The Cliff Notes to delivering exceptional customer experience

Why should you focus on customer experience? The service you provide is a key component to customers’ loyalty – as seen from a KPMG study on what consumers claim inspires brand loyalty:

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We know it’s complex – having led numerous customer experience initiatives across B2C, B2B and B2B2C companies. In Customer Experience Management Has Become Over-Complicated, I explained that CX is no more complex than implementing a new technology platform, developing marketing strategies, developing and launching new products, or starting up a new company; and I outlined several factors which have the potential to reduce the complexity of customer experience. 

However, while complex, there are frameworks for success. One important factor to keep in mind is that CX is cross-functional – as Beth Karawan mentioned in CX – It Takes a Village, 70% of CX programmes fail because they are not supported by the whole organisation.

There are many elements to successfully implement strategies to deliver exceptional experiences. There are no shortcuts, however, following are the “Cliff Notes” version of key aspect to consider when planning to strive to deliver exceptional experiences: 

• Develop your CX strategy to include the why, what and how.
• Align leadership and ensure they understand their role.
• Communicate your strategy across the organisation and make sure that all leaders share their voice to support the strategy.
• Understand your current state:
  • Know your customers wants and needs.
  • Know your experience delivery gaps from the customers’ and employees’ perspectives.
  • Understand what’s holding your organisation and employees back from meeting and exceeding customer expectations.
  • Determine the ROI of exceptional experiences.
• Refine your strategy, if needed, based on your knowledge of the current state.
• Share your knowledge of the current state and further refine based on feedback across the organisation.
• Co-create with employees to develop your future state:
  • Eliminate/reduce customer pain points.
  • Elevate the experiences that matter most.
  • Define the processes, mindset and behaviours needed for delivering your future state.
• Share efforts and learnings across the organisation.
• Develop and implement ongoing programmes to:
  • Align, educate and inspire employees.
  • Monitor customer-centric decision-making.
  • Monitor the Voice of the Customer, create a feedback loop and process to share and act upon insights captured.
  • Monitor CX progress and share success stories.

Exceptional customer experience is a differentiator that will set your organisation apart – it can increase retention and drive growth. Having a thoughtfully constructed action and communication plan will help guide you on the road to success. 

Here at ImprintCX, we understand the keys to successful CX programmes and can support you along the way. Let’s get started.