A Vital Element Missing In Business……

There are two reasons the consistency and quality of customer service experiences are lacking in this country. One is we don’t involve the people who have the responsibility for delivering the service, and secondly we don’t have the knowledge to develop and implement a long-term strategic approach to customer experiences.

The result is a decline in customer loyalty a reluctance to recommend a business to others, high employee disengagement and a focus on price as the only competitive advantage, impacting profitability and business growth.

The great news is that a small but increasing number of businesses understand that in today’s market a strategic approach that focuses on both employees and customers in away that delivers increased value in return for greater involvement and loyalty is the way forward.

This new approach necessitates changes in a businesses focus both from a leadership and cultural perspective.

The right people want to work for organisations that motivate and provide opportunities to be the very best they can be. The right people want to work for organisations that have a clear customer focus. The right people want to enjoy what they do, because they want their customers to enjoy the experience and therefore want to be involved in the development of the experience they will deliver.

To improve business knowledge and expertise in this vital area Chris Bell Managing Director of Customer Experiences has developed a unique two day programme called Customer Experience Development (CED) www.customerexperiences.co.nz designed to give customer experience managers the methodology and skills to put in place a long-term customer experience strategy a strategy that involves input from everyone in the organisation.

Bell said the 3 stage programme will be available via both public and in-house workshops and includes on-going support as participants work through the development process.

Research confirms that companies that provide exceptional service have a strong competitive advantage. Customers are prepared to pay higher prices, make additional purchases, are more loyal and recommend the business to others. All of this can be worth millions of dollars to the local economy.

Exceptional service is harder to attain than ever before. Current research shows that customers expect better service from the companies they deal with yet overwhelmingly believe they are getting service that is no better, or even worse.

Of course, organisations that understand this see a huge opportunity and are taking advantage of it by developing a quality customer experience that stands them out from competitors and gives them a sustainable competitive advantage.

The Customer Experience Formula –

Involvement = Engagement
The more involved your people are in the development and delivery of your customer experience the more engaged they will be in the role they play in that experience. Involve everyone because ultimately everyone plays a part.

Engagement = Commitment
The more engaged your people are in delivering the very best experiences to your customers the greater their commitment to the on-going development of that experience. Total commitment is vital to your success.

Commitment = Loyalty
A committed team creates customer loyalty. Real customer loyalty is about building strong relationships. Trying to do it with gimmicks doesn’t work.
From loyalty comes word of mouth, the most powerful form of advertising.

Loyalty = increased Productivity
A loyal team does things more effectively and efficiently without compromising the quality of the customer experience.
Capitalising on the creativity of your team is today’s most powerful competitive advantage.

Increased productivity = Growth, profitability& cost reductions

Chris Bell is the Managing Director of Customer Experiences a business committed to building successful businesses through the development of high quality customer experiences.

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