Tag Archive by: customer experience

The fair price?

It's been a while since I finished the HEAO (international marketing). I have lost much of what I was taught there. But what I still remember are the 4 P's of Kotler: Price, Place, Product and Promotion. They have been rammed in and I know them as the marketing mix.

While browsing on LinkedIn, my eyes were recently drawn to a message that started with the sentence: 'Right price!!' With two exclamation marks. This was not just a message, the writer wanted to reinforce it. The picture accompanying the message gave further colouring with the text: 'We are honest about the price'. This company gives the right price right away and they are honest about the price. Not surprising, right?!

The price. A P from the marketing mix. Most companies that distinguish themselves with this P go for a positioning as the cheapest. I remember learning how to calculate the price elasticity at the same HEAO. What price are consumers willing to pay and how do you optimize your turnover? What is the fair price? That's a good question. Is that the price you want to pay as a consumer? Or is that the price a product or service is worth? A very difficult discussion. When the new iPhone X came out, it had a – in my opinion – ridiculously high price. Until a connoisseur explained to me what this device can do. Surely it was worth it?

The message in question on LinkedIn came from a kitchen farmer. I still remember buying my kitchens well. The hassle of negotiating. That half the price was deducted in no time. "No, ma'am, we can't go any lower." That I would walk away and still lose another thirty percent. I never had a good feeling about that. Beautiful kitchens, but always that doubt. Had I paid the right price?

What I think is fair in the LinkedIn post is that everyone has to get used to 'Right the right price'. The staff, who were used to giving away a lot, now have room for a real conversation. But even the customer, who actually walked into the kitchen store 'with the knife between his teeth' to immediately negotiate about that too high price, can now calmly put his wishes on the table and enter into a conversation.

This particular kitchen company is heading in a good direction. In my view, this is distinctive in this industry, with the focus on the P for Price. Not as cheap, but as fair. Anyway, now that I'm looking for a new kitchen. I'm also curious what the fair price of such a kitchen is.

 

This blog was written for CustomerFirst and published on September 26, 2018

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9 reasons you should give the International Customer Experience Awards a GO

There is so much going on when it comes to customer experience. I see brilliant initiatives, professionals, strategies, projects and transformations going on at my clients and I read all your stories on LinkedIn. It makes me smile and as a CX colleague, it makes me proud. We are all on our way to deliver great customer experiences to our clients, or have the urge to do so in a better way. In contact centers, social media teams, HR, employee experience and of course customer experience teams.

Did you know that you can get international recognition for what you are doing? I think you should try and win an International Customer Experience Award!

Why enter the awards? I give you 9 reasons why you have to give it a GO

Your entry:

1. You reflect on what is your success and your strategy behind it

2. You really get to the point and feel your pride on your journey

On the day itself:

3. You get to present your success strategy in front of international CX professionals

4. You battle with peers and learn from their entries

After the awards:

5. You get a huge applause from your peers if you win

6. Get international recognition for all your efforts and CX brilliance

7. As a winner: share the pride within your organization and celebrate success

8. As a winner: use it in your marketing that you excel in your category

9. Get a benchmark feedback report how the judges ranked you (BONUS)

You see, there are so many reasons and maybe you can even add some mor... Even if you don't win, you'll experience a fantastic event and you'll learn a lot from your peers of course!

With all the categories you can win (19 in total), there must be a category for you, your department or your company. First I thought I didn't have to list them, but I have talked about it with many of you and the categories are not known enough for the first edition of the International CX. SO here we go:

All 19 categories in which you can WIN an award

  1. Customer-Centric Culture – That is sustained across the entire organisation with all employees, systems, processes and that puts the customer at the heart of everything that is done
  2. Best Customer Experience Strategy – A customer experience strategy that demonstrated a tangible shift in direction and that lead to positive business results
  3. Business Change or Transformation – A Significant Customer Experience focus that led to sustainable change or transformation of the organization
  4. Customer Insight & Feedback – An active programme to listen to customers (multi-channel), to create feedback opportunities, & effectively use customer insights to make high impact changes to products, services, processes and the overall customer experience
  5. Customer Complaints – focuses on how businesses manage consumer complaints
  6. Best Measurement in Customer Experience – That demonstrates the use of key CX metrics to bring a greater customer focus to tracking, analysing and effectively measuring initiatives
  7. Best Multi/Omni-Channel Customer Experience – A customer focus on delivering a consistent and persistent customer experience across all channels when interacting with your company
  8. Most Effective Customer Experience in Social Media – Demonstrate the effective use of individual or mixed social media channels to build active relationships that fully engage customers â€" Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Google+
  9. Contact Centre – A contact center transformation project demonstrating great customer experience and making it easier for customers to do business with you
  10. Client Relationship Management – Designed and implemented new and effective techniques to enhance the customer experience through better customer relationship management (CRM)
  11. Best Use of Mobile – Using phone, tablet and other mobility devices to deliver an exceptional customer experience
  12. Digital Transformation – The profound transformation of business and organizational activities. A focus on processes, competencies and models to significantly enhance customer and employee experiences that fully use changes and opportunities available in a mix of digital technologies
  13. Best Digital Strategy – That implemented an effective digital strategy that lead to positive customer engagement and improved business results
  14. Diversity & inclusion – That has diversity and inclusion at the heart of its business, providing outstanding support and opportunities to everyone equally
  15. Employer of the Year – Engaged and highly Motivated Employees, High Staff Retention Rates, Human Resource Initiatives, Personnel Development Initiatives
  16. Employee Empowerment – A Strategy designed to enhance the employee experience, demonstrate corporate wellbeing and linking employee engagement and empowerment to the heart of the business
  17. Customer Experience Professional – Who has identified & responded to an opportunity resulting in influencing the organization to shift and significantly impact the overall customer experience
  18. Customer Experience Team – A team that has identified & responded to an opportunity resulting in significant impact on customer experience and the organization
  19. Customer Experience Leadership – A leader whose influence, communication, passion and focus has significantly impacted the adoption of a more customer focused culture and transformation empowering their organization or community

I really hope I have motivated you to GO for it. To aim high and imagine yourself the 15th of November on stage in Amsterdam, winning an International Customer Experience Award. Click here for more info on the awards and how to enter. Or if you have questions, please leave them as a comment and I will answer them. Hope to meet you in November!

 

** Nienke Bloem is an expert in Customer Experience (CCXP), both as Trusted Advisor, Keynote Speaker and co-founder of the customer experience game. Do you want to read her blogs or learn more about her? Visit her website or subscribe to her monthly CX Greetz. **

** Feel free to comment on this blog and share it in your community! **

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F#ck the FAQ

That's not language for a lady, is it? No, that's right. Sorry in advance. But sometimes it slips my mind. Does the steam come out of my ears, when I'm looking for the answer on a website. If I get lost in the Frequently Asked Questions again.

FAQ is a widely accepted term in the world of customer experience. Now I understand that, because V.G.V. – as in Frequently Asked Questions – sounds a bit strange. It is also too similar to the TGV and let's face it, few customers experience their digital search on websites as that of a high-speed train. More of an old-fashioned bumble between tjilitjap on the heath and flapperdieflap by the sea.

So off I went. Travelling in the FAQ. Just a quick answer to a question I had: how I could convert my subscription. I didn't understand the information I was given. Also, I had the feeling that this answer was not about my question and problem. Of course, I searched further, clicked furiously and after a few minutes – yes, I'm impatient sometimes and I'm not the only customer – I decided to call. Maybe this was the shortcut I needed, because I couldn't figure it out on my own. It felt like an admission of weakness. Of course, I would have preferred to find the answer myself. The company also didn't want me to call. Not only did they try to hide their phone number (but I'm a master magician, HA!), the employee also made this clear on the phone. In no time she found the answer and she didn't understand why I hadn't gotten there myself while clicking. It could also have been done in the My environment, she told me.

If you lose me in your own FAQ, it's not my fault, is it? Too often I see that the flow is set up from an internal perspective. Or that there are words in it that I don't use as a customer. Or that I want something that is not allowed online. Like canceling a subscription. This is only possible during office hours and by phone. That FAQ remains a mystery to me. If I pronounce it the Dutch way, we also say EF, EE, KIOE. But then there should be dots in between, right? Which, by the way, few companies do. For me, it's just the FAQ. If you look at it phonetically, it looks suspiciously like F#CK. Unfortunately, I can't make anything else out of it.

 

This blog was written for CustomerFirst and published on 30 May 2018

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The happy jerk

"Good morning ma'am, would you like to fly to the Netherlands with us?" A big smile on his face betrays that he is having fun. His female colleague behind him, looks with a straight face at a point somewhere 20 centimeters above my head and ignores my "Good morning this morning. As I look for my seat - 2F - I see a third flight attendant who is especially busy organizing luggage. Because as travelers, we have little knowledge of that, says her facial expression.

Before takeoff, we get the explanation of the safety procedure. Smiling, I see the happy jerk two rows in front of me. He performs his routine, with great energy and eye contact with the various passengers. From seat belts to life jackets, they can't get him out of his good mood today. Behind him, the flight purser is repeating her routine. She sighs, but this grumpy chestnut is clearly not in the mood.

We fly away and soon it is time for snacks and drinks. On this airline, you pay for your food and drinks and suddenly I realize that my wallet is in the luggage rack above my head. Still, I want a noodle soup (guilty pleasure, I admit). The happy jerk takes the order, says this is also one of his favorites, and instructs the grumpy chestnut to make a "noodle soup for the pretty lady on 2F. I then confess that my wallet is still above me. "No problem ma'am, that can happen to the best of us," he says enthusiastically. The gruff chestnut sighs audibly and turns to the kitchenette to make my noodle soup. My backpack comes out, he makes another joke that pink is also his favorite color and all the rows are laughing along meanwhile.

What fun this man has in his work, truly amazing. I'm sure this is the second flight of his working day and he got out of bed more than early. Just like the grumpy chestnut, by the way, who really doesn't feel like it by now. She has forgotten about the noodle soup, and when I ask for it she just barely snarls back.

Two months and four flights with other airlines later, I still remember that one flight, with the puffing purser and the contagious energy of the cheerful steward. That happy jerk who made everyone and therefore me feel good. Thank you and I hope to fly with you again soon.

 

This blog was written for CustomerFirst and published on March 28, 2018

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The 4 elements of a brand promise

More and more, I come to the conclusion that this is the missing link in many businesses and a must have when it comes to customer experience. The need for clear promises to customers. To see if this is an issue in your company, please try to answer these questions:

  • How does your company or brand stand out in comparison with your competitors? What is really distinguishing your company when it comes to the offering to your customers?
  • What do you promise your customers when they do business with you? What can they really expect from the product?
  • What kind of service promises do you make to customers? What do you want your customers to experience in which channels?

To deliver great customer experiences, you have to begin with the end in mind

What do you want your customers to experience? Were you able to answer at least 2 of the questions above? No? Now it is time to pay attention. I like to use airlines and cruises as examples. Let's start with airlines.

Two complete opposites when it comes to flying. RyanAir and Emirates. When diving deeper into Ryanair, they have the brand promise "Low fares, made simple". Everything they do is translated from this branding principle. The blue and yellow returns everywhere, on their website, banners, even in their planes. As a customer, you know what to expect. The low cost airline in Europe.

When looking at Emirates, they have the brand promise "Comfort and attention to detail you can rely on whenever you travel." A whole different ball game from a branding perspective and you know what you can expect. Attention to detail, from the greeting in the plane, to the chauffeur service when you fly business class. They focus on a different customer, a different segment as does Ryanair.

Let's also look at the cruise examples

I have picked three.Carnival is the cruise company I traveled with in 2016. They promise you "Fun for all and all for fun". Knowing this, it makes it much easier to translate it into actions. Into moments in the customer journey where fun can be delivered. Also where there are possibilities for up and cross sell.

In the cruise business, there are more and another distinguishing brands. One of them is Disney Cruises. As soon as I write it down, you will know. This is all about Mickey and Minnie. As I have been browsing the web, it is still not crystal clear what their brand promise is, but it all comes down to "Creating happiness through magical experiences".Focusing on families, on entertaining people who love the character experience.

Taking it down a different road is the Monsters of Rock cruise. Yes, a cruise that travels only once a year, fully booked with hard rock fans. No family vacation, but a real niche in the cruising industry. Customers that love hard rock and heavy partying are taking this cruise. So a clear branding, which also easily translates in entertainment, food and beverages. Take a look at their website and browse the FAQ. Their brand identity, has been translated in the way the questions are asked. As would their customers. I love question #9. Not "What kind of food is on board?". No, it is all aligned with their Hard Rock image "Am I going to starve on board?".

The key in all these examples, is that it's about choosing. Who are we to our customers?

Brand promise, customer promises; what is the difference?

Some companies have a brand promise, like Carnival Cruises. Another example I like is KLM. They don't have a brand promise, but they have customer promises. When looking on their website, you'll find WHY to fly with KLM. They promise: 1. Direct flights around the globe, 2. Favorable flight schedules, 3. No charge, 4. Weather in your way? We got your back, 5. 24 hours to cancel, 6. Fly more, benefit more.

See the photo for a clip of the website. Where I especially like the promise "Typo? No charge". It's a very specific promise, where they explain, "Booked flights on klm.com and discovered a spelling mistake in the name on your ticket? We don't charge you for being human. Just contact us via social media to correct your name. Please make sure to have it corrected at least 24 hours before check-in of your first flight starts."

What I like about this customer promise, is that it addresses a fear that customers have. It reassures customers and takes care of them.

Now it comes back to you. What kind of promises do you make to your customers, or do you want to make to your customers? A promise on the highest level: a brand promise? Or rather customer promises that focus on elements in the customer journey?

What are crucial elements when it comes to choosing brand and/or customer promises?

There's no easy answer here. But let's try. When reading the blog of Bruce Jones (Disney Institute), I am attracted to the four elements he claims a brand promise must have from a customers perspective. The four things customers are looking for in a brand promise to be:

  • Important - Customers have expectations regarding the fair exchange of value. In exchange for their money and time, they rightfully expect something meaningful in return. The brand promise must convey what matters most to your customers.
  • Credible - Customers must believe that what you're promising is possible and deliverable. It has never been good policy to "over-promise" and "under-deliver."
  • Exclusive - No organization can be successful at trying to be everything for everybody. Find your niche, and carve out a unique space to "own" in the mind of your customer.
  • Differentiating - The brand promise must truly set you apart from your competitors and be based on legitimate differentiators.

I am curious. Do you dare to set yourself and your business apart from other businesses and stand out with an Important, Credible, Exclusive and Differentiating brand promise? Please let me know where you struggle in your company to stand out with your brand promise and maybe I can help you out. Let's help each other in creating these Great Customer Experiences.

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Unfortunately, I'm out of sales

Twice recently I have been called by an unlisted number. Often these are sales calls, I know. If I check my history, it's from a newspaper or a credit card company. The phone rings again and when I see the secret number, I hesitate. Maybe something has happened to my parents or daughter. Hospital, flashes through my mind. So I pick up.

"With Nienke Bloem."

"A very GOOD morning. This is Carola from the credit card company. Am I speaking with Mr. Flower?"

"No," I say slightly surprised. Does she not hear that I am a woman?

"Oh, maybe I should have you then," she continued the conversation.

"Yes, I am the owner of the credit card. And speaking of which, all the years I've been a customer, I've been registered as Mr. Flower. Can you change that for me?"

"Unfortunately, I am from Sales. Then you must have my colleagues from Customer Service."

The call goes the wrong way, so I ask if she might be able to connect me then. "This annoys me, also since you keep addressing me in your newsletters with 'Dear Mr. Flower.'"

"No, transfer is not possible. You have to call yourself to get that straightened out. But while I have you on the phone, how did you arrange your travel insurance?"

A sigh escapes and I say, "That's fine, do you have the phone number of your colleagues for me? Then I'll make the call myself."

"No I haven't, but you can find the number on our website."

"Good, I'm going to hang up now to look at the website."

"Have a nice day, Mrs. Flower!" and she ends the call.

Sigh... Deep sigh. Unfortunately, I have since called her colleagues twice and tweeted about it. I am and always will be "Mr. Flower" to this company.

What bothers me most about this conversation is the phrase "Unfortunately, I am from Sales." What is it, that the silo you reside in is also the excuse for not helping me as a customer? That you call me to sell something, that's fine. But then also make sure you give your employees the opportunity to solve other issues. Do they use "unfortunately, I'm from another department" in your organization as well? Then you know what to do to prevent this kind of (unnecessary!) irritation among your customers. Otherwise, I might just write another piece about it.

 

This blog was written for CustomerFirst and published on February 28, 2018

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Begin with the end in mind

"All for fun and fun for all." Does this appeal to you or would you rather go on a heavy metal cruise? Would you like to go on holidays with a cruise company who is really clear on what to expect? Let me take you on a cruise and learn about Customer Experience in the meantime.

The slogan "All for fun and fun for all" appealed to me and my 17-year-old daughter when we wanted to take our first cruise ever in 2016. We had some ideas that cruising was for older people, senior fellow humans, to be honest. But when I dived deeper into the world of cruises, I found out there is much more to it. From Disney cruises to heavy metal cruises, from classy to fun and party cruises. That's what we wanted, a fun cruise, on a boat in the sun where at least we could pay a visit to the Bahamas.

The booking of the cruise, the information I received, the boarding (which was the moment I dreaded the most in the customer journey), the cabin, the logistics on the cruise ship, the trips on the islands, the employees... This cruise was a best practice when it comes to customer experience. Not only as a guest, I enjoyed it to the max. But also as a customer experience professional I couldn't stop smiling. Cruising the Caribbean and experiencing a brilliant CX journey. It couldn't be better.

So, let's cruise this CX best practice. What was so brilliant? When I look at a simple (but very effective) strategy, the transformational CX model comes to mind. Companies that want to become customer centric, work on the 3 strategies of the model with determination and fun, will make customers happier, earn their loyalty, their spending and end up with raving fans.

The three strategies of the transformational CX model

  1. Brand Delivery in the Customer Journey
  2. Voice of the Customer
  3. Employee Ambassadorship

Let's take a look at Carnival Cruises and their promise "All for fun and fun for all". For me, this is the start of all good customer experiences. No, let me correct myself, for great customer experiences. As a company or as a brand, you probably have a purpose, a mission, even a vision. But what do you want your customers to experience? Elements that are crucial here, are customer promises, or maybe even a brand promise like the one from Carnival Cruises. Because when you know what you want your customers to experience, you can start reverse engineering.

Begin with the end in mind

This is what I mean: begin with the end in mind. What do you want your customers to say, to feel, to tell their friends and family when they did business with you? If you know these words, these feelings; you know what's needed in the customer journey to deliver these experiences daily. Where can you make a difference, what are moments for up and cross sell, what are great moments to listen, what's needed from the employees?

So, begin with the end in mind when it comes to customer experience. At Carnival Cruises they go for Fun. They offered fun from their booking emails to their cabin experience in the towel folding. They had upsell packages at the moment of boarding "Faster to the fun". I could board earlier than other guests, if I paid some extra dollars. What a smart way to use the brand promise, make me happy as a customer (because who likes waiting?) and increase revenue at the same time.

Now it's me who's curious. What are companies that are spot on when it comes to customer experience? That begin with the end in mind and shine in daily delivery? Share your best practices in companies with outstanding customer promises, so we can all learn and dive deeper into the magic behind these great customer experiences.

 

** Nienke Bloem is an expert in Customer Experience (CCXP), both as Trusted Advisor, Keynote Speaker and co-founder of the customer experience game. Do you want to receive regular updates? Subscribe to her monthly CX Greetz and don't miss anything! **

** Feel free to comment on this blog and share it in your community! **

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Wanted: the Marie Kondo of customer communications

How are the New Year's resolutions? Eat healthier, exercise more, drink less or – very hip – clean up rigorously? That's what Marie Kondo is all about in her book 'Tidy Up!'. Decluttering is what the Japanese preach, because a tidy house is a tidy head. The most important question when cleaning up and throwing away is that you ask yourself with all the stuff: does this make me happy?

For me, cleaning up my workplace is the starting point. I start with the pile of insurance papers, which disappear into folders. In this, my eye falls on a cover letter from my disability insurance. The name of the product 'UNIM Renewed 0510 AOV' is mentioned three times: in the subject line, the opening sentence and in the reading description of the policy.

I took out this important income insurance two years ago and apparently it was a UNIM Renewed 0510 AOV. The letter doesn't say much, but I do wonder if the UNIM Obsolete AOV policy also exists. And what does UNIM stand for? To stay with Marie Kondo: does this make me happy? No. What an unclear letter, full of jargon too. As a customer, I can't do anything with it. You would think that several communication experts and lawyers would have looked at the letter and found it to be correct. I save the policy and the letter goes with a big wave to the waste paper.

I also clean up the digital clutter in my mailbox. In it, an encounter with my spam box, which contains a shocking 567 unread messages. I scan the list of emails and they are mainly newsletters recommending products or services. In all honesty, this is also a tragic sight. Most e-mails don't even start with my name and the question 'Does this make me happy?' cannot be answered in the affirmative. I select all e-mails and with one push on the big red cross, everything disappears into the digital trash. Look, that cleans up nicely, this does make me happy.

The question that remains with me: Where is the Marie Kondo of customer communication? The man/woman who makes it fun. That image in letters brings large chunks of text next to it. Which embellishes terms and conditions. This ensures that newsletters are only sent if they make the customer happy. Yay, Marie Kondo from customer communications, we need you!


This blog was written for CustomerFirst and published on January 31, 2018

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15 Remedies to prevent your customers feeling blue

It is that time of year. Especially in the Northern hemisphere, where it is the heart of winter. It is dark when you wake up and also when you return home from your office, the sun has set – if the sun has even shown her face at all during the day... Since most of the days it is raining, snowing or just so cloudy that you want to fly to the sun. Immediately.

This is what your customers are experiencing too. So this is the perfect time to step it up a little bit. Give your customers some extra love and attention. Because you don't have to let your customers feel even bluer than they already do. This blog gives you 15 suggestions, simple but so effective:

  1. Send a birthday card to a customer who celebrates his or her birthday. Congratulate and tell them how happy you are with their relationship with your customer.
  2. Buy a 25 American Dollar Kiva card of (kiva.org) and send it to a customer and share a message that you would like to pay it forward.
  3. Open the door for a customer in your store. Welcome them with a genuine HELLO.
  4. Look into complaints and pick one out that needs extra love and attention. Solve the problem sooner than you have promised and add your TLC to give the customer a good feeling.
  5. Invite a customer for a really good cup of coffee in your favorite coffee bar. Ask them for genuine feedback and listen intently.
  6. Give a customer something extra. If you work in a coffee bar, add a snack. If you work in telecom, some extra mobile data. Try to find something that you can give, which makes your customer happy.
  7. Welcome a new customer with a video you have made especially for them. A genuine welcome with a big smile.
  8. Drive down the country, buy a big bunch of flowers and visit a customer. Thank them for being a customer and have a cup of coffee together.
  9. Dive a little deeper into the lives of your customers. Find a customer with an anniversary, buy a personal gift online and send it to them.
  10. On a rainy day, bring an extra umbrella along and offer this to a customer that comes into your store soaking wet. With compliments of you and the company of course.
  11. Give a compliment to your customer. Easy, but so effective.
  12. Especially in business to business, find out about the interests of the customer and find one or more articles that are in line with these interests. Send the article(s) with some happy greetz.
  13. Go to the logistics department, bring some small gifts along and add them to customers packages that are sent out today.
  14. Find blogs that are written by your customers and leave nice comments.
  15. A more indirect suggestion, but with great effect: Buy a cake for customer service colleagues and tell them how much you appreciate them. If you want to take it up a notch, join them and listen in to customer calls.

So plenty of ideas here. But I would love it if you add to this list, the more ideas the better. Because in these gloomy January days, our customers can use some of your Tender Love and Care.

Do you want to share this message? We have made a printable version that you can download. Print it and hang it where you colleagues can see it. To spread the kindness. Thank you!

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