatisfaction.

Fostering good CX requires diligence and will likely involve every department in your company. But if you put in the effort, you’ll be rewarded with satisfied clients who stay loyal to your brand for years to come.

TAKE ACTION:
Map your CX to identify its strengths and weaknesses.