With the use of technology on the rise, the customer experience landscape has changed forever. Long wait times and slow responses are no longer acceptable and have a huge impact on customer satisfaction. Immediate gratification and meeting high customer expectations are paramount. Technology is what got your customers to start feeling this way, and it is also the solution to giving them the best experience possible.
By leveraging the latest in software and communication modalities, not only do you change the way you cater to your customer’s concerns, they will remember they can rely on you. And who knows? Maybe they’ll even tell a friend about the great experience they had, and recommend you to more friends, so long as you keep the experience consistently good for everyone that comes your way. The best way to do this is, of course, by leveraging technology.
1. Website Live Chat
How many times has it happened that you have ended up on an automated phone system menu only to get thrown from menu to menu when all you really needed was the answer to one question? You may feel you’re already leveraging technology to optimize operations with an automated attendant receiving and transferring calls, however, you may risk losing valuable customers with such an approach.
Whether we like it or not, most of us are now more willing to send a text with a quick question rather than get on the phone. Consider live chat to allow your customers quicker solutions for their problems. It builds trust with your brand and makes them feel as though someone is always on the other side willing to help. Live chat can help prospects and customers alike and can get them answers to sales and support queries quicker than any phone call.
2. Find out why
It is likely you already know what products customers purchase, and perhaps you are even suggesting other products or services that can pair well with them. Using technology-driven processes like Business Intelligence (BI) to find out why exactly they are making those purchasing decisions provides invaluable insight on a customer. Data analysis can help tell you why your customer is buying a certain product over another. The customers’ individual buying experience can then be used to figure out their exact needs. What else were they looking at? What was the cost of the product? Did they reach the site through an ad, or more organically?
If your marketing team knows why a customer is buying a certain product or service, they can serve them specific messages for each stage of their cycle, catering to their every need and increasing customer satisfaction rates. The likelihood that these choices reflect a larger customer set that can be used to build targeted segments in your customer relationship management software (CRM) is high. Again, it’s all about making your customers feel cared for, by catering to their needs and presenting them with the information you anticipate they’re looking for.
3. Be mobile
Today’s customer satisfaction all goes back to us wanting immediate gratification. Getting customers to connect with your information and business is easier than you think. It is likely that you already have all of the materials and language necessary to gain a customer base. The hard thing is reaching that customer to hear your message.
Provide mobile access to simplify your customer’s life through an app, now a must-have tool for any business, small or large. Not only do apps provide information, but they allow customer interaction and engagement–an invaluable opportunity to allow your customers to interact with your product based on their needs. Allow your customer to instantly access their customer account through the mobile app. Giving them the ability to streamline communication and have all their needs served in one app makes you infinitely accessible and reliable.
4. Get paid
There are countless ways to pay for items now. There are options to receive an item now and to pay for it later, to pay for it in installments, or even rent it. Use a credit card, debit card, PayPal, direct bank transfer, or even Apple Pay. Brands like Walgreens and Starbucks now store customer payment information so that you don’t have to take out your credit card to pay. Make sure you accept as many forms of payment as is feasible for your business, and offer the ability to securely store your customer’s information. It makes payment faster and easier for them. They won’t have to leave your site to get their wallet. Not only will this increase your customer satisfaction rates by making their buying experience totally seamless, it can also increase profits by making things that much easier.
5. Be a good listener
There are countless ways by which you can use technology to give more and more to your customers. But an integral, and possibly even more important part of communication is listening. Customers must feel heard whether they are voicing their concerns directly to a company representative, or you’ve detected issues in their customer experience through technology.
Allow customers to feel as though you can hear them and that they have a voice by giving them a space to provide feedback on each of your products and services. But this isn’t just a space for critique. It is a space for you to use your voice. Engage with those customers, admit your weaknesses, and provide catered solutions to each of those customers as if they were on the other side of a telephone conversation with you.
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Customers are feeling more and more empowered in today’s digital age. Allow them the platform to be heard, and for you to speak directly with them in ways that cater to their need. Whether a major corporation or a small business, technology may not be able to replace the human experience, but it can make the process of interacting with customers a whole lot easier and far more efficient.