Customers 1st: 4 Things that are Killing Your Customer Experience

As the marketplace becomes increasingly crowded with products, it is becoming tougher for companies to stand out amidst the noise and clutter. In the past, product packaging and messaging were the most important aspects. Now, those elements are still critical, but in addition, you need to offer your customer a unique experience they won’t get anywhere else.

The customer experience (CX) is a blend of a company's physical performance and the emotions evoked, intuitively measured against customer expectations across all touch-points. This means that every time a company and a customer interact, the customer learns something about the company that will either strengthen or weaken the future relationship - and with that - the customer's desire to return and recommend. Excellent customer experiences are still so novel that, when we have one, we talk about it.

The CX is all about doing things that will be memorable and of value to the customer. Start with the basics and fundamentals. Once you’ve gotten them right, you will have earned the customer’s trust and repeat business. There are plenty of companies offering what you offer, so be decidedly different. With that being said, according to Business2Community, here are four things you must stop doing if you want a stand-out CX.

Stop asking the customer to repeat information. This includes asking them to repeat identifying information already keyed in while listening to prompts.
Stop having all employees greet the customer when entering a store. Let one do it and then stop.
Stop being oblivious. Get your team to recognize current customers. Encourage them to check the database and acknowledge the customer specifically.
Stop being scripted. Customers want a real person delivering sincere service. Allow your team to build a relationship and use judgment.

There are an array of things organizations need to start doing but get started by stopping certain irritating behaviors - it gives the customer a chance to think about taking their business to the competition.

Amanda Ciccatelli, Social Media Strategist at IIR USA, has a background in digital and print journalism, covering a variety of topics in business strategy, marketing, and technology. She previously worked at Technology Marketing Corporation as a Web Editor where she covered breaking news and feature stories in the tech industry. She can be reached at aciccatelli@iirusa.com. Follow her at @AmanadCicc.