What experience do your customers have when they engage with your brand? On the surface, it may seem like a trick question. After all, every customer experience is different, right? Well, yes, to some extent. But even so, the experiences need to be consistent. They’re a reflection of your brand and what you stand for. Therefore, you need to do everything in your power to make sure every customer experience represents your brand in the best way possible. How can you do that? Use customer experience architecture to design exceptional customer experiences. Here are some tips:- Have an Integrated Strategy. The first step is to take stock of all of your different avenues for customer engagement and integrate them into a single strategy. This includes call centers, social media, online help, and even instances where the customers serve themselves. Evaluate how engaged customers are in each instance, and set goals and priorities for those interactions. Make sure every customer engagement fits into your chosen strategy and is representative of your brand’s goals.
- Focus on Employees. You can’t control what your customers will need, what they’ll do, or how they’ll react when you engage them. But you can control your own employees. Therefore, do everything you can to shape the customer engagement experience from that end. Make sure your employees, from customer service reps to those who are creating your content and designing your website, are in tune with your brand’s goals and values. And more importantly, make sure you treat your employees as well as you treat your customers, fulfill their needs. Ensure your employees are happy, they’ll have a smile on their face and research has proven that customers will “feel” the smile. Employees will have the knowledge they need and will demonstrate confidence and composure. They will “go the extra mile” even pro-actively detecting needs that customers might not be fully aware of or have not yet formulated.
- Create Incentives Across Departments. As we mentioned above, customer engagement involves more than just sales reps. Every employee at your company is working towards your customers’ wellbeing on some level, and most of them are creating things that your customers will engage with, whether or not talking to one another. Assure that each employee and each department knows how their work is related to the customer, and create incentives, not just in sales, but across all departments, for enabling better customer engagement.
- Know What Matters. Know your customers and what matters to them, not only in terms of products and services, but in terms of their overall experience. Know what they’re looking for and ensure it is easily accessible throughout your channels. Verify periodically that your priorities align with your customers’ ones, so that you can provide your customers what they’re really looking for.
Customer Experience Architecture is more than just a sales tactic. It’s a way of life for your entire company. Every customer is different and should be treated as special, important, and unique. Practice throughout your organization the Platinum Rule, treat others the way they want to be treated. Ensure your customer experiences are consistent all across your channels. When you design exceptional customer experiences for every customer and every engagement, you’ve then unlocked the secret to your brand success.
