Top 5 Customer Service Articles For the Week of June 7, 2021

Customer Interviews for CX: How to Conduct Interviews & How They Can Make a Difference by Jeannie Walters

(Experience Investigators) Customer interviews can highlight issues in emotional ways. Customer quotes can be used to tell your customer’s story on a customer journey map or in a persona. Word clouds can help others in the organization connect with the real language customers use again and again!

My Comment: Jeannie Walters is no stranger to this weekly roundup of the best customer service and CX articles of the week. Here she talks about how to conduct a customer interview. Interesting concept! My take is that the interview is combining elements of a survey and focus group. The one-on-one process can yield some important results.

The Secret Ingredients of a CX-Led Company Culture by Steven van Belleghem

(CMO from IDG) Customer experience simply does not live in a void controlled by the marketing teams. Context is everything, and the culture within a company and the day-to-day experience of employees have a huge influence on the kind of experience that is delivered to the final customer.

My Comment: Another author who has graced the Top Five list numerous times. Anything Stephen van Belleghem writes is worth reading. Here, he shares an article focused on culture. Check out this list of six “ingredients,” as he calls them. One of more is sure to whet your appetite!

Being Customer-centric Starts With A Top-Notch Employee Experiencestanley by Stanley Huang

(MarTech Series) All business units depend on the creativity, productivity and attitude employees bring to the workplace. Treating your employees like your No. 1 customer can help you improve the employee experience (EX), build a customer-centric company, and capture more revenue.

My Comment: And, speaking of culture, here’s an article that emphasizes that recognizes that being customer-centric starts with the employee experience. I love the formula: Customer-Centric Mindset + Happy Employees = Company Success. Put another way, before you can have an amazing customer experience, you must start with an employee experience.

The Untapped Potential of B2B Customer Loyalty Programs by John Rolston and Jon Glick

(strategy+business) In a recent PwC customer survey, almost 60% of B2B customers reported they had never had an experience with a brand that made them feel special. That’s an alarmingly high percentage of customers who’ve been given no particular reason to stick around.

My Comment: A loyalty program for B2B? Absolutely! Loyalty programs are not just for consumers. Many of the same principles in a B2C loyalty program apply to B2B. The article shares some of the benefits as well as five action steps for making a B2B loyalty program successful.

How to Upsell and Cross-Sell (4 Best Practices) by Jared Atchison

(Business 2 Community) If you want people to spend more on each order, you have to learn how to put your value proposition on display. Depending on how you promote your products or services, you may have to adjust your marketing strategies.

My Comment: “Would you like fries with that?” That’s the famous McDonald’s upsell question. That question has accounted for millions and millions of extra sales. It’s an upsell, and one that makes the customer glad they bought. (Who doesn’t love those delicious fries?!) My take on the upsell and cross-sell is that if you don’t do it when you should, it’s bad customer service. Done the right way, and for the right reason, it should baked into the customer service experience. Here, the author shares his suggested best practices.

BONUS

Bipartisan Bill Would Elevate Federal Customer Experience by Frank Konkel

(Nextgov) Legislation introduced in the Senate could infuse the federal government with some of the same customer experience principles in use by leading private sector companies.

My Comment: Anytime I hear that the government is going to focus some efforts on customer service and CX, I get excited. Looks like they are creating a CCXO (Chief Customer Experience Officer) Good for them! They have to overcome a reputation and work hard to train the government employees. Service and experience have not typically been strengths of consumers/citizens dealing with government agencies. I’m looking forward to seeing how this works out.

Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops at www.Hyken.com. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.