Bad experiences scare away customers faster than you think

Do cost-cutting measures, ever-changing service and opening hours and new requirements leave traces on customer satisfaction? Is the customer experience suffering and if so, how do you best deal with it? Get important insights on how you can turn every dissatisfied customer into a loyal brand ambassador, despite Corona.

Especially in times of crisis, it is particularly important to be close to the customer, to attend to their concerns and, above all, to pick up on nuances. After all, 68 percent of all customers say they are dissatisfied because of a negative customer experience. 48 percent would even pay a higher price for top customer experiences according to the SAS study.

The experiences that customers associate with brands are often not the ones that the entrepreneur assumes through his glasses. They lack the courage to stimulate concrete and consistent feedback at as many touch points along the customer journey as possible. Especially now in the crisis, companies are distracted with internal processes, lose sight of the customer and avoid addressing them directly. This is also due to their own uncertainty.

Make the customer experience a strategy in the company

A dissatisfied customer experience quickly leads to a drop in sales, loss of reputation, and and prevents the growth of new customers. Customers are more demanding and sensitive to the experience they have with a brand. Today more than ever. They expect a professional approach to complaints instead of apologies and justifications. This also applies to the argument:

We are in a pandemic.

Which services are currently not available to the customer and how is it communicated to the customer without disappointing him? Quite simple: always honest, up-to-date and authentic within the framework of a customer-oriented company philosophy. This strengthens customer loyalty even in difficult times.

Take the customer seriously

Often customers give us signs before an average "so-so" experience turns into pure frustration. But these are often ignored due to time pressure, Often customers give us signs before an average "so-so" experience turns into pure frustration. But these are often ignored due to time pressure, unawareness and superficiality in dealing with the customer in day-to-day business.

Because even comments like: I expected more, It was better on the last visit. still perceived and also "dealt with" on the spot, you prevent worse. Small things that annoy the customer often lead to great frustration. Ultimately, this also leads to negative evaluations in ranking portals. If a guest checks into a hotel already nervous and upset, all alarm bells should go off. You have to pay special attention to this guest. From the beginning to the end of their stay.

The attitude "complaints are also opportunities" must be deeply anchored in the companies as an attitude. Just like the principle of the open window for tips. More on this later.

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Attentive staff turn a good place into a place of true pleasure. The moment a customer walks through the front door sets the tone for their entire stay.

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Paying attention to staff mental state - An excellent customer experience starts with an excellent employee experience

The first contact in the case of a complaint decides on the general course and the degree of satisfaction of the customer in the end. Especially now in times of crisis, it is important to consider the emotional side of customers, but also of employees. Employees work in remote situations, are in the midst of structural changes and often feel irritated or insecure themselves as a result. Emphatic leadership, responsibility and sustained communication with each individual in the team are important now. They ensure that clients are helped in a friendly, quick and effective manner in their respective problem situations.

Interactive process and standards are the be-all and end-all

The complaint management process is an integral part of the entire CRM process. Unfortunately, why does it work smoothly, quickly and completely satisfactorily for the customer only in a few cases? Because there are breaks and incomplete processes, employees are not trained enough in customer experience topics, no customer mindset is established, data is not available at the point in the process where it is needed or standards are not sufficiently controlled.

This is how you do it right: