It’s been a while since I talked about the standards of friction and convenience. Our customers have learned what it’s want to have a friction-free, no-trouble, convenient revel in. They love doing commercial enterprise with the businesses that make it smooth. If it’s clean to interchange groups, they’re brief to exchange while enjoying much less than handy.
Perhaps the biggest friction factor of all with clients is making them wait and disrespecting their time. I recently shared the degree with Jeff Nicholson, international head of CRM for Pegasystems, at the PegaWorld users conference in Las Vegas. Our dialogue was all approximately getting rid of friction, especially within the customer service world. Simply put, to stay aggressive, we must make things easier for the customer. So, here’s a list of areas with opportunities to take away friction and displeasure for the client:
Duration: How long can we make customers wait? It will be on the preserve for customer support or within the ready room of a health practitioner’s office. Waiting is friction. Wasting our customer’s time is friction. That little recording you hear when you’re on hold must say, “Your name is NOT surely that essential to us. Otherwise, we wouldn’t make you wait!” Memory: I’m continually annoyed after calling a customer support quantity that I’ve called in the past and must retell my tale. The same goes for when I’m transferred to any other character. There is no reason for this. Employees must be armed with statistics approximately the consumers beyond calls, purchases, and some other interplay they have had with the enterprise. Making a patron repeat their story is a waste of time. It’s friction!
Consistency: Consistency isn’t the hassle. It’s a loss of consistency. Specifically, I’m regarding inconsistent statistics. One day I called my cellular provider with a query approximately an international calling plan. I wouldn’t say I liked the solution I was given, so I referred to it as back, and a special agent gave me a special answer. My assistant asked me which plan I notion was correct. I jokingly said, “The one with the lower fee.” Inconsistent data derails self-belief and agrees with it. Empowerment: When we speak approximately empowerment, we’re usually relating to empowering employees to attend to the patron. This example, it’s empowering the client to take control of their scenario. Self-provider tools are an effective manner to take care of the consumer’s questions, and issues fast and correctly. Customers like an awesome self-carrier answer.
Proactiveness: With today’s technological capabilities, why need a purchaser must reach out for help first of all? Many times, corporations can recognize a purchaser is having problems before the consumer does. The predictive guide will quickly grow to be a patron expectation. In reality, there are many approaches we can get rid of friction for our clients. The above listing is a reminder of the most painful friction factors, supposed to offer you a concept of where to begin. So, take a look at your enterprise. Listen to your personnel and, most importantly, your clients. Where do they encounter friction? And what are you able to do to eliminate that? Give your clients the experience they expect and deserve—one which is easy, convenient, and friction-free.” I have to go shopping now,” she says, turning on her heels to leave (as we give a collective contented sigh at the appalled look at the salesperson’s face. She had it coming!).
Moral of the story? It doesn’t matter how deep your customer’s pockets are; it only matters how well you treat them. Imagine how different the movie would be if it were made now. What are the chances of Vivian tweeting out her anger and hurt, her tweets going viral with tons of people chipping in their frustration, the movement gaining momentum, and leading the store to a digital suicide?
In a service business, nothing is more important than having people on your team who’ll do more than represent your current culture. You must have people who push the culture you have forward, not the other way around.
More often in customer experience, you could get away with doing the bare minimum. That is mostly enough. But enough is far from memorable. It is when you go out of your way that you make people’s day! We’ve cherry-picked 10 brands that have an unbeatable track when it comes to cultivating their customers’ happiness.
Zappos
Did you know that up to 42% of consumers expect a response within 60 minutes? A prompt response is a norm, not an exception anymore. If there is a gold standard in customer service, it has got to be Zappos. Their support success stories are the stuff of urban legends. In one such instance, they won a customer for life by overnighting a pair of shoes, free of cost, to the best man in need. On social media, Zappos doesn’t hold back from having a little fun with emojis and GIFs, but they always adhere to their golden rule of putting their customers first. And it pays off, each time!
