What steps do I take to enhance customers experience?

Put yourself in their shoes. People don't purchase because they WANT something. They purchase because they NEED something.

Afterall, why would I spend hundreds of dollars on tires for my car?

If you were your customer, what would you need to presented with to make the experience better?

If your selling milk and cookies, then by all means, offer them samples.

Thanks karen for your contribution.

Hi Bimbola,

Do not forget to receive the feedback from the customer after utlisation of the product/service they have received from you.

Its imperative to respond to every feedback received be it good/bad or important/unimportant. Even a small note saying "Thank you for your feedback" makes the customer feel he/she is being valued.

A proper analysis of these feedback also to be done based on the internal analytical means. These will do wonders in the long run though the results are not evident immediately.

Annabel Christine Sam

Make it easy to do business with your company. Treat every customer like you want to be treated or how you would want your Mother treated.
Treat every customer with respect and LISTEN-LISTEN-LISTEN.
Follow up is extremely important and feedback plays a large part also.
Honesty, loyalty and following company guidelines while resolving the customers issue.
Have fun and enjoy talking and helping the customers- smile while you are talking to them- it comes thru- honest!

Treat each customer as an individual... only because they are!
Learn to anticipate customer response
usualy you have less than 30sec to gain their respect learn to do it in 10sec

and always make sure they KNOW your name
and your main goal is to make sure when they come back they request you by your name
some poeple might argue that you main goal is to provide the customer a solution..

remember your in business, it is already expected/assumed that you are going to provide a solution

eg. a guy walks into your milk and cookie shop wanting to buy tyres for their car.
give them your name, be polite tell them where the closes tyre shop is and/or look it up for them. and see what happens!
invite them back! maybe

I have a rule I use and it works for me "I can do anything, There is nothing I can't do. If I feel I can't do it, I will find somebody that will"
in other words take the wheel and be in control
if you do hand over the job/customer it is still YOUR responsiblity to ensure the customer is satisfied

First point of contact should always be same person as the last point of contact.
and when you understand that you will also understand your customer feedback WILL smack you in the face without asking!
If feedback good - you will get the credit
if feedback bad - you will get the credit - better to have one person take the fall (as long they learn from the experience) then the half a dozen poeple the customer have contacted during the process - This may lead to a black mark on the company/bussiness

Think of it as taking one for the team......

There is a whole lot more to feedback than that......

The milk and cookie shop senerio might be a bit extreme but imagine you just gave the tyre customer your name,looked up the location and gave it to the customer and while not thinking might have said something like "I hear these guys do a pretty good job" to bump into that customer a few days later to have them rant and rave about the bad job the tyre guys did for him.......
Who just copped the blame? what are you going to about it?

and Never, Never, Never believe what a customer says about a competitor
but also more importantly don't tell them
Yes I have seen a customer walk into a retail shop with a competitor's mailbox dropped advertising an negotiate a better price to find out after the customer walked out and accidently left the ad on the counter... it was two years old!

If your company/busines does not budget for competor reseach The next best thing take the time to do your own.

oh yeah! be backed by a team that works like a well oiled machine

and that might be enough to think about!

bimbola -
you are asking what steps to take
I love to share ideas
what field of customer service are you in?
and why do you ask?


anyhow have fun!

Think like a customer. Walk the floor. What kind of experience do they have when they walk in? When they try to find a product? When they check out? Is it easy? Is it pleasant?

Watch your customers. Talk with them. What is their demeanor? Are they happy when they're in? Are they impatient? Are they frustrated?

Other than a customer interaction with an employee -- in other words service -- what defines the customer experience in your industry? Speed? Selection? Convenience?

Putting yourself in the customer's shoes as you ask yourself these kinds of questions is a good place to start.

Good luck.

Michele Eby
Writer and Training Advisor
Media Partners Corporation
www.media-partners.com

Just one note as to a reply above. In our business, which is electronic coin changers and bill validators for the Gaming, Amusement, Vending, Retail and Transport industries....we have only 5 CSR's. We have some specific accounts,- the rest are divided by market segment (above) and region of the country and/or international customers. Our phone system, however, is such that any customer from any market could be connected with any rep that is available - they get a person not a machine about 94% of the time. Therefore, we want the company to provide the solution not necessarily the rep themselves. We give our names, however, if the customer is not in our market segment or territory they will most likely deal with their own rep on subsequent issues and orders - not the one that may have handled their initial problem/order etc. We all need to be on target with solutions 100% of the time.
This can be tricky and major customers (and they all believe they are major) are handled by the same person each time. It works quite well...with some minor tweaking.
Besides, the company is who the customer is buying from and if someone leaves the business, we don't want the customer to follow. We want to represent the company and have the customers perception of great service be from the company....as well as the rep.

Hi Bimbola
This may sound simple - but your starting point is to just ask your customers. "What can I do to make your experience of dealing with me (as an individual) / us (as a company) better?" Customers hate it when you make assumptions about what they need / want without having taken the time to find out. On the whole responses will be measured and thought through; some will take the p***! but that's to be expected. Your response to either scenario will be use your knowledge of what you / your company is capable of providing. Your willingness to understand your customer through identifying their needs and communicating your capabilities is what will make the difference between an ordinary and outstanding customer experience.
Regards
Keith