Improving Client Experience
Craig J
Selby
The old adage “the customer is always right” has been drummed into
marketer’s (and customer’s / client’s) minds for as long as most of us reading
can remember. But, does that make it right? The truth to this answer is “yes
and no”. I apologise for giving such strictly clear foresight on this issue –
but our reality is that this line is a tightrope that customers and marketers
walk every day of their existence.
Yes, “the customer is always right” because they are paying the money –
each service provider (including products too) should be giving the customer
what they want – but at the right price of course. But then, there is also the
“no” side of this coin – encompassing customers who seek guidance and look
towards outside professionals for counsel; or those restaurant patrons who want
their double cheese burger without cheese, with chicken patties instead of
beef, oh, and could you make the buns wholemeal too. As I said, a tightrope.
Looking broader, the philosophy behind this decades-(maybe
centuries)-old saying is increased customer experience. Brands, regardless what
they sell, exist as a response to a market need. Market needs change;
customer’s change; and as such, brands also need to be responsive to these
dynamic forces affecting their daily transactions.
As a service provider, I have to balance costs, ethics, labour-hours,
abilities, clients timeframes, external parties timeframes, and so many more
things. It’s a challenge, but it is a simplified version of what every business
undertakes. But as a service provider, it is also important for me to ensure my
client gets the service they engage us for.
This involves not only the outcomes of the campaign on project, but the
entire experience. I am old-school, in that I believe I should engage directly
with all my clients. I trust my team, but I also want to be part of the
process, and I believe for the client to have a fully positive experience, that
I should be too. This is not ego – this is simply paying respect to the client
– after all, they are paying for my expertise on some level, not just the
collective team expertise.
Clients enjoy dealing with decision-makers, just as I embrace working
with decision-makers within client organisations. They feel, rightly or wrongly,
that they are receiving a better package. But, that too is just perception.
Improving the client experience however goes beyond just having a
decision-maker involved. The key elements to client experience satisfaction are
openness, communication, timeliness, and accountability.
Openness has many facets. In my
viewpoint, it is about both sides being open to discuss new ideas, and not
block an idea simply due to personal reasons. It is also about having clients
who are open to receiving new ideas, feedback, and suggestions. Too often,
clients know exactly what they want, and simply want someone to execute that –
but they haven’t had that fresh perspective from outside, playing devil’s
advocate, to offer to the table fresh cards. I believe the job of any
consultant is to counsel – that is, to approach the problem with different
eyes, examine from all angles, present a range of options that will work (and
explain why others will not), and for a frank discussion to ensue with the
client. This creates positive opportunities. Yes, at the end of the day, the
decision is that of the clients – but just as any person standing in the docks
of a courtroom, they have been advised by their counsel as to potential
outcomes. Guilty or not guilty is up to them.
Openness is also
about the willingness to embrace change. To grow, sometimes we have to detract
first. To grow, sometimes things need to be adjusted. To grow, sometimes we
have to accept new ideas and new people. To grow, we have to be open.
Communication tops my list. Timely, clear, accurate, and transparent communication
is important – both to the client and the client’s team. Progress reports,
updates, questions, and the like should be transparent – and the best results
are when the team is involved. I once had a client, responsible for four
sizable business units, who requested that when I update her of certain
outcomes, I “cc the world” – this meant, that all team members (from GM to
attendant) was included in the communication. A “catch all” email address was
created for this purpose; and every update of the particular nature, every
single member of the organisation received a notification. This boosted
awareness, morale, and made people feel included.
We are social creatures – whether we agree or not, we crave
communication – be it verbal or textual, or even visual. It makes us feel on
top of things. The last five (5) years of enhanced social media infiltration
into our lives has changed our communication patterns and timelines – we, as
individuals, are now “on demand”, and this has to feature in our communication.
Waiting two (2) hours for someone to respond to an email is now considered a
social faux pas; whereas just ten (10) short years ago, no one would have
batted an eyelid at a one (1) day delayed response. We have become a society
that is wired 24/7/365, and because of this, our traditional 9-5 workday has
morphed loosely into waking-to-sleeping workday.
But the lesson to learn is not responding immediately. It is to set
appropriate parameters, adhere to them, and be consistent with them. Clients
can be trained, and improving their experience is to train them to understand
how best we work and communicate, and when to expect things from us. If we say
Tuesday, let it be Tuesday (not Wednesday). If it has to be delayed, manage
expectations early – do not leave it till Tuesday night.
Managing expectations can be an easy process. People are reasonable –
but they become less so if the communication is not well-structured and open,
nor timely. This timeliness is a key feature to the customer experience too.
We often think, “oh, they can wait a little bit” or “it’s only a small
delay”; but we forgot that everyone has a boss. Even bosses have bosses (other
shareholders, business partners, family-vested interests, or even external
parties relying on them delivering outcomes). As such, we are just a cog in a
much bigger machine, and when we slow down, it has follow-on effects for others
as well.
To help improve customer experience, it is essential that we look at
providing realistic timeframes for all tasks. The many outside factors that
affect time to undertake a campaign have to be estimated loosely. It is
certainly much better to deliver completed results early, than to be overdue.
Just remember university – if the assignment was late, it didn’t receive a
grade (at least, those were the rules I enforced when lecturing) – the same in
business. Sometimes, something late simply means that a project stalls, or
worse still, is cancelled altogether.
And if you screw something up, take accountability for your actions. No
excuses, just take it on the chin and move on. In fact, there is nothing more
irritating than excuses! Mistakes happen – people understand. You are more
respected when you accept responsibility for a mistake, than trying to shy away
from it. Yes, it may have cost you a project; but it may have saved you your
reputation.
The ultimate goal is a positive customer experience that will bring the
customer back to your office for further projects. You may be the type who
advocates lots of sociable entertainment expenses with clients (I know a
Japanese gentleman who has a significant budget for just this); but at the end
of the day it is not the entertainment that counts, it is the integrity that
you have as a consultant / service provider for getting the job done in a
transparent, forthright, and dedicated manner. This will speak volumes more
than a nice dinners and chilled beers.
I’d love to hear your thoughts on what you feel could be added to this
post on creating an improved customer experience. Do feel free to pen your
thoughts, and any examples below in the comments section.
Image Source:
(1) thepositivitysolution.com
(2) frankounl.wordpresscom
(3) inc.com
(4) designbeep.com
(5) amican.com
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