In recent years, interactions between businesses and consumers have evolved. Thanks to increased competition for companies and technological advancements that give consumers access to a wide range of products and information, markets are now customer-driven.
As a result, it's now just as crucial for businesses to offer impeccable customer experience as it is to produce excellent products. This is why there's an 80% difference in performance between organizations that lead in customer experience and those that are poor at it.
For consumers today, shopping is not just about getting the product they need but the experience as a whole. This is why close to 90% of buyers are willing to spend more for better customer experience.
Therefore, for your company to thrive in this consumer market era, you must prioritize customer experience. Other than offering great products, your brand must live up to its promise to consumers. Achieving this requires establishing a corporate culture that’s focused on giving customers a great experience.
Read on to find out how you can enhance customer experience and boost brand loyalty.
Create a Shared Vision Within the Company
Employees are arguably the most vital aspect of improving customer experience. For them to give the consumers a worthwhile experience, they themselves must have a pleasant experience within the organization.
Also, rather than impose measures to help improve customer experience, it's better to create a shared vision for the same. Educate your team on the benefits of excellent customer service and welcome their suggestions on how to improve.
Involving your team in such decisions will make them feel valued and more willing to implement the strategies you develop.
Be Clear With What Your Brand Represents
Branding is an important aspect of a business. What your brand represents, or stands for, is what separates you from countless other companies that you are competing with. Great brands are usually based on quality products, excellent service, and values such as honesty, integrity, reliability, and flexibility, among others.
Define what your brand stands for, make it known to the consumers, and ensure none of your values are ever compromised. Dedicate a portion of your budget to ensure you live up to what your brand promises. This, according to an AdAge article, is your marketing insurance.
Translate Your Values Into Actionable Steps for Your Team
Setting brand values is one thing; living by them is a different matter altogether. Your team and how internal operations are carried out should be the embodiment of your values.
Come up with a set of behaviors and actions that are recommended and those that are highly discouraged in relation to each value. This will make implementation easier, and employees will know what will be considered when their performance is being reviewed.
Identify What Your Most Loyal Customers Love and Build on It
In the digital age, collecting customer reviews and learning consumers’ perception of your brand is not difficult. In this regard, businesses tend to focus too much on negative feedback and less on recommendations from loyal consumers.
This is understandable as customers with a bad experience with your brand will talk about their experience with three times as many people, compared with those whose experience was good.
However, it is also important to pay attention to recommendations from your loyal customers to ensure their loyalty remains unwavering. A great way of measuring customer loyalty for your organization is by using the Net Promoter Score (NPS). The NPS gives you a clear indication of how a customer perceives your brand, and can help you measure it objectively over time.
Ensure All Your Strategies Are Aligned
Customer experience begins at the very core of the business. Therefore, your strategy to improve consumer experience must be aligned with business objectives. Consumers will expect to receive what your brand promises. If you can deliver on that, your base of loyal customers (free marketers) will increase steadily.
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