Share this post | 3 min read
Customers are the bread and butter for every business; whether you are a multi-billion-dollar corporation or a small local company, you need customers. You need happy, satisfied customers who will not only continue to patronage your business but will become a valued marketing tool when they drive their family, friends, and acquaintances to your business.
Obviously, as a business owner, you know the importance of keeping your customers happy but do you know the extent of their impact on your bottom line?
77% of customers say they would recommend a company or product to a friend after having a positive customer experience. Did you know that it is 5 to 25 times more expensive to acquire a new customer than to keep a current one? And an estimated $62 billion is lost by U.S. businesses each year as a result of bad customer experiences.
Focusing on improving customer experience will not only help you retain and gain customers, but it can prevent huge profits losses as well.
It all starts with creating a WOW experience.
“Customer service shouldn’t just be a department; it should be the entire company.”-Tony Hsieh, Former CEO of Zappos
A Wow customer service experience is one in which you give your customers an excellent, above-average, authentic experience. There are three simple ways to create a WOW customer service experience:
Watch DH’s Lead Coach|sultant®️ and Culture Chief Sunny Grosso explain how your organization can WOW now:
When it comes to improving the customer experience, you may be tempted to implement bonuses, perks, and discounts. While these strategies do produce some positive impacts, the most significant impact on your business's customer service experience begins with your employees. The number one way to ensure you have good, productive employees is to create a positive workplace culture.
Businesses with low employee engagement experience 18% lower productivity and 16% lower profitability. However, happiness makes people 12% more productive, according to a study conducted by the University of Warwick.
Creating a happier workplace is easier than you think. You, as a leader, can accomplish this by being authentic, transparent, and engaging.
Be Authentic: Embrace your values and purpose. When organizations have clearly defined values and purpose, it is easy for employees to embrace and promote them.
Be Transparent: Communicate with honesty and integrity. This can be challenging, especially during difficult times, but if you, as a leader, are transparent, explaining the “why” behind decisions, your employees will feel respected and appreciated.
Be Engaging: Your team is like a family; in fact, most people spend more time with their work colleagues than their own family. Engaging with your team means you are building a community and meaningful relationships. When your employees feel you are invested in them as people, they will feel invested in the company and, more importantly, in its success.
Happy employees equal happy customers, which results in higher profits and more meaningful lives.
Zappos has revolutionized the customer service experience, so it is no surprise they have tons of examples of great customer service experiences. One of the most well-known stories is about a 10-hour customer service call. While the customer called to place an order, what they really needed someone to talk to, connect with, and the customer service rep did just that.
Warby Parker's General Counsel Anjali Kumar traveled from New York to Boston and noticed a fellow passenger left a pair of Warby Parker reading glasses on the train. Mr. Kumar spent the next several weeks tracking down the WP customer so that he could return the man’s glasses. Noticing they were scratched, he had them repaired before mailing them out.
Before Instacart and same-day grocery delivery, a Pennsylvania woman concerned that her elderly father would be without necessities during the impending snowstorm. She contacted several local grocers in the area, but no one delivered. In her final attempt, she reached a person at Trader Joe’s who said they do not deliver, but due to the circumstances, they agreed to deliver her father's groceries free of charge.
These examples of customer service experiences are small gestures but created a huge impact. These stories were shared with family, friends, and even went viral on social media. Why does this matter? Because these little gestures resulted in positive free marketing, which turns into returning and new customers, which resulted in higher profits.
