As we have discussed in previous issues of the OnMessage Minute, the customer experience is “the product of the interactions between an organization and a customer over the duration of their relationship.” So, it’s not only critical that you understand what customers expect from specific interactions they have with your company throughout their journey, you must also understand what they expect from their relationship with your company. That’s why you need to uncover your customer’s “overall experience” expectations — more specifically, what they expect from the people, products and processes that are pervasive in their journey.
Your people.
What do your customers expect from the relationship they have with your people? You not only want to understand what their baseline expectations are from the people they engage with — but what your people can do to exceed those expectations. Are your customer’s baseline expectations that your people are smart, efficient, empathetic and helpful? If your people did more follow-up, had quicker turn-around times, told them what to do next — would your people exceed expectations? You will want to capture and analyze this data based on critical interactions that happen in each phase of the customer journey. Then you will assess the customer feedback in aggregate form to determine their overall experience expectations from your people.
Your products.
The same research needs to be done with respect to your products. Do you know what creates a positive product experience? Do your customers expect things like, it works out of the box, comes with a warranty, delivers “X” return on investment and makes their team more productive? Once you understand what they expect, you need to determine what it will take for your product to exceed their expectations. Do they want your product to make them smarter, accelerate time to market, increase their competitive advantage, or serve as a platform for growth? Find out.
Your processes.
Finally, do you know what customers expect from the processes that are inherent in their journey? For example, how efficiently your call center handles calls, how frequently their account manager interacts with them, how their orders are processed, or the way your products are packaged and delivered? What are their expectations? What changes are required to improve processes that negatively impact the customer experience? You need answers to these questions, as well.
To truly impact how customers “perceive” their experience with your company, you need to know what they expect from your people, products and processes. So the question you have to answer first is … “Do I really know what my customers expect from my company?” If not, it’s time to find out.
