Delivering a memorable, personalised customer experience comes down to understanding what people want, and having the connected data to consistently delight them. Leaders from two Australian-based companies recently shared their thoughts on winning CX strategies during a virtual broadcast hosted by Scott Treller, executive general manager of 51风流Customer Experience in ANZ.
Connected data takes the guesswork out of personalised CX
Laminex is an iconic Australian-based brand; its cabinetry, doors, and other quality manufactured products are ubiquitous in buildings nationwide. The company is digitally transforming its B2B commerce and digital operations to get closer to their trade customers as well as architects and designers.
鈥淲e want to use CX tools to drive insights鈥o we can serve up content and functionality that鈥檚 relevant to customers and what they want to achieve,鈥� said Amanda Green, head of digital at Laminex. 鈥淚t鈥檚 really important to base personalisation on voice of customer data and not just what we think or feel someone might need, and that the information is contextual and relevant to that customer.鈥�
Never assume what the customer wants
IDP Education helps international students study in English speaking countries. Doing business in multiple cultures and languages worldwide, the company created a CX roadmap that targeted where digital could add value and equally important, where it could not.
鈥淚t may not be possible for a customer to travel hours to visit one of our offices鈥r, the customer may not want a digital experience鈥e listened to what worked for the customer and allowed them the choice,鈥� said Chris Costley, Director, Customer and Operations Transformation, IDP Education. 鈥淭his鈥as a powerful opportunity for us to scale services in a much more efficient and not just cost-effective, but customer-effective way.鈥�
The to create a 鈥榙igital ecosystem鈥� that connects customers with company offices for a seamless experience from online inquiry through contact center support and in-person visits.
鈥淥ur goal is to respond to customer inquiries in minutes not hours,鈥� said Costley, director of customer and operations transformation at IDP Education. 鈥淲ith data from one connected, consistent platform鈥� when the customer walks into the office and registers at the kiosk, counselors know what they鈥檙e interested in鈥e鈥檝e had a fantastic response from our customers.鈥�
Adjust B2C strategies for B2B customers
Green recommended building customer insights into all CX touch points, including websites, from the ground up. While every industry aims to emulate popular B2C strategies that foster consumer relationships to increase purchases and loyalty, B2B companies still need to adapt those approaches for their customers鈥� specific expectations.
鈥淕et it right from the beginning and have a long term roadmap. For some B2B sites, they鈥檝e been approached from a B2C lens,鈥� she said. 鈥淏2B customers just want to get in larger orders quickly yet they鈥檙e given a B2C experience鈥ome companies set up the website鈥inus customer insights or journey mapping鈥ou need true customer validation from the beginning.鈥�
Root out internal CX bias
Costley warned against letting uninformed opinions dominate CX decisions. Companies need to cultivate an outside-in view that reflects what customers want.
鈥淎void the HIPPO effect, where the highest paid person鈥檚 opinion dominates the discussion,鈥� he said. 鈥淭his is not always in the best interests of the customer鈥f you can鈥檛 listen to what the customer is telling you and advocate that, then internal bias will rule鈥uild your [CX] business case around the fundamental customer problem that you are solving.鈥�
Figure out where digital can make a difference to customers
Green also advised taking the time to identify and understand customer segments by capturing and analysing data from various sources on an ongoing basis.
鈥淢ake sure you understand the customer鈥檚 problems that they鈥檙e trying to solve and…in what part of their journey you can add value,鈥� she said. 鈥淵ou can鈥檛 always solve everything. After implementation, review it to see if it met your metrics and did what you expected it to do. If it didn鈥檛, go back and iterate and get the voice of the customer to see where you went wrong and what you could have done better. It鈥檚 never done and dusted. CX is always constantly changing.鈥�
Most important, winning customer experiences never substitute digital interactions for the human touch where it鈥檚 needed most.
鈥淒igital enables us to get to a wider customer segment that could be quite difficult to reach offline,鈥� said Green. 鈥淎 sales rep can only do so much by themselves鈥igital can provide baseline information, like documents or sample people initially request. When the rep visits the customer, they are the cherry on top. They provide the relationship-building and personal attention the customer needs.鈥�
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