What kind of impression do you want to make on your clients?
Certainly not a bad one!
If you want to make the right impression then it is all about the customer experience you provide. It will set you apart from your competitors and be the thing that keeps your clients returning to you again and again.
Let’s face it.
There are lots of options out there in the market. Your clients could get a similarly priced deal for similar services from another provider. And those services will probably be fine.
But you don’t want to provide products or services that are simply ‘fine’. You want to stand out from the rest. The experience they have with you and the way you make them feel will be the difference.
Let’s have a look at how customer experience can impact your business.
Why Focus On Customer Experience?
Other than the impression you leave on your clients, there are many benefits to having a great customer experience:
- Increased repeat business and loyalty
- Higher average spend
- Longer and higher customer lifetime value
- Increased competitive advantage
- Higher revenue
And the biggest benefit by far is the strong relationships you can build with your clients. The better the relationship, the better you know them. The better you know them, the better you can serve them.
Serving them does not always have to mean a grand scale. In fact, there are many little things that you can do that will impact their entire experience. Often they cost very little, or nothing, to do. Simply think about how you can add value in a special way. The details and the personal touch make a big difference.
Building a great business is about creating amazing experiences in the moments of connection with your clients.
Mapping Your Customer Journey
Every client that encounters your business will take a journey with you. The journey begins with the first contact and continues right through to the very last piece of contact.
Every interaction with your customer is a chance to impress them.
By mapping out the journey that you would like your customer to have with your business, you can take control of every process that is involved. That allows you to tweak and improve every touch point your client has with your business so that you can make their journey smooth, hassle free and memorable.
Start your map by looking at where they first discover your business. Where does the lead come from, what is their first interaction like, and what are they experiencing?
Once you know these things you can explore if that first interaction could be better for your clients, if you could change anything, and if it logically leads them to the next step.
Once you have mapped out that first interaction, move onto examining the next. Then the next. Go through all of the touch points to see if the process is smooth, logical and pleasant for your clients.
‘Make every interaction count, even the small ones. They are all relevant’
– Shep Hyken –
Get Informed
Understanding how your clients get to interact with your business can not only improve things for your clients, but it can improve things for your business too. If you can get your processes humming smoothly, then there is less work for you and more return!
So, use all of the tools at your disposal to map out the customer journey.
Look at your analytics and metrics to see how the digital side is working. But don’t forget to talk to your clients. They are the ones taking the journey, so their feedback is invaluable to you. Only by having those conversations will you know if they are in fact taking the journey you want them to, or if the path is veering in a different direction.
Get into the mindset of your clients, understand their point of view and make sure you design the journey to delight reassure and connect with them along the way.
How is your customer journey looking? Does it need a bit of work?
If you are a bit stumped on how you can connect with and delight your clients, then don’t hesitate to get in touch with me here at The Marketing Baker. Working up the perfect recipe for valuable client interactions is one of the things I do best!