Total CX

How To Provide Customers with a 360-Degree View of Their Context

By Patty Seybold

We need your help! Ronni Marshak and I are revising our book, Customers.com, which was published in 1998. We’d like to “crowdsource” this next generation edition. Every few weeks, we’ll offer you a new chapter or section. We’d like your help in making this a truly useful “Bible” for everyone engaged in designing their businesses from the customers’ point of view. Here’s how:

1. Read the chapters that interest you as they appear and add your thoughts, comments, and criticisms here.

2. Contribute your own suggestions about companies or organizations that would provide great examples for each chapter—we’ll do the research.

3. Contribute your own ideas—either customer-centric principles you adhere to and/or lessons you’ve learned that you’d like to share.

In the original Customers.com, the fourth of our eight critical success factors for “Making it easy for customers to do business with you” was “Provide a 360-Degree View of the Customer Relationship.” That mantra has become a holy grail for virtually every organization’s CRM charter. But we think it’s wrong!

“Just Refer Him to Eris in Customer Service”

By Matthew Lees

Last week I took my sons to see “Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief.” They loved it. I loved it, too, although quite not as much as the book. As someone who has always been interested in Greek and Roman mythology — I devoured Edith Hamilton’s “Mythology” and still cherish my copy from high school — I was both pleased and curious in January when my 11 year old son started asking about various Greek gods.

It was because he had recently discovered Rick Riordan’s “Percy Jackson & the Olympians” series. “The Lightning Thief” is the first of five delightful adventure books. The stories take place today, with characters from Greek mythology — gods, demi-gods, heroes, satyrs, centaurs, and other creatures — being part of the fabric of society, with most mortals being largely oblivious to their presence. Riordan wonderfully updates the myths and weaves them into 21st century America culture.

Doing so, he pokes fun at many aspects of modern society. For example, in the second book, “The Sea of Monsters,” there’s an early scene in which Percy is sitting on the beach having a contemplative moment. Who should walk by dressed as a jogger, but Hermes, the god of messengers, travelers, and thieves? He asks if he can join Percy, who says yes, although he isn’t quite sure yet who this odd character is.

Loyalty versus Cost Savings

Although I’ve always been an advocate for remaining loyal to your merchants who do right by you and earn that loyalty, I can’t ignore the siren’s call of saving money, especially on a regular basis.

 

Karen Yau at my local CVS has come to my rescue many times, providing great advice about over the counter remedies for ailments as well as dealing with persnickety regulations and exceptions with insurance providers. She takes good care of me!

 

Then there is Roza (whose Russian last name I can’t remember) who works the register in the Pharmacy, and who always remembers who I am and makes sure to have a personal moment with me. I like going to the CVS; I always feel special.

 

However, I have just switched insurance providers. And the Pharmacy-by-Mail option will save me a third of the cost of my regular prescriptions every three months (three months of pills for the price of two). I’ve used online pharmacies before, and they have worked fine. But, with my former insurance provider, only certain medications were subject to any discount, dealing with the online site wasn’t easy, and it was just so much easier to go through Karen and CVS.

 

The new insurance provider is very clear about the savings, the site is easy to navigate, and it is very tempting to take the money and enjoy. But what of loyalty? Initially, I felt badly that I would be taking business away from Karen. I would miss seeing her (albeit briefly) every month. However, I determined that CVS is unlikely to offer the same discount structure that the online pharmacy can provide. I was ready to succumb to the lure of saved money.

 

But then, before I made the switch, I had another prescription-related problem. Karen wasn’t working that day, but pharmacy technician Shawn Wolf spent the time to contact my doctor as well as the insurance company and straighten everything out. He kept checking in with me, keeping me informed of the status, and made sure that I was satisfied with the result.

 

I know I can’t get that kind of service online, so Karen, Shawn, and Roza will keep seeing me and fulfilling my prescription needs.

 

So this is a thank you to a great provider. This time, I’m choosing loyalty and customer experience over financial gain.

How to Make It Enjoyable for Customers to Get Things Done!

By Patty Seybold

What’s the one thing you can master that will win you more happy customers? Identify the things that customers want or need to get done, notice the context they’re typically in, and design an experience that will make it enjoyable for them to get those things done. We call these Customer Scenarios.

Most customer-centric executives have an innate ability to identify customer-critical scenarios. For example, many retailers design streamlined experiences for the “grab and go” customers. “I just ran out of something and I need it fast.” Staples rearranged its stores to put the printer supplies right at the front so that people who just ran out of ink or toner can run in and get what they need. They worked with manufacturers to ensure that you can quickly find the supplies you need for your particular printer. The paper is right next to the ink and toner. Staples also streamlined the rebate process to make it easy for customers to get a good deal. Staples’ “That was Easy” branding is all about making it easy for customers to get things done.

There are entire industries designed to support particular customer scenarios, like planning and taking a trip (travel agencies and aggregators), investing for retirement (brokerage and mutual funds), and launching a new product (PR firms).