Customer Service or Customer Experience [Experience Action Podcast]

Summary

Jeannie Walters discusses the distinction between customer service and customer experience, emphasizing the importance for leaders to understand both concepts. She explains customer service as reactive, while customer experience is proactive and holistic, affecting the entire customer journey. Walters urges leaders to consider the strategic business value of enhancing customer experience to drive growth, reduce costs, and innovate, advocating for a cross-functional approach to truly prioritize customer-centric strategies.

Takeaways

• 😀 Customer experience (CX) and customer service are not interchangeable; CX is proactive and intentional, while customer service is reactive.
• 🔍 Jeannie Walters emphasizes the importance of understanding the difference between CX and customer service for effective leadership.
• 🛍️ Customer service involves addressing issues when customers seek help, whereas CX is about creating a positive journey from the first interaction to becoming a lifelong customer.
• 💡 CX management involves being proactive to reduce service costs and enhance the overall customer perception, which can lead to higher retention and referrals.
• 📈 A strong business case for CX should include its impact on growth, customer lifetime value, and reducing service-related expenses.
• 🚀 Disruption in industries often comes from focusing on CX, making it a strategic advantage for businesses to stay ahead of competitors.
• 🤝 Cross-functional leadership is crucial for a holistic approach to CX, ensuring all parts of an organization contribute to a positive customer journey.
• 📊 Leaders should be educated on the business impact of CX, including potential cost savings and revenue growth opportunities.
• 💬 Including emotional customer stories can be powerful in convincing leaders of the importance of CX, alongside data and logical arguments.
• 🛠️ Tools like customer journey mapping can help leaders understand and engage with the concept of CX, facilitating strategic planning.
• 👥 Training and developing employees to understand and contribute to CX is essential for its success across the organization.
• 🔗 Creating a cross-functional CX team with a clear charter and regular check-ins can drive the organization towards a customer-centric culture.

Q & A

What is the main difference between customer service and customer experience according to Jeannie Walters?

Customer service is reactive, dealing with issues when customers need help or have problems. Customer experience, on the other hand, is proactive and intentional, focusing on shaping the overall journey customers have with a brand from the first interaction to becoming a lifelong customer or advocate.

Why is it important for business leaders to care about both customer service and customer experience?

Both are essential for a well-rounded approach to customer relations. Customer service addresses immediate issues, while customer experience shapes the overall perception and satisfaction of customers, which can drive business value and long-term loyalty.

How does a proactive approach to customer experience potentially reduce service costs for a business?

By anticipating and addressing potential issues before they occur, a proactive customer experience approach can minimize the need for reactive customer service, thus reducing the costs associated with handling complaints and resolving problems.

What is the role of cross-functional leadership in delivering a positive customer experience?

Cross-functional leadership is crucial for creating a cohesive customer experience strategy. It involves collaboration across different departments to ensure that every touchpoint with the customer is optimized and aligned with the brand's vision for customer experience.

How can leaders make a strong business case for investing in customer experience?

Leaders can make a business case by demonstrating the potential for increased customer retention, higher referrals, and extended customer lifetime value. They can also highlight the cost savings from reduced service issues and the potential for revenue growth through a better customer experience.

What is the significance of customer journey mapping in understanding and improving customer experience?

Customer journey mapping is a tool that visually represents the customer's experience with a brand. It helps leaders understand the customer's perspective, identify pain points, and find opportunities for improvement, ultimately leading to a more optimized and satisfying customer experience.

How can organizations ensure that all employees, not just customer-facing ones, contribute to a positive customer experience?

By training and educating all employees about the importance of customer experience and how their roles impact it. This fosters a culture where everyone is responsible for contributing to a positive customer journey.

What is the relationship between customer experience and business growth?

A positive customer experience can lead to increased customer loyalty, higher customer lifetime value, and more referrals, all of which contribute to business growth. Moreover, focusing on customer experience can also open up new market opportunities and competitive advantages.

Why is it crucial for leaders to not only look at data but also understand the human impact behind it?

While data provides quantitative insights, understanding the human impact gives leaders a qualitative perspective on how their organization affects individual customers. This emotional connection can be powerful in driving leaders to prioritize and invest in customer experience.

How can storytelling and emotional connections help in advocating for customer experience improvements?

Storytelling and emotional connections humanize data, making it more relatable and compelling for leaders. Real customer stories can illustrate the impact of a positive or negative experience, motivating leaders to take action and prioritize customer experience initiatives.

What steps can leaders take to foster a culture of proactive and intentional customer experience within their organization?

Leaders can develop a customer experience charter, establish cross-functional teams, ensure regular check-ins and feedback loops, and use tools like customer journey mapping to engage the leadership team and drive a culture focused on proactive and intentional customer experiences.