Achieve Customer Delight
Customer delight occurs when customers' needs and desires are not only met, but met in such a way that exceeds customers' expectations. Not to be confused with customer service or customer satisfaction, customer delight involves a business going above and beyond normal customer relations in order to provide an experience that will leave a marked impression on the customer. Customers who experience delight in dealing with a business are more likely to return to the business, and also more likely to recommend the business to those they know. For that reason, many businesses are focusing their attention on how they can generate delight in their customers. Take these steps if you are interested in achieving customer delight.
Steps
- Imagine you are the customer dealing with your business. Walk your way through an entire sales transaction with your business, as a customer. This will help you identify where your business is falling short on creating customer delight.
- Reception. The people who answer your phone and greet customers at the door are the customers' first impression of your business, and will set the tone for the rest of the experience. They need to be well-versed in customer service, even though they are not salespeople. Call the office and ask for yourself. See how your call is treated.
- Sales. Your sales team should be thoroughly knowledgeable about your service or product line. They should also be able to anticipate customers' needs and wants without prompting.
- Customer care. There should be a system in place for customer follow-up and a part of your staff that is dedicated to handling customer feedback.
- Product or Service. Your business offerings should live up to everything they are advertised to be, and more. Your inventory should be well-stocked. Delighted customers are those who don't have to wait for their purchases to come in on back order.
- Request customer input. Treat this like a marketing campaign, making it a point to reach as many customers as possible to get them involved in your effort to improve their experience. Offer a coupon or a promotional special in return for survey responses.
- Email. Send a mass email with a link to an online survey.
- Direct mail. Send out postcards that can be filled out and returned at no cost to the customer.
- In-store suggestion box. Make a survey form and drop box visible and accessible to customers who are shopping in your store or visiting your office.
- Inform customers of your intent to evoke customer delight. Make this message part of your customer input campaign.
- Identify the staff members or business divisions that are not meeting the high standards that produce customer delight. Use your own observations along with whatever customer feedback you get to pinpoint where, exactly, your business can make improvements that will raise you above basic customer service.
- Create and implement a plan. Once you have identified areas in which your business can improve, take the time to make a plan that will reap the results you are looking for. The following practices produce delighted customers:
- Personable service. Referring to customers by name and keeping a record of their preferences are great ways to personalize your customer service.
- Spontaneity. Your staff should be enthusiastic about caring for customers. Their actions should reflect a genuine desire to create customer delight, rather than a scripted or procedural approach.
- Follow-through. Keep in regular contact with your customers, either by mail or email. Send them offers and/or information according to their purchase history and preferences that you have on record.
- Reward employees who go above and beyond customer service in order to create delight in customers.
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