Customer-centric companies always put customers first. In such companies, customer data is an essential asset as it could tell you the hidden expectations and aspirations of your customers. When you start listening to their wants and needs, you will come closer to deliver the best customer experience, increase conversion and boost customer satisfaction. We suggest a three-step framework to turn what your customers are saying into a successful customer-centric strategy.
Ask
The most logical way to collect customer insights is to ask for feedback. You should, however, be aware of the many ways to gather input from customers. It helps to ask questions in an environment that you control, such as customer surveys and real-time feedback solutions. Indeed, listening to feedback in customer-controlled situation has its benefits. You can consider reading live chat transcripts or using social media monitoring for additional feedback. The effect of asking amplifies when you give your customer a voice, most efficiently through the right Voice of Customer (VoC) solution.
The key is to know the end goals. Why do you want the feedback? An explicit aim will lead you to the right questions. For example, if you see a sharp rise in the bounce rate of mobile visitors, you can ask mobile users about their problems navigating your site. Look at the analytics data and work out the most appropriate questions.
Depending on your objectives and goals, the range of things you ask your users will vary. There are, however, some fundamental questions that are useful and applicable for all kinds of businesses. Here are some suggestions of questions you can ask depending on your objectives.
Analyze
Once you acquire the information, you need to focus on analyzing it. Data only has value if it can be used to drive operational decisions, such as how to best bundle services or which pricing strategy to choose.
You might find it challenging to navigate and analyze the massive amount of feedback you have gathered and to make sense of all the insights. We recommend building a process for a smooth analysis. Such process should work on combining multiple data sets, grouping and integrating feedback automatically.
Act
You now need to act upon building products and experiences that your customers will love.
86% of customers are willing to pay up to 25% more to get a better customer experience (RightNow). Thus, you should build all products with your customers in mind. You don’t want to slight services, either. 44% of US consumers switch to a competitor following a poor customer service experience (NewVoice).
While 80% of CEOs believe they deliver a superior customer experience, but only 8% of their customers agree (Bain & Company). It means that the decisions to shape user experiences should come from the customers themselves. Let your users tell you how to optimize digital channels and deliver a seamless experience.
Ultimately your end goal is to increase revenues and the conversion rate. By collecting customer feedback, you can also improve customer satisfaction and retention. Loyal customers tend to buy more often and spend a more significant share of their wallet. They also recommend their favorite products and services to their friends and family.
If you are building a customer-centric strategy, this framework should help to point you in the right direction. Still wondering where you are with customer-centricity? Take our online assessment today.