Incorporating the Rational and Emotional in the Client Experience Journey



 Photo by paul bica

"The customer’s perception is your reality." - Kate Zabriskie, learning and development industry veteran

Your customer's journey is both rational and emotional. When your clients are your customers, asking purposeful questions to understand their needs and intrinsic motivators builds trust, deepens relationships and drives loyalty.

During the Total Customer Experience Leaders Summit in April, Jill O'Neill, Director, Client Strategy and Execution, Bank of Montreal, shared how to incorporate the rational and emotional into the client experience journey. She also emphasized that investing in people and communications throughout your journey are important to ensure behavioral change sticks.

The journey begins by engaging leaders as client advocates:

• Identify what you are trying to solve for
• Create a roadmap to drive expectations
• Establish a communications strategy and plan

Next, engage employees in the process:

• Recruit key influencers
• Map the current client journey
• Identify the gaps and opportunities in the current experience
• Map the desired client experience

When designing the client experience:

• Create survey questions that are rational and emotional in nature
• Ensure you can take action on what you learn
• Encourage full employee participation (quantitative and qualitative)
• Analyze priority touch points and attributes
• Understand the employee mindset

Finally, when delivering the client experience program:

• Hardwire insights into new disciplines
• Set clear expectations for employees
• Make emotional connections with clients. Set expectations for a different experience focused on non-financial goals.
• Identify and prioritize client goals

Peggy L. Bieniek, ABC is an Accredited Business Communicator specializing in corporate communication best practices. Connect with Peggy on LinkedIn, Twitter, Google+, and on her website at www.starrybluebrilliance.com.