During many conversations while auditing Customer Experience I find that many people think I am talking about Customer Service. You know, something that happens after the sale. Providing excellent customer service at every interaction is a big part of Customer Experience, but it is not the end all for delivering a superior customer experience.
Wikipedia defines Customer Experience as “the sum of all experiences a customer has with a supplier of goods and/or services, over the duration of their relationship with that supplier. This can include awareness, discovery, attraction, interaction, purchase, use, cultivation and advocacy. It can also be used to mean an individual experience over one transaction.” There may be other definitions out there, but this one suffices for this post.
Customer Experience starts before the sale. For example: When you want to purchase a product or service how easy is it for you research that product or service? Does it show up as a hit in your favorite search engine? Did you find any consumer reviews? When you are visiting the website, can you find the information you want to know? Was it easy or difficult? How appealing was the presentation to your eyes and intellect? When you clicked the link for “chat” or “contact by email” did you receive a prompt response? When you received the response did it meet your needs and was it a pleasant experience? Instead of the web you may prefer to use the telephone or maybe even just walk into the store and ask questions. Regardless of your technology of choice, if your experience becomes difficult, slow or unappealing, there is a high probability you will go somewhere else to make your purchase and you will probably never go back again.
Remember the old adage, “You don’t get a second chance to make a first impression”? This is one of those tried and true statements that we all remind ourselves of when we prepare for a job interview, we meet a new customer or family member, or even when get ready for a first date!
Now that consumers are using multiple technologies to research, shop and compare, it is crucial that businesses selling products and services provide a pre-sales experience which is welcoming, infuses confidence, is well thought out and values the customer, their time and their preferences. And they must execute it consistently on the web, the phone and in the store front, or the current sale is lost and future sales are at high risk. The difference must be designed and be purposeful.
Today, I had an encounter in the healthcare industry which served as good examples for compare and contrast purposes, and also to demonstrate how customer experience begins before the sale.
My regular doctor referred me to a specialist. I gave his recommendation heavy weight as he is a healthcare professional who knows his stuff. I knew that his referral would be on the other side of town, a little far, but I was willing to make the appointment. I would much rather have the appointment close to home as my whole life is in a 6-mile radius of town and I just don’t want to deal with the hassles of heavy traffic…. But so be it.
I called the phone number my doctor gave me and was picked up by the phone tree (answering machine) I didn’t mind the first 5 minutes. But by 15 minutes I felt like I was a captive and I was ready to hang up if I heard one more pleasant recording apologizing for the wait and that someone would be with me soon.
While I was holding I decided this place is too busy for me. If I can’t get through on the phone, what will happen when I am in the waiting room? What kind of quality, attention and focus will I receive from the specialist and his staff? Will my bill be accurate? At 20 minutes I hung up and decided to go online and find someone local. DONE! No sale for you, doctor, and I won’t call again!
Consequence; my old doctor loses and the new doctor wins! The new doctor wins again because customers who are referred by promoters, like me, also become good customers who buy more products and services and become promoters themselves.
Is your business positioned for successful pre-sale? Is your business staffed appropriately on email, phone and store front? Have you been purposeful in the design of the experience your customers will receive when they are looking for you and your services?
If the answer is “no” to anyone of these, you are losing sales that you didn’t even know about. And people who have decided against your products and services are talking about you and driving more business away from you.
Take a moment today to identify the places in the pre-sale process you can tighten up. Are there any quick wins you can execute on? Anything with big impact and low cost should be tackled now. Make a list of the other items, prioritize them and put them on the short list of projects which need to be done in the next 2 quarters.
You will be thankful in the long run!!
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