Although customer needs may vary from time to time, there are certain fundamentals which you cannot get wrong.
Offering the ultimate customer experience is by no means an easy feat. First off, as a business you need to establish if you’re going to provide a single product within a niche or variations of it across different verticals. Next, you need to decide whether you’re going to appeal to the masses or a specific target market. To understand these components, proper and thorough market research is required, otherwise offering a product or service without the relevant knowledge can spell disaster fast.
Let’s take online gambling as an example of a highly successful industry. It’s a booming multi-billion dollar sector that shows no sign of slowing down any time soon. Huge investments are made to build entire departments manned by specialists in various fields from IT to Sales & Marketing, Content and Account Managers and so on…
Notwithstanding these specializations, knowing what customers want is an ongoing process because some of their needs may differ from time to time. However, there are certain fundamentals which you cannot get wrong. So, what are customers really after?
Attention and Acknowledgement
Attending to customers’ comments and providing adequate answers to their queries, without taking long to do so, will make customers feel validated, heard and satisfied with the quality of your communication. Ensuring that the customer feels heard and acknowledged is your responsibility. Make sure you keep tabs on all modes of communication through which customers can reach you.
Control
Customers want to be provided with choices on various levels: variety of products and services, different modes of communication, alternative payment options, longer hours of operation and more. If they’re not provided with choices and added convenience, it’s very likely that they’d choose your competitors instead.
Unique Experiences for the Customer
Customers need to feel that they’re more than just a number, that the company is not simply seeing dollar signs in them. Clients wants your business to be tailored to their unique requirements. This doesn’t solely translate into customized goods and services. It’s also about how your interactions with clients. Cookie-cutter goods and services as well as automated answers may increase efficiency but they remove the human aspect from the exchange.
Efficiency
Customers need a good service and they need it fast. This applies to both the delivery of the product or service as well as the response time. Keeping response time to a minimum should be one of your company’s top priorities. According to the latest statistics, 76% of customers expect a response on social media within 24 hours. If you’re not self-employed, make sure you invest in the right training for your employees to attend to your customers as efficiently as possible.
Accountability
In the same way that businesses yearn for customer loyalty, customers need businesses to be accountable to their promises. Make sure that you actually deliver your undertakings. Furthermore, being accountable is not simply about providing all the specifications guaranteed in your product. It also refers to your values as a company. If you advertise yourself as having eco-friendly products, make sure that this is actually true.
Clear Information
Companies must ensure that customers are provided with the necessary information and this information needs to be clear and easily accessible. For most customers nowadays, they’ll go straight to your website to learn more about you. Your website, therefore, needs to be well-designed and user-friendly. If you don’t have your own team to design your site, you can look for a company offering web design in melbourne or a similar company near you. If your site isn’t at least functional, customers might very well turn to your competitors if they need to make an effort to learn what they need to know about your business. Again, it’s crucial to train your staff to ensure that clients are provided with the required information in a straight-forward and consistent manner across all means of communication.
Value
This isn’t just about the price. It’s also about how much value your product will add to your customers’ lives. While it’s true that a great marketing campaign can convince customers to try you out, coming short of providing a truly valuable product will easily drive customers away. Conversely, clients who find your product or service as worth its salt, will readily recommend you to others. Many times, the value we add to customers’ lives through what we offer is the best form of marketing we can invest in, as customers convert into our loyal promoters.
Service for the Customer
This may very well be the reason why customers choose you over your competitors who would be offering the exact same product, possibly at the same price. A great service entails a sense of respect for customers which translates into willingness to listen and understand their needs, as well as nurturing a positive, helpful and friendly energy at every touchpoint.