Shep Hyken's Blog, page 17
October 20, 2024
Top 5 Customer Service & CX Articles for Week of October 21, 2024
Each week, I read many customer service and customer experience articles from various resources. Here are my top five picks from last week. I have added my comments about each article and would like to hear what you think too.
How To Make Your Customer Strategy Fun by Chip Bell
(Forbes) Is your organization about fun? How often do your customers giggle? How much of your business strategy is about funniness—not just entertainment, but customer experiences made joyful by design? What are your customers’ principal memories of their encounters with your organization?
My Comment: We open this week’s Top Five Roundup with a fun article about using fun as a customer strategy. Customer experience expert, Chip Bell, immediately recognizes that there are organizations that may not (and should not) embrace a fun strategy. But for the right company or brand, this can work well. One serious organization that comes to mind is the Pedal the Cause charity that is all about fighting cancer. That’s a pretty serious mission, but they have plenty of fun events to raise funds for that serious and important cause.
Personalization Done Right by Mark Abraham and David C. Edelman
(Harvard Business Review) The Spotify app knows what you want to hear. It uses AI to process a vast array of your engagement data, including the songs, podcasts, and audiobooks you’ve listened to, when you listened to them, and what led you to them. Its library is tagged by genre, era, tempo, mood, and a long list of other characteristics. The tags allow Spotify to collate playlists based on your listening habits. The app is always learning, constantly running micro tests with user groups. Spotify attributes a large part of its success to its personalized recommendations—its user base and revenues have both increased by 1,000% in the past decade to more than 600 million users and $14 billion, respectively.
My Comment: Our annual CX research finds that customers want a personalized experience. This article proves that personalization is a powerful way to keep and grow your customers. Empower me, know me, reach me, and delight me… These are the elements of a great personalization strategy.
How 5 Brands Use Relationship Marketing to Create Loyal Customers by Industry Dive
(Industry Dive) Nearly 70% of consumers will pay more for brands that they love. That is the epitome of successful relationship marketing. It involves getting to know customers by truly understanding who they are—what they like, what they need and how to communicate with them. In a competitive marketplace, this hyper-tailored approach to marketing is the key to creating and keeping customers who love your brand.
My Comment: Let’s learn from some recognizable brands about how their relationship marketing. Personalization, consistency, fun, trust, and a loyalty program are what helps these brands create customer loyalty. Let’s learn from some of the best.
Customer Centricity: A Definition, Examples, & Best Practices by Charlie Mitchell
(CX Today) Brands that have achieved customer centricity are 60 percent more profitable than those that haven’t, according to Deloitte. Unfortunately, very few brands have. Indeed, even those considered the flag-bearers for customer centricity – like Amazon – receive bad press.
My Comment: We continue to learn from some of the best and most recognized brands. According to a Deloitte survey, brands that have achieved customer centricity are 60% more profitable than those that haven’t. The author uses three rockstar brands, Amazon, Southwest Airlines, and L’Oréal, to help us understand customer-centricity.
Increased Expectations, Declining Loyalty: Consumer Experience Trends by Contact Centres
(Contact Centres) Today’s fickle consumers are sensitive to privacy concerns and less inclined to offer feedback than they previously were, setting up a tightrope walk for companies in 2025 as they seek to meet expectations, according to the 2025 Consumer Trends Report from Qualtrics. The fourth annual report draws on insights from nearly 24,000 consumers in 23 countries around the world.
My Comment: We wrap up this week’s roundup with an excellent article about some important trends in the customer service and CX world. Customers’ expectations continue to rise. They expect the experience to be better than ever. Average won’t cut it. Anything less than meeting those higher expectations results in reduced loyalty. If you want customers to return, give them a good experience they can rely on and trust.
BONUS
Why GenAI Is Key To Personalized Customer Experiences (And How Marketers Can Start Using It) by Ab Gaur
(Forbes) In 2024, personalization is the marketing strategy. It’s the key to unlocking compelling marketing campaigns that captivate an audience and convert casual observers into long-term customers.
My Comment: Here’s another article on the power of a personalized experience. The author mentions my research that 81% of customers feel that personalization is important, and they respond with their wallets. Furthermore, a Deloitte study backs this up by finding that customers spend 34% more on brands that personalize.
Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.
How To Make Your Customer Strategy Fun by Chip Bell
(Forbes) Is your organization about fun? How often do your customers giggle? How much of your business strategy is about funniness—not just entertainment, but customer experiences made joyful by design? What are your customers’ principal memories of their encounters with your organization?
My Comment: We open this week’s Top Five Roundup with a fun article about using fun as a customer strategy. Customer experience expert, Chip Bell, immediately recognizes that there are organizations that may not (and should not) embrace a fun strategy. But for the right company or brand, this can work well. One serious organization that comes to mind is the Pedal the Cause charity that is all about fighting cancer. That’s a pretty serious mission, but they have plenty of fun events to raise funds for that serious and important cause.
Personalization Done Right by Mark Abraham and David C. Edelman
(Harvard Business Review) The Spotify app knows what you want to hear. It uses AI to process a vast array of your engagement data, including the songs, podcasts, and audiobooks you’ve listened to, when you listened to them, and what led you to them. Its library is tagged by genre, era, tempo, mood, and a long list of other characteristics. The tags allow Spotify to collate playlists based on your listening habits. The app is always learning, constantly running micro tests with user groups. Spotify attributes a large part of its success to its personalized recommendations—its user base and revenues have both increased by 1,000% in the past decade to more than 600 million users and $14 billion, respectively.
My Comment: Our annual CX research finds that customers want a personalized experience. This article proves that personalization is a powerful way to keep and grow your customers. Empower me, know me, reach me, and delight me… These are the elements of a great personalization strategy.
How 5 Brands Use Relationship Marketing to Create Loyal Customers by Industry Dive
(Industry Dive) Nearly 70% of consumers will pay more for brands that they love. That is the epitome of successful relationship marketing. It involves getting to know customers by truly understanding who they are—what they like, what they need and how to communicate with them. In a competitive marketplace, this hyper-tailored approach to marketing is the key to creating and keeping customers who love your brand.
My Comment: Let’s learn from some recognizable brands about how their relationship marketing. Personalization, consistency, fun, trust, and a loyalty program are what helps these brands create customer loyalty. Let’s learn from some of the best.
Customer Centricity: A Definition, Examples, & Best Practices by Charlie Mitchell
(CX Today) Brands that have achieved customer centricity are 60 percent more profitable than those that haven’t, according to Deloitte. Unfortunately, very few brands have. Indeed, even those considered the flag-bearers for customer centricity – like Amazon – receive bad press.
My Comment: We continue to learn from some of the best and most recognized brands. According to a Deloitte survey, brands that have achieved customer centricity are 60% more profitable than those that haven’t. The author uses three rockstar brands, Amazon, Southwest Airlines, and L’Oréal, to help us understand customer-centricity.
Increased Expectations, Declining Loyalty: Consumer Experience Trends by Contact Centres
(Contact Centres) Today’s fickle consumers are sensitive to privacy concerns and less inclined to offer feedback than they previously were, setting up a tightrope walk for companies in 2025 as they seek to meet expectations, according to the 2025 Consumer Trends Report from Qualtrics. The fourth annual report draws on insights from nearly 24,000 consumers in 23 countries around the world.
My Comment: We wrap up this week’s roundup with an excellent article about some important trends in the customer service and CX world. Customers’ expectations continue to rise. They expect the experience to be better than ever. Average won’t cut it. Anything less than meeting those higher expectations results in reduced loyalty. If you want customers to return, give them a good experience they can rely on and trust.
BONUS
Why GenAI Is Key To Personalized Customer Experiences (And How Marketers Can Start Using It) by Ab Gaur
(Forbes) In 2024, personalization is the marketing strategy. It’s the key to unlocking compelling marketing campaigns that captivate an audience and convert casual observers into long-term customers.
My Comment: Here’s another article on the power of a personalized experience. The author mentions my research that 81% of customers feel that personalization is important, and they respond with their wallets. Furthermore, a Deloitte study backs this up by finding that customers spend 34% more on brands that personalize.
Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.
October 15, 2024
Why Handling Mistakes Well Is a Key to Amazing Customer Service
Good customer service becomes noticeable for two reasons: A company or brand can be known for amazing customer service and experience. Customers may notice the employees’ attitude, how easy they are to do business with and more. But sometimes they don’t, because it’s expected. However, over time, customers will notice that there are never problems. It may not happen right away, but eventually, customers will realize why they like the company. The experience is what they want and expect every time.
A customer’s complaint or issue is resolved in such a way that the customer notices. They are pleasantly surprised at how well it was handled. Eventually, customers may realize this is normal for that company. Everyone at the company does their best to create a good experience, and if there is a problem, they fix it.
If you’ve ever been to a fancy steakhouse, you expect a higher price, but with that price comes the expectation of a good meal and a high level of service. The only way to exceed the expectation is to manage a mistake. Perfection in customer service is not always possible, but the way a mistake is handled can make up for imperfections.
My friend Tom Baldwin, former CEO of Morton’s The Steakhouse and Benihana, shared his definition of customer service: “Great customer service is mistakes handled well.” While there may be more to customer service than handling mistakes, this is a pretty good start. His point was that nobody should ever walk out of the restaurant unhappy.
Keep in mind that it takes more than fixing the problem. A steak that isn’t cooked to the customer’s liking can be fixed, but there is more to fixing a problem than just making it right. I’m not going to go into my simple five-step process for handling complaints, as I’ve written about it a number of times. However, I do want to emphasize three ideas:
Use the Right Words: The right words and the way you say them count. Apologizing with empathy is important when the experience doesn’t meet expectations, or there’s a problem.
Take Responsibility: This ties into exhibiting the right attitude. Don’t blame others for a problem. Just accept that there is a problem and that it’s now your opportunity to fix it, regardless of how it happened or who was at fault.
Convenience: Make it easy for the customer to complain and for a mistake to be fixed.
Customers want a positive experience. They don’t want to complain, but when there is something to complain about, they want to know they can always count on you to make it right. And this may be most important. Mistakes handled well is not just fixing a problem. It’s about restoring the customer’s confidence that gets them to say, “I’ll be back!”
Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops at www.Hyken.com. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.
October 14, 2024
How OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) Transform Customer-Centric Strategies with Jeff Gothelf
This episode of
Amazing Business Radio with Shep Hyken
answers the following questions and more:
What is an OKR?
How do customer-centric OKRs help teams focus on the right tasks?
Why is it important for businesses to align their objectives with customer-centric goals?
How does measuring customer behavior contribute to better customer satisfaction?
How can understanding customer patterns help prevent client defection?
Top Takeaways
OKR is an acronym meaning Objectives and Key Results. They are a strategic framework for setting clear goals and measuring outcomes. By having clear goals and knowing what results are expected, everyone in the organization moves in the right direction. When these OKRs are focused on the customer, they help companies make decisions that make their customers happy and loyal to the brand.
Objectives are qualitative goals describing the end state you want your customers to experience. For example, you want to offer the best product or be the easiest to do business with. The key results are the quantitative measures of human behavior that tell us we’ve achieved that state. It answers: What will your customers do differently, and by how much?
Customer satisfaction is important, but understanding customer behaviors is crucial. Often, dissatisfied customers stop using the product. They show up less often. They spend less money. They stop telling their friends about it. If you can understand these patterns of your customer’s behavior, you can proactively take action before it becomes a problem.
Determine which behaviors (trying out products, asking more questions, etc.) will deliver the results that your company is looking for. Then, create an environment, a system, a service, or a store that positively amplifies those behaviors for the customer.
Providing your team with the objectives and allowing them to figure out the best way to achieve them communicates that you trust your employees to use their skills to meet customer needs.
Not all strategies will work from the start. Organizations need to develop a culture of learning. It allows teams to learn from mistakes and objectively measure the success of an idea. Then, businesses can make informed adjustments and improve with each attempt.
Plus, Jeff explains why some employees end up working on the wrong tasks and how organizations can avoid that. Tune in!
Quotes:
“Customer centricity puts the customer at the center of all our decisions. Every time we make a decision, the critical question is—What impact do we think this will have on the customer? And, is that something that we want to do?”
“If we can set the right goals, everything else, like collaboration, customer centricity, and decision-making, will happen more easily.”
“Think about the behaviors of satisfied customers and dissatisfied customers. Identify their patterns so you can get ahead and take action rather than wait for your customers to tell you about it and quit at the same time.”
“Collecting objective evidence helps us make customer-centric decisions. Tell your team what the objective is and what the measure of success is. They may not nail it 100% of the time, but as long as we build a learning culture, we will succeed, and our customers will benefit.”
About:
Jeff Gothelf is a business strategy and customer-centricity expert, speaker, and author. He is the co-author of Lean UX, Sense & Respond, and Who Does What By How Much?: A Practical Guide to Customer-Centric OKRs.
Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio .
What is an OKR?
How do customer-centric OKRs help teams focus on the right tasks?
Why is it important for businesses to align their objectives with customer-centric goals?
How does measuring customer behavior contribute to better customer satisfaction?
How can understanding customer patterns help prevent client defection?
Top Takeaways
OKR is an acronym meaning Objectives and Key Results. They are a strategic framework for setting clear goals and measuring outcomes. By having clear goals and knowing what results are expected, everyone in the organization moves in the right direction. When these OKRs are focused on the customer, they help companies make decisions that make their customers happy and loyal to the brand.
Objectives are qualitative goals describing the end state you want your customers to experience. For example, you want to offer the best product or be the easiest to do business with. The key results are the quantitative measures of human behavior that tell us we’ve achieved that state. It answers: What will your customers do differently, and by how much?
Customer satisfaction is important, but understanding customer behaviors is crucial. Often, dissatisfied customers stop using the product. They show up less often. They spend less money. They stop telling their friends about it. If you can understand these patterns of your customer’s behavior, you can proactively take action before it becomes a problem.
Determine which behaviors (trying out products, asking more questions, etc.) will deliver the results that your company is looking for. Then, create an environment, a system, a service, or a store that positively amplifies those behaviors for the customer.
Providing your team with the objectives and allowing them to figure out the best way to achieve them communicates that you trust your employees to use their skills to meet customer needs.
Not all strategies will work from the start. Organizations need to develop a culture of learning. It allows teams to learn from mistakes and objectively measure the success of an idea. Then, businesses can make informed adjustments and improve with each attempt.
Plus, Jeff explains why some employees end up working on the wrong tasks and how organizations can avoid that. Tune in!
Quotes:
“Customer centricity puts the customer at the center of all our decisions. Every time we make a decision, the critical question is—What impact do we think this will have on the customer? And, is that something that we want to do?”
“If we can set the right goals, everything else, like collaboration, customer centricity, and decision-making, will happen more easily.”
“Think about the behaviors of satisfied customers and dissatisfied customers. Identify their patterns so you can get ahead and take action rather than wait for your customers to tell you about it and quit at the same time.”
“Collecting objective evidence helps us make customer-centric decisions. Tell your team what the objective is and what the measure of success is. They may not nail it 100% of the time, but as long as we build a learning culture, we will succeed, and our customers will benefit.”
About:
Jeff Gothelf is a business strategy and customer-centricity expert, speaker, and author. He is the co-author of Lean UX, Sense & Respond, and Who Does What By How Much?: A Practical Guide to Customer-Centric OKRs.
Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio .
October 13, 2024
Top 5 Customer Service & CX Articles for Week of October 14, 2024
Each week, I read many customer service and customer experience articles from various resources. Here are my top five picks from last week. I have added my comments about each article and would like to hear what you think too.
How to Improve Customer Experience In Your Organization by Mike Henry
(InMoment) Working to improve customer experience is an important part of CX management and something that organizations should be continuously striving for. If your customer experience does not evolve with your business, it can negatively impact your revenue and overall business performance.
My Comment: Let’s kick off this week’s Top Five roundup with a list of ten different ways to improve customer experience. In addition, the article shares five benefits of implementing a customer experience improvement program. What is a CX improvement program? It’s a “structured initiative designed to enhance the interactions a customer has with a brand.”
The CX Trends to Watch in 2025 by Melanie Mingas
(CX Network) From data utilization to consumer tech and the role of CX in business, there are big changes on the way for CX in 2025
My Comment: It’s hard to believe we’re less than three months away from 2025. Here’s the first list of CX trends I’ve seen. CX Network gathered some insights from some well-known CX experts. Of course, AI and technology play a big role in our future, so it makes sense that the interest and capabilities continue to trend in the upward direction. I especially appreciate Ian Golding’s closing comments, which should be a warning about meeting our customers’ expectations: “As customer expectations continually increase, there appears to be a downward trend in the ability of organizations to meet those expectations.”
Reviews — and Businesses’ Responses — Build Customer Trust, Study Finds by Kristen Doerer
(CX Dive) The outsized impact of reviews is one of the reasons some businesses are looking to engage with customers’ good, bad and middling reviews.
My Comment: Reviews are important to the customer experience. They create confidence in a decision to buy (or not to buy) a product or do business with a company or brand. Our annual CX research (sponsored by RingCentral) finds that 84% of customers say ratings and reviews help them decide to make a purchase, and 71% say reading a review has stopped them from making a purchase. This short article confirms several important facts related to reviews and reminds us the Federal Trade Commission has created a rule to ban the sale or purchase of fake reviews, which should give consumers more confidence that the reviews they are using to make decisions are legit.
How Customer Marketing Helps You Maintain an Audience by Shopify Staff
(Shopify) Customer marketing allows you to attract and retain satisfied customers over the long haul, tailoring ads to each stage of their buyer journey.
My Comment: We have a new word for personalized CX marketing messages. It’s simply called customer marketing and implies that you know your customers’ buying habits: what they’ve bought, how often they buy, how much they spend, and more. With that information, you can create personalized marketing messages that help you strengthen the relationship with your customers. The article shares the four benefits of customer marketing and six customer marketing strategies.
Customer Experience vs. User Experience: Key Differences by Sudarshan Somanathan
(ClickUp) This article discusses the key differences between CX vs. UX and how customer management tools can help you enhance both. CX professionals and UX designers must understand these differences to enhance customer lifetime value and ensure a positive customer experience.
My Comment: Is there a difference between a customer experience (CX) and a user experience (UX)? Aren’t the customer and the user the same? They are, but the author of this article makes a point. The CX is everything related to the customer’s experience with a brand and its products, but the UX is a narrower look at the specific experience the customer has with the product. In effect, the UX is part of the CX. It’s an interesting description and may help differentiate areas to focus on when developing your CX strategies and initiatives.
Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.
How to Improve Customer Experience In Your Organization by Mike Henry
(InMoment) Working to improve customer experience is an important part of CX management and something that organizations should be continuously striving for. If your customer experience does not evolve with your business, it can negatively impact your revenue and overall business performance.
My Comment: Let’s kick off this week’s Top Five roundup with a list of ten different ways to improve customer experience. In addition, the article shares five benefits of implementing a customer experience improvement program. What is a CX improvement program? It’s a “structured initiative designed to enhance the interactions a customer has with a brand.”
The CX Trends to Watch in 2025 by Melanie Mingas
(CX Network) From data utilization to consumer tech and the role of CX in business, there are big changes on the way for CX in 2025
My Comment: It’s hard to believe we’re less than three months away from 2025. Here’s the first list of CX trends I’ve seen. CX Network gathered some insights from some well-known CX experts. Of course, AI and technology play a big role in our future, so it makes sense that the interest and capabilities continue to trend in the upward direction. I especially appreciate Ian Golding’s closing comments, which should be a warning about meeting our customers’ expectations: “As customer expectations continually increase, there appears to be a downward trend in the ability of organizations to meet those expectations.”
Reviews — and Businesses’ Responses — Build Customer Trust, Study Finds by Kristen Doerer
(CX Dive) The outsized impact of reviews is one of the reasons some businesses are looking to engage with customers’ good, bad and middling reviews.
My Comment: Reviews are important to the customer experience. They create confidence in a decision to buy (or not to buy) a product or do business with a company or brand. Our annual CX research (sponsored by RingCentral) finds that 84% of customers say ratings and reviews help them decide to make a purchase, and 71% say reading a review has stopped them from making a purchase. This short article confirms several important facts related to reviews and reminds us the Federal Trade Commission has created a rule to ban the sale or purchase of fake reviews, which should give consumers more confidence that the reviews they are using to make decisions are legit.
How Customer Marketing Helps You Maintain an Audience by Shopify Staff
(Shopify) Customer marketing allows you to attract and retain satisfied customers over the long haul, tailoring ads to each stage of their buyer journey.
My Comment: We have a new word for personalized CX marketing messages. It’s simply called customer marketing and implies that you know your customers’ buying habits: what they’ve bought, how often they buy, how much they spend, and more. With that information, you can create personalized marketing messages that help you strengthen the relationship with your customers. The article shares the four benefits of customer marketing and six customer marketing strategies.
Customer Experience vs. User Experience: Key Differences by Sudarshan Somanathan
(ClickUp) This article discusses the key differences between CX vs. UX and how customer management tools can help you enhance both. CX professionals and UX designers must understand these differences to enhance customer lifetime value and ensure a positive customer experience.
My Comment: Is there a difference between a customer experience (CX) and a user experience (UX)? Aren’t the customer and the user the same? They are, but the author of this article makes a point. The CX is everything related to the customer’s experience with a brand and its products, but the UX is a narrower look at the specific experience the customer has with the product. In effect, the UX is part of the CX. It’s an interesting description and may help differentiate areas to focus on when developing your CX strategies and initiatives.
Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.
October 8, 2024
Separate Checks: A Metaphor for Good and Bad Customer-Focused Policies
It often amazes me how difficult some companies make it to do business with them. I could share so many examples, but let’s use the restaurant industry to illustrate my point. Recently, I attended a conference. I met three colleagues for breakfast. When the server approached our table, the first thing she said was, “No separate checks.” Really, that was the first thing she said. I could think of better opening lines. Regardless, it was clear that the restaurant had a policy. We were informed.
Compare that to the experience I had the other day when my hockey team – yes, I still play hockey – went to a restaurant for breakfast after an early-morning Saturday game. When the server saw 14 people sit down, he smiled, warmly welcomed us, and then asked, “Would you like separate checks?”
I realize some restaurants aren’t equipped to handle separate checks, but the real point is not about restaurants and separate checks. It’s about creating customer-focused processes, not practices that are inwardly focused on the company. If the first thing a server says to a customer is, “No separate checks,” they obviously have had many customers ask for separate checks. So, why not find a way to accommodate the customers?
Another good example is flexible return policies. Many retailers have rigid return policies requiring receipts, tight return time frames, and more. The goal is to minimize returns and losses. However, companies like Nordstrom and Zappos are well known for their flexible return policies. Customers know they sometimes pay more for the experience, which includes the flexible policy, and they are happy to do it.
And don’t think the B2B world is excluded from this concept. Minimum order requirements can be probative for smaller businesses and startups. There are plenty of creative ways to help a smaller or new business. And when they get bigger and meet those minimums, who do you think that customer will remember?
Any time you have rules and policies that “protect” the company, examine how they impact the customer experience. I’ve written about this before. Change the words rules or policies to “guidelines,” implying you can be guided but have some leeway.
Sure, there are rules – even unfriendly ones – that must be put in place. That’s okay as long as you understand how a customer will react when a situation arises and the rule or policy must be enforced. If you know how a customer might react, knowing how to respond is mandatory. Anyone who might be put into the “enforcing the rule” situation should be properly trained.
Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops at www.Hyken.com. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.
October 7, 2024
Personalization in the Age of Artificial Intelligence with Mark Abraham
This episode of
Amazing Business Radio with Shep Hyken
answers the following questions and more:
What is true personalization?
How can AI enhance personalization?
How does personalization contribute to customer loyalty and satisfaction?
How can businesses balance personalization with customer data privacy concerns?
What are some common misconceptions about personalization in customer service?
Top Takeaways
Personalization means using what you’ve learned about the customer from their past interactions to improve their future experiences.
True personalization is not just about using a customer’s name or offering customized products. True personalization involves using customer data at scale to make their next experience smoother, faster, and more convenient.
There are some concerns among customers about data privacy and personalization. Businesses must first get the opt-in from their customers. Second, it is important to ensure personalized experiences are contextually appropriate to the customer’s journey.
Respecting customer privacy can make or break a personalized experience. Businesses should collect first-party data (data from transactions) and zero-party data (data directly shared by customers) to create a more accurate and respectful personalization strategy.
Artificial Intelligence has the potential to significantly enhance personalization. It can analyze vast amounts of data to predict and suggest the next best actions for customers, recommend products or services, and tailor customer service interactions.
Starting with personalization doesn’t have to be complicated. Start by identifying one area where personalization can have the most impact and using available tools and technologies to implement it.
Mark also shares The Five Promises of Personalization, a practical way to think about how you deliver great personalization.
Empower me: Start with the customer. How are you helping them solve problems or fulfill a need?
Know me: To help a customer, you need to know them. Find ways to engage the customer and collect relevant data in between.
Reach me: Use AI to know how to reach out to your customers and what messages are most appropriate and relevant to send them.
Show me: Build a content library and use content management systems and automation to deliver personalized content at scale.
Delight me: Make the personalized experience seem more magical.
Plus, Mark answers the question—Is true personalization an expensive thing to do? Tune in!
Quotes:
“Personalization isn’t just customization. Personalization is taking what you’ve learned about a customer in an interaction and making their next interaction better, faster, or more convenient.”
“Now, with AI, we’re moving towards an individualized view of personalization. It is more than using a customer’s name to offer recommendations. If you are not contextualizing engagement based on what you know about a customer, that’s not true personalization.”
“Personalization is a way to drive growth with AI. We talk so much about driving efficiency with AI, but the potential of AI is in driving growth and personalization.”
About:
Mark Abraham is a Senior Partner at Boston Consulting Group and the founder of the company’s Global Personalization business. He co-authored Personalized: Customer Strategy in the Age of AI with David C. Edelman.
Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio .
What is true personalization?
How can AI enhance personalization?
How does personalization contribute to customer loyalty and satisfaction?
How can businesses balance personalization with customer data privacy concerns?
What are some common misconceptions about personalization in customer service?
Top Takeaways
Personalization means using what you’ve learned about the customer from their past interactions to improve their future experiences.
True personalization is not just about using a customer’s name or offering customized products. True personalization involves using customer data at scale to make their next experience smoother, faster, and more convenient.
There are some concerns among customers about data privacy and personalization. Businesses must first get the opt-in from their customers. Second, it is important to ensure personalized experiences are contextually appropriate to the customer’s journey.
Respecting customer privacy can make or break a personalized experience. Businesses should collect first-party data (data from transactions) and zero-party data (data directly shared by customers) to create a more accurate and respectful personalization strategy.
Artificial Intelligence has the potential to significantly enhance personalization. It can analyze vast amounts of data to predict and suggest the next best actions for customers, recommend products or services, and tailor customer service interactions.
Starting with personalization doesn’t have to be complicated. Start by identifying one area where personalization can have the most impact and using available tools and technologies to implement it.
Mark also shares The Five Promises of Personalization, a practical way to think about how you deliver great personalization.
Empower me: Start with the customer. How are you helping them solve problems or fulfill a need?
Know me: To help a customer, you need to know them. Find ways to engage the customer and collect relevant data in between.
Reach me: Use AI to know how to reach out to your customers and what messages are most appropriate and relevant to send them.
Show me: Build a content library and use content management systems and automation to deliver personalized content at scale.
Delight me: Make the personalized experience seem more magical.
Plus, Mark answers the question—Is true personalization an expensive thing to do? Tune in!
Quotes:
“Personalization isn’t just customization. Personalization is taking what you’ve learned about a customer in an interaction and making their next interaction better, faster, or more convenient.”
“Now, with AI, we’re moving towards an individualized view of personalization. It is more than using a customer’s name to offer recommendations. If you are not contextualizing engagement based on what you know about a customer, that’s not true personalization.”
“Personalization is a way to drive growth with AI. We talk so much about driving efficiency with AI, but the potential of AI is in driving growth and personalization.”
About:
Mark Abraham is a Senior Partner at Boston Consulting Group and the founder of the company’s Global Personalization business. He co-authored Personalized: Customer Strategy in the Age of AI with David C. Edelman.
Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio .
October 6, 2024
Top 5 Customer Service & CX Articles for Week of October 7, 2024
Each week, I read many customer service and customer experience articles from various resources. Here are my top five picks from last week. I have added my comments about each article and would like to hear what you think too.
7 Ways to Boost Customers’ Emotional Connection and Loyalty with Your Brand by Annette Franz
(MarTech) Loyalty. What’s emotion got to do with it? That emotional connection to a brand is extremely important to customer loyalty. It’s often been thought to be a key driver of loyalty. It goes beyond a product’s or service’s functional benefits and taps into customers’ feelings, values and identity.
My Comment: We kick off this week’s Top Five roundup with an article on customer loyalty. I’ve preached that there is no customer loyalty without some level of emotional connection. Transactions must become interactions that are part of a bigger and longer relationship. Here are seven ideas to create emotional connections. You won’t disagree with any of them. The question is, are you doing any – or even all – of them?
What All World-Class Customer Experience Brands Have in Common by John DiJulius
(The DiJulius Group) Most companies have multiple statements—a mission, purpose, and core values. The problem with having numerous statements is that employees can’t keep track of them or remember them. The one statement that all world-class customer experience organizations have in common is they all have a customer experience action statement that they make sure every one of their team members knows and understands it in detail.
My Comment: My friend and fellow CX expert, John DiJulius, is one of my favorite people to follow. His recent article about a customer experience action statement is important for every organization to read. If you don’t have an action statement (what I refer to as a ), then it’s time to create one. John defines the action statement (or mantra) as: A clear call to action of what every employee should intentionally achieve every time they interact with a customer. This short article will give you the structure you need to get started.
Brand Loyalty Is Lagging. Here’s How to Catch Up by Roger Williams
(The Drum) According to Marigold’s new Relationship Marketing Trends: Brand Rankings Report, 37% of consumers say they switched away from or became less loyal to a brand they previously purchased from in the past year. While earning customer loyalty can be elusive, the report offers insights into effective tactics for achieving valuable long-term customer relationships.
My Comment: Consider the opening statistic cited in this article: According to Marigold’s Relationship Marketing Trends report, 37% of consumers say they switched away from or became less loyal to a brand they previously purchased from in the last year. That’s almost four of ten customers! There are some other compelling stats, and one of the ways to create a personalized experience is to get customer data. The article suggests that coupons, discounts, loyalty points, rewards, and more incentives are ways to go about it. I’m okay with that, but often times, that fosters more repeat business than true loyalty. However, it’s a good start. If you combine that with a great CX, customers will keep coming back.
Top 5 Customer Loyalty Programs That Work by Retail Merchandiser
(Retail Merchandiser) In today’s competitive market, businesses need more than just quality products or services to retain customers—they need to cultivate loyalty. Customer loyalty programs are key to building lasting relationships, encouraging repeat purchases, and fostering brand advocacy.
My Comment: As long as we’re talking about loyalty programs, how about we learn from some of the best, including Starbucks, Amazon Prime, Sephora Beauty, Expedia, and Grubhub? These brands have cracked the code of loyalty programs. Again, they are points and rewards programs that drive repeat business. However, these brands are known for a strong CX, which means they have a winning combination that gets customers coming back again and again.
What Is AI Customer Experience? Tips for Small Businesses by Shopify Staff
(Shopify) Artificial intelligence may have once conjured up images from science fiction, but today, 84% of ecommerce businesses are either already using AI solutions or considering implementing them into their workflows. More than ever, business leaders recognize AI’s potential to improve the customer experience.
My Comment: We’ll wrap up this week’s roundup with an excellent article on ten ways any company (not just small businesses) can use AI to improve many areas of business, including customer experience, customer support, higher productivity and efficiency, and more. Just ten years ago, much of this list would cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to implement. Not anymore. Today, just about any sized company – even the smallest businesses – can implement AI solutions at very affordable prices. And as the cost has come down, the capabilities have improved at an incredible level. Check out the list and choose which of these will work for you.
Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.
7 Ways to Boost Customers’ Emotional Connection and Loyalty with Your Brand by Annette Franz
(MarTech) Loyalty. What’s emotion got to do with it? That emotional connection to a brand is extremely important to customer loyalty. It’s often been thought to be a key driver of loyalty. It goes beyond a product’s or service’s functional benefits and taps into customers’ feelings, values and identity.
My Comment: We kick off this week’s Top Five roundup with an article on customer loyalty. I’ve preached that there is no customer loyalty without some level of emotional connection. Transactions must become interactions that are part of a bigger and longer relationship. Here are seven ideas to create emotional connections. You won’t disagree with any of them. The question is, are you doing any – or even all – of them?
What All World-Class Customer Experience Brands Have in Common by John DiJulius
(The DiJulius Group) Most companies have multiple statements—a mission, purpose, and core values. The problem with having numerous statements is that employees can’t keep track of them or remember them. The one statement that all world-class customer experience organizations have in common is they all have a customer experience action statement that they make sure every one of their team members knows and understands it in detail.
My Comment: My friend and fellow CX expert, John DiJulius, is one of my favorite people to follow. His recent article about a customer experience action statement is important for every organization to read. If you don’t have an action statement (what I refer to as a ), then it’s time to create one. John defines the action statement (or mantra) as: A clear call to action of what every employee should intentionally achieve every time they interact with a customer. This short article will give you the structure you need to get started.
Brand Loyalty Is Lagging. Here’s How to Catch Up by Roger Williams
(The Drum) According to Marigold’s new Relationship Marketing Trends: Brand Rankings Report, 37% of consumers say they switched away from or became less loyal to a brand they previously purchased from in the past year. While earning customer loyalty can be elusive, the report offers insights into effective tactics for achieving valuable long-term customer relationships.
My Comment: Consider the opening statistic cited in this article: According to Marigold’s Relationship Marketing Trends report, 37% of consumers say they switched away from or became less loyal to a brand they previously purchased from in the last year. That’s almost four of ten customers! There are some other compelling stats, and one of the ways to create a personalized experience is to get customer data. The article suggests that coupons, discounts, loyalty points, rewards, and more incentives are ways to go about it. I’m okay with that, but often times, that fosters more repeat business than true loyalty. However, it’s a good start. If you combine that with a great CX, customers will keep coming back.
Top 5 Customer Loyalty Programs That Work by Retail Merchandiser
(Retail Merchandiser) In today’s competitive market, businesses need more than just quality products or services to retain customers—they need to cultivate loyalty. Customer loyalty programs are key to building lasting relationships, encouraging repeat purchases, and fostering brand advocacy.
My Comment: As long as we’re talking about loyalty programs, how about we learn from some of the best, including Starbucks, Amazon Prime, Sephora Beauty, Expedia, and Grubhub? These brands have cracked the code of loyalty programs. Again, they are points and rewards programs that drive repeat business. However, these brands are known for a strong CX, which means they have a winning combination that gets customers coming back again and again.
What Is AI Customer Experience? Tips for Small Businesses by Shopify Staff
(Shopify) Artificial intelligence may have once conjured up images from science fiction, but today, 84% of ecommerce businesses are either already using AI solutions or considering implementing them into their workflows. More than ever, business leaders recognize AI’s potential to improve the customer experience.
My Comment: We’ll wrap up this week’s roundup with an excellent article on ten ways any company (not just small businesses) can use AI to improve many areas of business, including customer experience, customer support, higher productivity and efficiency, and more. Just ten years ago, much of this list would cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to implement. Not anymore. Today, just about any sized company – even the smallest businesses – can implement AI solutions at very affordable prices. And as the cost has come down, the capabilities have improved at an incredible level. Check out the list and choose which of these will work for you.
Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.
October 1, 2024
Customer Service Week 2024
If you’re reading this article the day it comes out, then next week – the first full week of October – is Customer Service Week. This special week was created in the 1980s when the International Customer Service Association suggested that organizations should recognize the employees who create the experience that gets customers to say, “I’ll be back.” Here are five ideas to celebrate.
There’s nothing wrong with acknowledging customers during this week. I encourage it. But who makes those customers want to do business with you? Your employees! So, with that in mind, here are five ideas, one for each day of the week, to inspire you to motivate and appreciate your employees:
On Monday, kick off the week with a rally around your customer service vision. And if you don’t have one, now’s the time. I refer to this vision as a mantra, which is a sentence or less describing what you want your customers to experience. My favorite, and if you’ve been following me, you will already know this, comes from The Ritz-Carlton: We are ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen.
Tuesday is Testimonial Tuesday. Invite several customers to record a 60-second video testimonial about how much they enjoy doing business with your organization and its employees. These can be edited together to create a short video. If you have video monitors at work, play it throughout the day. You can also email it to all employees.
Wednesday is Innovation Day. This is like a massive suggestion box exercise. Ask every employee to participate by sharing at least one idea that could enhance the employee or customer experience, boost efficiency, foster safety, make money, save money, advance sustainability and more. All suggestions – big or small – are encouraged. Participation guarantees entry into a prize drawing, celebrating the spirit of innovation rather than competition.
Let’s make Thursday about food. Bring in pizza or ice cream for the employees to enjoy. And if you really want to show how much they are appreciated, have the leadership or management serve it up. This doesn’t have to be extravagant. Just a little something to say, “Thank you for doing a great job!”
Friday is Kudos Day. This is a celebration where every employee writes a personal compliment for a colleague, fostering a culture of appreciation and connection throughout the company. Assign this idea at the beginning of the week, maybe even a week before.
Celebrate your employees all year.
Over the years, I’ve shared many more ideas about Customer Service Week. You don’t have to do something every day. And maybe there are other ideas that you want to do during the week. This short article is meant to jump-start your creativity. And if you think it’s too late for this year’s “celebration,” start planning for next year. And finally, even though Customer Service Week is five days, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t express appreciation to your employees and customers all throughout the year.
Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops at www.Hyken.com. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.
How Artificial Intelligence Can Supercharge Employee and Customer Experiences with Jim Payne
This episode of
Amazing Business Radio with Shep Hyken
answers the following questions and more:
How is AI transforming both employee and customer experiences?
Can AI be utilized effectively in smaller companies with limited budgets?
How does AI improve efficiency and productivity for customer service teams?
What is the impact of AI on employee retention?
What are the challenges related to integrating AI into existing customer service systems?
Top Takeaways
Artificial Intelligence is significantly impacting both customer and employee experiences. The latest research by RingCentral and Metrigy has uncovered that over 80% of companies are using or planning to use AI to enhance customer and employee interactions this year.
The cost of using AI for business has dramatically decreased. In the past, deploying AI would mean a considerable investment needing data scientists and experts to implement. Today, it has become more accessible to even small and medium-sized businesses. The benefits of AI, such as increased productivity and efficiency, are no longer exclusive to large organizations.
AI will not replace human employees. Instead, it will augment their capabilities, make their jobs easier, and empower them to serve more customers.
By automating repetitive, mundane tasks, AI allows employees to focus on more meaningful work. In customer support, AI can manage routine inquiries and free agents to tackle more complex issues that need human-to-human interaction. This boosts productivity and reduces stress and burnout, leading to a happier workforce.
Inconsistent experiences with digital tools may cause customers to hesitate to choose self-service options. Companies must ensure their AI systems are reliable and user-friendly to encourage more customers to embrace them.
AI creates seamless experiences for both customers and employees. Whether a customer is talking to a chatbot or a human agent, all relevant information can be retained and accessible. This prevents customers from having to repeat themselves. It also empowers employees with the information they need to resolve issues quickly.
By integrating AI solutions, businesses can enhance their existing workforce. AI helps shorten the time an agent needs to solve problems. In their recent study, RingCentral and Metrigy found that AI helps reduce the time to complete a call by 39% on average. This allows contact centers to handle higher volumes of inquiries with fewer agents, bridging staffing gaps and improving the overall service quality.
Plus, Shep and Jim share innovative ways AI is being used to support customer service agents. Tune in!
Quotes:
“AI supercharges people. It doesn’t replace human-to-human interaction. It just makes everything better, faster, and easier.”
“Back in the day, if you needed to use artificial intelligence in your business, you would need a team of data scientists. Now, there are companies that can do that on your behalf, so you can just plug it in and start working. You don’t need to be an expert in the field to start taking advantage of artificial intelligence.”
“From an employment standpoint, I see AI as an augmentation. It makes the employee’s job easier and makes them more effective. It gives them the information they need right when they need it. As a byproduct, they don’t feel as stressed and as frustrated.”
“Take a holistic approach to artificial intelligence. If you are putting in a point solution, it can create confusion in the customer journey. Invest in something more comprehensive to get all the benefits of AI ‘from the cradle to the grave.'”
About:
Jim Payne is the Director of Product Marketing, Customer Engagement at RingCentral. He specializes in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning and how they can be applied to improve customer experiences.
Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio .
How is AI transforming both employee and customer experiences?
Can AI be utilized effectively in smaller companies with limited budgets?
How does AI improve efficiency and productivity for customer service teams?
What is the impact of AI on employee retention?
What are the challenges related to integrating AI into existing customer service systems?
Top Takeaways
Artificial Intelligence is significantly impacting both customer and employee experiences. The latest research by RingCentral and Metrigy has uncovered that over 80% of companies are using or planning to use AI to enhance customer and employee interactions this year.
The cost of using AI for business has dramatically decreased. In the past, deploying AI would mean a considerable investment needing data scientists and experts to implement. Today, it has become more accessible to even small and medium-sized businesses. The benefits of AI, such as increased productivity and efficiency, are no longer exclusive to large organizations.
AI will not replace human employees. Instead, it will augment their capabilities, make their jobs easier, and empower them to serve more customers.
By automating repetitive, mundane tasks, AI allows employees to focus on more meaningful work. In customer support, AI can manage routine inquiries and free agents to tackle more complex issues that need human-to-human interaction. This boosts productivity and reduces stress and burnout, leading to a happier workforce.
Inconsistent experiences with digital tools may cause customers to hesitate to choose self-service options. Companies must ensure their AI systems are reliable and user-friendly to encourage more customers to embrace them.
AI creates seamless experiences for both customers and employees. Whether a customer is talking to a chatbot or a human agent, all relevant information can be retained and accessible. This prevents customers from having to repeat themselves. It also empowers employees with the information they need to resolve issues quickly.
By integrating AI solutions, businesses can enhance their existing workforce. AI helps shorten the time an agent needs to solve problems. In their recent study, RingCentral and Metrigy found that AI helps reduce the time to complete a call by 39% on average. This allows contact centers to handle higher volumes of inquiries with fewer agents, bridging staffing gaps and improving the overall service quality.
Plus, Shep and Jim share innovative ways AI is being used to support customer service agents. Tune in!
Quotes:
“AI supercharges people. It doesn’t replace human-to-human interaction. It just makes everything better, faster, and easier.”
“Back in the day, if you needed to use artificial intelligence in your business, you would need a team of data scientists. Now, there are companies that can do that on your behalf, so you can just plug it in and start working. You don’t need to be an expert in the field to start taking advantage of artificial intelligence.”
“From an employment standpoint, I see AI as an augmentation. It makes the employee’s job easier and makes them more effective. It gives them the information they need right when they need it. As a byproduct, they don’t feel as stressed and as frustrated.”
“Take a holistic approach to artificial intelligence. If you are putting in a point solution, it can create confusion in the customer journey. Invest in something more comprehensive to get all the benefits of AI ‘from the cradle to the grave.'”
About:
Jim Payne is the Director of Product Marketing, Customer Engagement at RingCentral. He specializes in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning and how they can be applied to improve customer experiences.
Shep Hyken is a customer service and experience expert, New York Times bestselling author, award-winning keynote speaker, and host of Amazing Business Radio .
September 30, 2024
Top 5 Customer Service & CX Articles for Week of September 30, 2024
Each week, I read many customer service and customer experience articles from various resources. Here are my top five picks from last week. I have added my comments about each article and would like to hear what you think too.
CX Day: Better Outcomes for Everyone by Lynn Hunsaker
(CustomerThink) CX Day is a highlight of the year, celebrating customers, CX professionals, and CX outcomes.
My Comment: Tomorrow (October 1, 2024) is CX Day. Our friend Lynn Hunsaker shares an article about this year’s theme: Good CX delivers better outcomes for customers, employees, and organizations. So read this article, along with the others in today’s Top Five roundup, and focus on creating a better CX for everyone – and not just for tomorrow, but for every day!
10 Steps to Boost Employee Motivation for Better Customer Experience by Ricardo Saltz Gulko
(CMSWire) There’s a powerful link between employee motivation and customer experience. Empowering your team drives better customer outcomes and business success.
My Comment: While tomorrow is CX Day, next week (the first full week of October) is Customer Service Week. I always say, “A good CX starts with a good EX (Employee Experience),” and that is what Customer Service Week is all about: recognizing and appreciating the employees who get customers to say, “I’ll be back!” The author of this article shares ten ideas to motivate employees. I’m sure you’ll find one or two you can use. This is a perfect conversation starter for ways to recognize and motivate your employees for Customer Service Week and beyond.
Debunking Your Biggest Customer Experience Misconceptions by Annette Franz
(CustomerThink) It’s important that everyone is clear on the definition of customer experience because there are so many incorrect uses of the term and misconceptions about the concept itself. It creates confusion and dilutes the concept and the work that needs to be done.
My Comment: I love a great list, and Annette Franz has given us 25 CX misconceptions. According to Franz, there are plenty of misconceptions and misuses of the term Customer Experience (CX). She starts with her definition of CX and helps us understand why people are confused.
CX + EX = BG: the Formula for Sustainable Business Growth by ML Maco
(CIO) Exceptional Customer Experience (CX) is vital for brands to differentiate themselves, but it can only be achieved by also focusing on Employee Experience (EX), as the two are deeply interconnected. By aligning CX and EX, companies can drive measurable business growth, with engaged employees delivering better customer service and fostering loyalty…ultimately leading to sustainable success.
My Comment: Here’s a new formula for you to consider. What causes business growth? It’s the combination of CX and EX. As mentioned earlier in this roundup, you can’t have a good CX without an EX. The two are connected. If you want customers to come back, provide a great CX. If you want employees to stay, provide a great EX. If you combine the CX and EX, everyone wins!
The Blueprint for Great Customer Experience by Billy Klein
(Marketing Mag) For any business focused on growing its brand and increasing market share, loyalty, awareness and revenue, the marketing department can be one of most strategic and impactful growth levers.
My Comment: Let’s wrap this week’s roundup with two incredible findings. First is Qualtrics survey that claims poor CX puts $5.5 trillion on the line. That’s a HUGE number. The second is PwC’s annual Global CEO Survey, which reports that CEOs rank changing customer demands as one of the greatest risks to the business. And there’s much more in this excellent article.
Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.
CX Day: Better Outcomes for Everyone by Lynn Hunsaker
(CustomerThink) CX Day is a highlight of the year, celebrating customers, CX professionals, and CX outcomes.
My Comment: Tomorrow (October 1, 2024) is CX Day. Our friend Lynn Hunsaker shares an article about this year’s theme: Good CX delivers better outcomes for customers, employees, and organizations. So read this article, along with the others in today’s Top Five roundup, and focus on creating a better CX for everyone – and not just for tomorrow, but for every day!
10 Steps to Boost Employee Motivation for Better Customer Experience by Ricardo Saltz Gulko
(CMSWire) There’s a powerful link between employee motivation and customer experience. Empowering your team drives better customer outcomes and business success.
My Comment: While tomorrow is CX Day, next week (the first full week of October) is Customer Service Week. I always say, “A good CX starts with a good EX (Employee Experience),” and that is what Customer Service Week is all about: recognizing and appreciating the employees who get customers to say, “I’ll be back!” The author of this article shares ten ideas to motivate employees. I’m sure you’ll find one or two you can use. This is a perfect conversation starter for ways to recognize and motivate your employees for Customer Service Week and beyond.
Debunking Your Biggest Customer Experience Misconceptions by Annette Franz
(CustomerThink) It’s important that everyone is clear on the definition of customer experience because there are so many incorrect uses of the term and misconceptions about the concept itself. It creates confusion and dilutes the concept and the work that needs to be done.
My Comment: I love a great list, and Annette Franz has given us 25 CX misconceptions. According to Franz, there are plenty of misconceptions and misuses of the term Customer Experience (CX). She starts with her definition of CX and helps us understand why people are confused.
CX + EX = BG: the Formula for Sustainable Business Growth by ML Maco
(CIO) Exceptional Customer Experience (CX) is vital for brands to differentiate themselves, but it can only be achieved by also focusing on Employee Experience (EX), as the two are deeply interconnected. By aligning CX and EX, companies can drive measurable business growth, with engaged employees delivering better customer service and fostering loyalty…ultimately leading to sustainable success.
My Comment: Here’s a new formula for you to consider. What causes business growth? It’s the combination of CX and EX. As mentioned earlier in this roundup, you can’t have a good CX without an EX. The two are connected. If you want customers to come back, provide a great CX. If you want employees to stay, provide a great EX. If you combine the CX and EX, everyone wins!
The Blueprint for Great Customer Experience by Billy Klein
(Marketing Mag) For any business focused on growing its brand and increasing market share, loyalty, awareness and revenue, the marketing department can be one of most strategic and impactful growth levers.
My Comment: Let’s wrap this week’s roundup with two incredible findings. First is Qualtrics survey that claims poor CX puts $5.5 trillion on the line. That’s a HUGE number. The second is PwC’s annual Global CEO Survey, which reports that CEOs rank changing customer demands as one of the greatest risks to the business. And there’s much more in this excellent article.
Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.
