The number ONE cause for why customers are enthusiastic about you, or the opposite by the way, is the behavior of your employees. They create the customer experience. Engaged employees are thus a major condition for a customer-centric company philosophy. If that sounds logical, then why does the Human Resources department still hire people based mainly on their experience, background, or product knowledge?
Be critical of who you hire
The ultimate customer experience starts with the hiring of staff. So be very critical about the type of employee that you take on as an organization. It is therefore essential that the HR department understands who the external customer is and what they expect from the organization. HR should know what the customer experience strategy entails, so candidates can be screened on the right characteristics.
Employees who have all the right competences make all the difference when it comes to providing an optimal customer experience, based on a customer-centric philosophy. When you take on new personnel, make sure that you screen their capacity for empathy; can somebody see the world through the eyes of a customer and imagine how they might feel? The quality of the customer’s experience is directly related to the extent to which the employee can empathize with this experience (interest, feelings, emotions) of the customer. Other important characteristics to think and act from a customer perspective are confidence and engagement.
All staff should show commitment to the Customer Experience program
Somebody who gets a kick out of helping customers and solving their complaints is invaluable for your organization. They make the difference in the eyes of your customers!
Don’t think that this is only valid for customer service employees, account managers or other staff directly in contact with the customers. It is relevant for everyone in the organization. All employees, from the buying department, to IT, production and marketing, everyone needs to be able to give the customer top priority in their day-to-day activities and responsibilities.