Given the recent economic climate, it could be argued that the question of delighting customers or simply satisfying them is one of vital strategic importance for any company.Therefore, it was this very subject that I recently held a Think Tank session on, at the IQPC Executive Customer Contact Exchange in Ireland during the middle of April.
My role at NICE Fizzback is to work with clients that want to ‘go the extra mile’ or ‘delight and surprise’ their customers, by gaining insights from soliciting real-time, VoC feedback.
Of course many companies have a ‘customer delight strategy’ as it is commonly seen as a key way to differentiate from competitors, as well as generate long term customer loyalty and advocacy – but at what cost?
What I mean by this, is perhaps the very reason that so many delight strategies fail, as for many companies there is a distinct lack of understanding on what actually constitutes a delighted customer, and how that is different to a satisfied one.
For me this comes down to what kind of emotional response you can generate, created through knowledge, curiosity, empathy and surprise.
It is my experience that not recognising this could mean significant agent time & effort, (amongst other things) wasted on service pursuits that may make no difference to the customer’s perception of their experience.However this is not to say that we shouldn’t attempt to delight customers. Indeed, if executed correctly, a delight strategy can create loyalty, increase advocacy and generate additional revenue.
But, as the Harvard Business Review – ‘Stop Delighting Your Customer’s argues, satisfaction is potentially equally well placed to deliver these kind of results……..so, how does your organisation decide on which path to take?
In my view, what’s required is a carefully decided mix of delight AND satisfaction. Consider your company’s:
- Industry – which customer interactions have the capacity to delight a customer?
- Demographic and therefore Customer Expectation
- Brand Perception
- Competitor Activity
- Resources required to kick-start and sustain Customer Delight Programs
NICE Fizzback often refers to ”decisive moments” and I think when deciding on your organisations opportunities to delight or satisfy your customers, that description couldn’t be more accurate.
We regularly map
customer journeys which enable our clients to understand what their customers
perceptions are of the experience across all touch points throughout their life-cycle.
Therefore you’re
thinking about delighting your
customers, my advice would be to start navigating that map as soon as possible,
to ensure a smooth ride and optimum chance of reaching your destination.
Hayley Kitson