Businesses No Longer Have the Luxury of Compartmentalizing Customer Experience
Businesses no longer have the luxury of compartmentalizing the customer experience. Consumers have a multitude of ways to engage with a company. For example, by walking into a physical store, browsing a catalogue, visiting a website, using social media, and now… “live selling.” They also use multiple devices. Brands must ensure a seamless experience across all channels.
But meeting that expectation is easier said than done. Ensuring consistent, omni-channel experience, during this new era of being omni-present, requires marketing and customer service go hand in hand. There’s often a huge gulf between these two groups, if they interact at all.
Customer service is marketing. When else do you have the customer’s full attention, and the chance to solve one of their challenges directly? You may be dealing with someone who’s frustrated in the moment, but they’ve contacted you for help solving a problem… and it is the only time you have 100% of their attention.
Each customer service contact is a golden opportunity to build your reputation. Reputation matters. It’s defined by the moments people remember. A customer may recognize your logo or name, but recognition means little without a positive experience to back it up.
Create an environment where collaboration between customer service, sales, and marketing is encouraged and rewarded. Think beyond content, web design and marketing materials. And recognize that seamless and easy payments are now a part for the equation. Customer experience is what you do, not just what you say. #RetailRelevancy
A Brand is what a business does, a Reputation is what people Remember and Share.
