No matter if you work with B2B or B2C, customer experience is still important in 2020.
Jon Boccuzzi, a famous Tedx Talks speaker and a senior sales director at ISG, mentioned in one of his speeches that delivering exceptional customer experience is vital for companies to stay in business. And it is absolutely true.
What can great customer experience do to your company? In the short run, you can get more sales. In the long run, your brand gets stronger. Customers will come back and become loyal to your brand.
Technical Things to Improve Customer Experience:
1. Social Media Contact
The point here is not just about having accounts on Pinterest, TikTok, Instagram or Facebook. Yes, you may have nice pictures and your stories get tons of impressions. You may also get some leads from your links in bio to your landing/product pages. However, you might feel that you are losing out on potential customers. You may wonder what you are doing wrong. The thing is easy: your social media customer experience is not great.
Let me give you a small example. My friend is allergic to wheat. For months he has been telling me there is no bakery with a nice sweet thing made from rye flour. At first, I did not believe him. As a challenge, I started to contact nice bakeries that promote themselves actively on Instagram. Being a millennial makes you check social media, first. And I had found some cool bakeries on Google Business, I checked the reviews, and sent a couple of messages on Instagram about desserts with rye flour.
During the next few days, some Instagram accounts of cool fancy bakeries were actively offering an option of asking them a question on anything. I used that opportunity and sent them a message with a question about rye flour in any desserts.
What happened next surprised me. In a bad way. Neither did any of those bakeries post my question in their Instagram stories, nor did they answer me in direct messages.
I am not allergic and I have no limitations on the flour I eat. However, the whole story changed my mind as the bakeries did not care about me as a customer. Saying "Hi! Sorry, but we do not bake anything with rye flour" would be nicer than just ignoring my question. And, no, nice pictures of cakes with whatever new and exotic tops for desserts will not change my mind about the bakeries.
Tip: take your customers seriously. Answer each and every question on social media channels.
2. A Chatbot
This works very well for both B2C and B2B. Let us say, you provide not just products but also services. For example, you offer debit cards but your bank has no physical offices. Your client has just ordered a card and he or she wonders if extra fees apply. Getting a reply via an email takes several days. Talking to a chatbot takes minutes and your customer's doubts and problems are solved right away. Your client is happy and he or she may recommend you as a business (or a bank in this case) to friends, relatives or colleagues.
Tip: a chatbot increases the speed and makes you more available.
3. Surveys after a Purchase
This works well for B2B but also for B2C. Let us say, you have bought a nice skateboard. After the purchase, you were asked not just to rate the skateboard. You were asked some detailed questions. For example, if wheels are good or if you feel safe and comfortable when on the board. You could also be asked how to improve the service and the product itself. And here the answers would not just be "yes" or "no". Any insane or weird but honest ideas applicable to you can come into play. In many cases, it may turn out you are not the only one with the same strange idea. Businesses could gather all the information, study it carefully and then apply for their own usage, for example, in the blog or in the FAQ section of the page.
Tip: be creative in surveys for your products and services
4. Personalization and Privacy
No matter if you work within the EU, with or without EU customers, personalization is important not just due to legislative issues. Your customers would not be happy to see their names or pictures anywhere on the Internet without their permission. Clearly state it in any survey and also on your page. Customers do care about their privacy.
Tip: mention the importance of customers privacy on your page and in surveys
5. Unique Rewards Programs
Sending a personal email with Birthday wishes is a bit outdated. Offering exceptional access to something only your customers could have, sounds more like 2020. However, keep in mind some cultural aspects. In some cultures, people feel better when they know they are outstanding. In other countries "outstanding" means "having bought the same product with the best discount offered". Study your audience and know what they want to get as a reward today.
Tip: create rewards only for your customers to make them feel unique
Some Social Tips to Improve Customer Experience:
Trends have a huge influence on industries worldwide. You can live in your own world but you should also be aware of what your customers worry and care about today.
1. Speak the Language of your Customers
Targeting has always been important. However, studying demographics, geography and preferences is not enough to improve customer experience. You should be in the shoes of your customers and understand their way of thinking. Knowing the slang and jokes works well if you use both at the right time and in the right place.
Tip: Talk to your customers in their language
2. Be Sustainable and Socially Engaged
This is not just because of Greta Tunberg. Showing your customers about how your business cares about nature is vital.
If your business has nothing to do with nature, show how socially engaged you are. For example, employees from IKEA in different stores in Russia tell their stories about adopting homeless animals. You can share your story there, too. Seeing pictures of happy owners and pets, makes your heart melt. It is in some way a CTA for you to do the same and help some cute creature with 4 paws be happy. This is maybe the cutest way to improve customer experience.
Tip: showing off and boasting does not work here. Doing it from your heart does.
Conclusion
It is not easy to improve the customer experience in 2020. It is possible and will be beneficial for your business if you put your customers in the first place. The price and unique staff in the second.
References:
- Gene Hammett (2020): 6 Ways to Upgrade Your Customer Experience in 2020
- Alison Zeringue (2017): 4 steps to enhancing the customer experience with social media
- Forbes (2020): 15 Ways B2B Marketers Can Provide A Better Customer Experience
- Steven van Bellegham (2019): 6 trends that will shape customer experience in 2020/ by keynote speaker Steven van Bellegham [video]
- TEDx Talks (2018): I Was Seduced by Exceptional Customer Service l John Boccuzzi, Jr. l TEDxBryantU [video]