It’s that time of year again: Shep Hyken has released his annual Achieving Customer Amazement report, which means we’ll analyze his findings and explain what they mean for your business’s customer experience in the coming weeks. For today, however, let’s start with a key takeaway about how important personalized customer service is.
But let’s first acknowledge that a staggering 83% of customers switch away from one company to another because of bad customer service. Consider how damning that is to the impersonal big-box model of just competing on the lowest prices with the largest selections. —You can picture an experience like that now: aisles and aisles of products with no employees to be found. Customers wandering around, dumbstruck by the bright lights and the endless kaleidoscope of colorful product labels begging for attention. Your only real guide are the price tags, where you get to decide between one item that costs 30¢ less than another. And when you finally get to the front to check out, you have the choice of waiting in a long line for an overworked and underpaid clerk, or you can do the work yourself at self-service kiosk.
How easy would it be to never even speak to a single person during that visit? And could you design a more impersonal model even if you tried?
Maybe you think that’s a generational thing, that younger people today even prefer to interact with others as little as possible. Not so, as Hyken’s ACA 2021 report found that among Gen Z, the kids born from 1997 to 2012, the ones who’ve never known a world without online shopping, 73% “believe it is essential for a company or brand to provide an excellent customer service experience.” Indeed, Hyken goes on to observe that “75% of Americans are more likely to be loyal to a company or brand that delivers a personalized customer service experience.”
What does it mean to personalize an experience? That’s a different challenge in each business model, as even Hyken uses an example from booking airfare to explain this idea, wherein the airline’s website or phone system recognizes him based on his phone number and is able to treat him accordingly. That’s a good example for that type of industry, but that doesn’t mean you can’t personalize an experience in retail, restaurants, or on sales floors.
In fact, one of the easiest methods for personalizing an interaction is for employees to introduce themselves to your customers—we’ve been recommending this for nearly 30 years! Exchanging names makes the whole process so much more conversational and comfortable.
Also crucial to delivering a personalized customer experience is asking the right questions and listening well for comprehension. Employees who take the time to show even just that level of consideration are going to be far more successful at making your customers feel welcomed and appreciated than otherwise. Better still, those employees are going to be the ones who find the right products or services for your customers the first time, avoiding the frustration of returns or customer dissatisfaction. That means stickier sales with a higher rate of add-ons and upsells. Isn’t that what you want?
Doesn’t that sound better than aisles and aisles of un-curated and unattended selection? Aisles and aisles of visual noise and no guidance?
Let’s be direct: a superior customer experience requires personalized customer interactions. What will that mean in your business? Let’s find out together when you call us or fill out this webform. We’ll help you design a customer-service monitoring and rewards program that will both help obtain stronger customer loyalty and enhanced profits. Let us personalize one for you today so you can take control of your customer experience tomorrow!
