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From Stress to Success: Enhancing Student Well-being for a Better Educational Experience 

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Introduction: 

Ensuring student well-being has become increasingly important within the education sector, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. Today, a robust student experience and well-being strategy are essential. Why? So, colleges and universities can enhance the overall educational experience to ensure students are given the best chance to succeed. Here, we explore the significance of prioritising student well-being and offer solutions to enhance a better educational experience, helping you to attract and retain a diverse population of students. 

Table of contents:  

How are student well-being issues impacting colleges and universities? 

 Higher education institutions face significant challenges in promoting student well-being. According to findings from NHS Digital, 1 in 4 young people (17-to-19 year-olds) now have a probable mental health disorder. Results looked at views on experiences of family life, education, household circumstances and employment. 

Additionally, young people with probable mental health disorders are twice as likely to experience online bullying. This underscores the urgency for educational institutions to take proactive measures in supporting student well-being to enhance their overall educational experience and maximise their chances of success in life.  

A recent study found that 63% of students reported overwhelming anxiety, and 41% experienced depression to the point of impaired functioning. These statistics highlight the pressing need for institutions to address these mental health concerns. Neglecting student well-being can result in reputational damage and decreased retention rates. 

Why is student well-being important? What are the consequences of neglecting it? 

Student well-being is crucial in education as it profoundly impacts learning and the overall success of both students and educational institutions. Neglecting student well-being can result in detrimental consequences such as declining academic performance, low student engagement, increased absenteeism, and higher dropout rates. Moreover, it can harm the reputation of the institution and lead to financial instability.  

Furthermore, an alarming factor to consider is the incidence of self-harm and suicide among students in higher education. The current suicide rate for students in England and Wales stands at 3 deaths per 100,000 students. This highlights the grave repercussions of educational institutions failing to implement a robust student well-being strategy. 

Colleges and universities can benefit in numerous ways by regularly measuring and monitoring student well-being and providing necessary support. 

Benefits of measuring and monitoring student well-being: 

✓ Enhance the student experience. 

✓ Create best chances for success. 

✓ Mitigate reputation risks. 

✓ Maintain high retention rates.  

✓ Attract more new students. 

✓ Improve enrolment rates. 

 Prioritising student well-being fosters a healthier and happier student body, creating a positive ripple effect throughout the entire institution. 

What is the impact of student well-being on learning and student success? 

 Student well-being greatly impacts learning and student success. A positive and supportive learning environment profoundly influences academic performance, engagement, and retention rates. When students feel happy, engaged, and supported, they are more likely to thrive academically. Conversely, a negative and unsupportive learning environment can contribute to heightened stress and anxiety, adversely affecting learning outcomes and academic performance. 

 Prioritising student well-being brings advantages to educational institutions as well. By fostering a positive learning environment that promotes well-being, institutions can experience higher retention rates, improved student satisfaction, and better financial stability. Creating an environment where students feel supported and valued not only benefits individual students but also contributes to the overall success of the educational institution. 

How do you support student mental well-being and improve retention rates? 

To support student mental well-being and boost retention, educational institutions must develop a reliable student experience strategy. Your strategy should include proactive measures that address key wellbeing issues, such as providing counselling services, sufficient mental health resources, and stress management programmes. Additionally, educational institutions should look to create a supportive and inclusive learning environment that fosters positive relationships between students, faculty, and staff alike. 

How can a student well-being survey enhance support and learning success? 

A student well-being survey is a powerful tool that can help institutions provide the support students need and improve the overall experience. A survey can provide insights into the specific needs of the student population, identify potential areas of improvement, and assess the effectiveness of current support services. By gathering this data, educational institutions can develop evidence-based strategies to enhance well-being and ultimately create a more positive and supportive learning environment for all. 

Measuring the student experience or monitoring student well-being is essential, but understanding how to interpret the data and what to do with it is even more critical.  That’s where insight6 can help. Our total feedback solution, instant insight, is an easy, cost-effective way to regularly and consistently analyse the feedback from your students and can be used as an important tool for monitoring well-being. 

Using instant insight will:   

✓ Allow you to gain student feedback.   

✓ Help you gain employee feedback.   

✓ Monitor admissions & open days.   

✓ Track course satisfaction.   

✓ Analyse/report on student well-being.   

✓ Benchmark against your competitors.   

✓ Increase positive online reviews. 

Best practices and ideas to improve student wellbeing 

 Improving student well-being requires a proactive approach and implementing best practices. Key considerations include reviewing the current institutional setup and asking important questions about student well-being. It is crucial to provide adequate mental health resources, stress management initiatives, and foster an inclusive environment that actively listens and responds to student needs. Establishing effective communication and engagement processes is essential for educators to truly enhance student well-being. 

 insight6, as a partner to various UK higher education institutions, focuses on elevating the student experience to improve overall satisfaction, retention rates, and attract prospective students. Our comprehensive feedback solution, instant insight, enables institutions to regularly analyse feedback from students and employees, gaining valuable insights for informed decision-making and positively impacting the student experience. 

 In summary, addressing student well-being is vital for educational institutions. The consequences of neglecting student well-being can be devastating for all involved. Proactive measures and effective feedback systems are crucial for continuously improving student well-being. At insight6, we help colleges and universities deliver impactful student experiences, support well-being and drive real institutional growth.  

Don't let the cost of unhappy or stressed students ruin your reputation or impact your institution's success. Get in touch today to arrange a no-obligation chat with your local CX specialist or to arrange a free demo of our total feedback solution - instant insight. 

Enhancing the Student Experience to Boost Retention: Best Practices for Your Institution

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Delivering a positive student experience is critical to increasing retention rates. Higher Education institutions must ensure students' needs are met at every step of the journey, from enrolment to graduation. A robust student experience strategy is essential. Why? So, Colleges and Universities can increase recruitment and retention rates to provide financial stability and protect reputation. Here, we explore how measuring student satisfaction and well-being can help your institution attract and retain a diverse population of students. 

Table of contents: 

 

What are the challenges facing higher education institutions? 

Higher education institutions in the UK face several challenges, including ongoing financial pressures due to reduced government funding, a need to improve access and participation for disadvantaged groups, and concerns about student mental health.  

Brexit has also created uncertainty around research funding and international student recruitment. Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the need for digital transformation, which has created challenges around ensuring fair access to technology and providing high-quality online learning experiences.  

Finally, there is a growing concern that higher education institutions are not providing students with the skills they need to succeed in the workplace.

What is the student experience and why is it important? 

As higher education institutions strive to attract and retain the best students, the quality of the student experience has become a critical factor. But what exactly is the student experience? Simply put, it's the sum of all the academic, social, and personal experiences that students have while studying at university. 

A positive student experience can help colleges and universities deal with recruitment challenges by attracting and retaining a diverse student population, offering unique programs and flexible learning options, investing in student support services, and building a strong reputation. By prioritising the student experience, institutions can create a culture of learning and success that benefits both students and institutions.

How does a bad student experience impact a Higher Education institution? 

Enrolment numbers and dropout rates are top of mind for higher education institutions across the UK. With the rising costs of education and limited funding, institutions are feeling the financial pinch, making it critical to attract and retain students. 

While the number of students enroled in UK higher education institutions has increased in recent years, the number of first-time degree enrolments is decreasing. Plus, 6 in every 100 (6.3%) students in the UK drop out of university, meaning that a bad student experience could cost institutions thousands of pounds every year.  

Prioritising the student experience will enable institutions to attract and retain a diverse student population, increase student success, and ultimately ensure their own long-term financial viability. 

How are the student experience and student satisfaction linked? 

A positive student experience leads to higher levels of student satisfaction, while a negative one results in lower satisfaction rates. Everything from the quality of teaching and course content to the availability of support services and campus amenities contributes to the overall student experience.  

By offering a supportive and engaging environment, institutions can create a positive experience for students, leading to higher satisfaction rates. When students feel motivated and connected, they are more likely to stay engaged, succeed, and ultimately become loyal ambassadors for the institution. By prioritising the student experience, institutions can create a thriving academic community with students at the heart of it all. 

Best practices to increase student enrolment rates. 

At insight6, we work with higher educational institutions to develop a comprehensive student experience strategy that attracts and retains the right candidates. Here are some of the best practices our local CX specialists help colleges and universities implement: 

Use data-driven insights: Understand how potential students engage with various recruitment channels, such as social media, online search engines, and course literature. Tailor recruitment strategies accordingly to attract the right students to open days. 

Create a standout experience: Open days should be used to make a memorable first impression. Incorporate live demonstrations, key speakers, and student participation to showcase the institution's unique value proposition. Ensure consistency across faculties and touchpoints to create a cohesive and impactful brand experience. 

Maintain communication: Regularly communicate with potential students from registration of interest through to clearing to keep them engaged and informed. 

Map the student journey: Conducting customer (student) journey mapping and feedback analysis will help colleges and universities to continuously improve the recruitment process, from the initial research stage through to enrolment. 

By leveraging data-driven insights and feedback analysis, institutions can improve communication, create standout experiences at open days, and streamline the recruitment journey. These factors help colleges and universities deliver a great first impression and a positive student experience.

Best practices to reduce student dropout rates. 

At insight6, our local CX specialists work closely with colleges and universities to map out scenarios and intervention processes to improve situations and better understand the required support. Here are some of the best practices to reduce student dropout rates: 

Support the whole student: From academic challenges to social issues, there are many factors that can contribute to a student dropping out. It's important to consider the whole student experience and provide the necessary support to address these challenges. By offering a range of services, such as mental health support, financial assistance, and career guidance, institutions can create a more supportive environment that encourages students to stay the course. 

Encourage engagement: Students who are engaged in their courses and the wider university community are more likely to persist with their studies. Encourage engagement by offering extracurricular activities, community events, and opportunities for student leadership. These experiences can help students to build relationships, develop new skills, and feel more invested in their university experience. 

Monitor performance and feedback: One of the best ways to reduce dropout rates is to monitor student performance and gather regular feedback. By identifying students who are struggling early on, institutions can offer targeted support to help them stay on track. Regular feedback can also help institutions to identify areas for improvement and make necessary changes to enhance the student experience. 

By gaining regular and consistent feedback with expert support, institutions can quickly act or resolve issues to improve situations that could lead to a bad student experience. By partnering with insight6, colleges and universities can proactively plan to improve the student experience and importantly reduce dropout rates.
 

How do you measure the student experience and well-being? 

Measuring the student experience or monitoring student well-being is essential, but understanding how to interpret the data and what to do with it is even more critical.  

At insight6, we understand that the potential lifetime value of each enquiry is substantial. We support hundreds of UK higher education providers to improve the student experience to improve the overall student experience, increase retention rates, and attract future students.  

To transform the student experience, you must first understand how you perform in your students' eyes. Our total feedback solution,  instant insight, is an easy, cost-effective way to regularly and consistently analyse the feedback from your students and employees. 

Using instant insight will:   

✓ Allow you to gain student feedback.  

✓ Help you gain employee feedback.  

✓ Monitor admissions & open days.  

✓ Track course satisfaction.  

✓ Analyse/report on student well-being.  

✓ Benchmark against your competitors.  

✓ Increase positive online reviews.

In summary, a robust student experience strategy is essential if you are looking to succeed in today's competitive market. At insight6, we help colleges and universities deliver impactful student experiences that drive real institutional growth. By partnering with us, you will better understand the factors that affect your student experience and how to enhance it to drive institutional success.  

Don't let the cost of unhappy or stressed students ruin your reputation or impact your institution's success. Get in touch today to arrange a no-obligation chat with your local CX specialist or to arrange a free demo of our total feedback solution - instant insight. 

 

How Customer Satisfaction and a Strong Customer Experience Strategy Can Help Your Business Succeed 

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Customer satisfaction is a crucial part of any successful business. Organisations must ensure customers are satisfied across every touchpoint to stay ahead of the competition, win new business, and build customer loyalty. A robust customer experience (CX) strategy is essential. Why? So, you can boost customer loyalty, continually attract new business, and ultimately - increase profitability. Here, we explore how customer satisfaction and a strong customer experience strategy can help your business succeed. 

Table of contents: 

A recent study found that a positive experience leads 89% of consumers towards making a repeat purchase. But, 61% say they would switch to a new brand after just one bad experience. Additionally, service issues cost UK firms £9.24bn monthly in complaints handling. That's quite a lot of lost revenue. These statistics show that a poor customer experience (CX) can significantly impact organisational performance.  

What does customer satisfaction mean?
 

Customer satisfaction is how well an organisation meets or exceeds the expectations of its customers. Essentially, it's the result of a good or bad customer experience.
 

Recent studies show that companies with a strong customer experience focus have a 75% higher customer retention rate than those that don't. Additionally, 86% of loyal customers will recommend a brand to friends and family, and 66% will write a positive online review following a good experience. Generating positive customer reviews is relatively simple and easy to achieve, and it should be part of your marketing strategy. 

How can you improve customer satisfaction?
 

Customer reviews and feedback surveys are the best way to improve customer satisfaction. This includes generating net promoter scores (NPS), customer satisfaction scores (CSAT), and customer effort scores (CES). Each method has its unique approach, but the goal is to gather as much customer information as possible about their experiences with your business. You can look at our six steps to generating positive customer reviews for more insight on utilising these platforms.  

How does customer satisfaction impact organisational performance? 

Whether you like it or not. Customer satisfaction has a direct impact on business performance. Moreover, satisfied customers are more likely to repurchase goods or services, provide positive reviews, and become loyal brand advocates.  

In contrast, dissatisfied customers will likely switch to a competitor, leave negative reviews, and discourage others from using your business. Not only can this lead to a decrease in revenue and profitability, but it can also considerably impact a business's reputation. 

At insight6, we have extensive experience helping businesses develop and implement effective customer experience strategies. By understanding your customers' needs and expectations, we can help you win new business, build customer loyalty and drive profitability, leaving you free to focus on what's important - running your business.  

Our mystery shopping program, for example, allows organisations to see through their customer's eyes, identify improvement areas, and make data-driven decisions. In addition, by correctly measuring your customer experience with the right tools, businesses can accurately gauge the quality of their service and use the data acquired to improve it.

How can the employee experience impact customer satisfaction?
 

Satisfied employees equal satisfied customers. Why? Because happy employees are more likely to provide exceptional customer service, which leads to happy customers. When employees feel valued, respected, and supported - and receive appropriate training with access to the right technology and resources - they are more inclined to go the extra mile.  

For organisations with an unhappy workforce, clients will likely receive subpar service, leading to many dissatisfied and disgruntled customers. So, what's the solution? We believe the best way is to make employee engagement a priority. Plus, a total feedback solution like instant insight can analyse the feedback from both your team and customers.

Why measure and report on customer satisfaction?
 

Measuring customer satisfaction is essential for businesses to understand the effectiveness of their products or services. The most used method are surveys asking customers to rate their experiences. Customer feedback provides valuable insights into areas that require improvement, enabling businesses to take necessary actions to enhance their products or services.  

Satisfied customers are more likely to be loyal and recommend the company to others, which can lead to increased revenue and growth. On the other hand, dissatisfied customers may churn and leave negative reviews, damaging the business's reputation. Therefore, measuring and reporting on customer satisfaction is essential to maintain and improve customer relationships, which is vital for the long-term success of any business. 

To transform the customer experience (CX), you must first understand how you perform in your customers' eyes. Our total feedback solution,  instant insight, is an easy, cost-effective way to regularly and consistently analyse the feedback from your customers and employees.   

  

Using instant insight will:   

✓ Allow you to gain customer feedback.  

✓ Help you gain employee feedback.  

✓ Analyse/report on real-time feedback.  

✓ Obtain actionable comments.  

✓ Improve your products and services.  

✓ Benchmark against your competitors.  

✓ Increase positive online reviews.  

 

In summary, a robust customer experience strategy is essential if you are looking to succeed in today's competitive market. Companies can effortlessly differentiate themselves from competitors by understanding their customers, improving processes, empowering employees, winning new business, and building customer loyalty.  

At insight6, we help businesses deliver cost-effective, impactful customer experiences that drive real business growth. By partnering with us, you will better understand the factors that affect your customer experience (CX) and how to enhance it to drive business success. Don't let the cost of unsatisfied customers impact your bottom line! Get in touch today for a no-obligation chat or request a demo to see how instant insight can transform your business!  

Employee Experience: The High Cost of Getting it Wrong

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Employee experience

Most of us understand the importance of delivering exceptional customer experiences to drive loyalty, repeat business, and growth. But have you considered the impact of a bad employee experience on your customer experience and, ultimately, your bottom line? A robust strategy is essential. Why? So, you can increase productivity, retain talent, enhance the customer experience and drive profitability. Here, we explore the high cost of a bad employee experience and how to avoid it.

Table of contents:

What do we mean by the employee experience?

Simply put, the employee experience refers to how employees feel about their interactions with their employer, including their work environment, job duties, and relationships with colleagues. A bad employee experience can harm productivity, job satisfaction, and the customer experience (CX). Therefore, a great employee experience creates a positive work culture and drives business success.

How do the employee experience and employee engagement differ?

While employee engagement refers to an employee’s emotional investment in their work and motivation to go above and beyond, the employee experience encompasses a broader range of factors, including the work environment, company culture, and opportunities for growth and development.

A bad employee experience can lead to disengagement, low morale, and ultimately, a negative impact on the customer experience (CX). Therefore, companies must prioritise employee experience and engagement to create a positive workplace culture and drive business success.

According to a recent Engage for Success Task Force report, only 36% of UK employees are highly engaged in their jobs, and the UK’s productivity levels lag other major economies. The UK Working Lives Report by Mercer found that 71% of UK employees are looking for new job opportunities, indicating a significant dissatisfaction with their current employee experience. With many sectors suffering from a skills shortage, these statistics should concern employers about how to retain top talent.

How does a bad employee experience impact the customer experience?

The employee experience and customer experience (CX) are closely linked – happy, engaged employees are more likely to provide exceptional customer service and drive customer loyalty. On the other hand, a bad employee experience can lead to disengagement, low morale, and ultimately, a negative impact on the customer experience.

Employees need proper training and support to gain the skills or resources required to provide exceptional service. Additionally, employees who are unhappy or feel undervalued may be more likely to negatively interact with customers, leading to decreased customer satisfaction, loyalty, and retention.

As companies struggle with supply issues and staffing shortages, a bad employee experience can harm the customer experience (CX). The Institute of Customer Service recently reported a record number of service issues, costing UK firms £9.24bn monthly in complaints handling. A hostile work environment affects employees and damages the company’s reputation and customer satisfaction.

Conversely, companies who invest in their workforce and are committed to delivering a positive employee experience reap the benefits. Studies have shown that companies with highly engaged employees experience a 10% increase in customer satisfaction and a 20% increase in customer loyalty.

What’s the actual cost of a bad employee experience?

Creating a positive employee experience has become critical to running a successful business in today’s competitive landscape. Unfortunately, many companies struggle to prioritise employee experience, leading to negative consequences that impact their customers and bottom line.

According to Mercer’s UK Working Lives Report, disengaged employees in the UK cost businesses an estimated £52-£70 billion per year in lost productivity and increased recruitment and retention costs. These statistics highlight the significant impact a bad employee experience can have on the success of UK businesses.

How to avoid the high cost of a bad employee experience

Businesses must prioritise creating a positive employee experience that drives engagement, productivity, and customer satisfaction to avoid the high cost of a bad employee experience. Let’s explore best practices for creating a best-in-class employee experience.

  1. Develop a clear employee experience strategy. Define your goals and objectives for employee experience and align them with your business strategy. Doing this will ensure your efforts are focused, and you can measure your progress.
  2. Foster a positive workplace culture. Cultivate a workplace culture that values employees and prioritises their well-being. You can provide opportunities for professional development, work-life balance, and recognition for a well-done job.
  3. Invest in employee development. Provide ongoing training and development opportunities to help employees grow and develop. Ultimately, this benefits them, improves their ability to serve customers, and contributes to the business’s success.
  4. Listen to employee feedback. Ask for regular feedback about their experience working for your company, and act based on their input. Doing this helps to build trust and engagement among employees and demonstrates your commitment to their well-being.
  5. Measure employee experience and engagement. Use metrics such as employee satisfaction surveys and engagement scores to evaluate the effectiveness of your employee experience strategy and identify areas for improvement.

By adopting these best practices and creating a positive employee experience, companies and organisations can improve employee engagement and productivity, reduce turnover and recruitment costs, and ultimately drive customer satisfaction and business success. Remember, a happy workforce leads to satisfied customers!

From bad to best-in-class: Transforming the employee experience

By prioritising employee engagement and creating a positive employee experience, your business or organisation can differentiate itself from the competition, win new business, and, ultimately, drive long-term profitability and growth.

As a customer experience (CX) business, we have seen first-hand how employee engagement affects customer interaction and how that impacts the brand for better or worse. Your employees play a pivotal role in delivering your product or service. Disengaged staff do not go the extra mile for your customers.

To transform the employee experience, you must first understand how you perform in your employees’ eyes. Our total feedback solution, instant insight, is an easy, cost-effective way to regularly and consistently analyse the feedback from your team and customers.

Using instant insight will:

✓ Allow you to gain employee feedback.

✓ Help you gain customer feedback.

✓ Analyse/report on real-time feedback.

✓ Obtain actionable comments.

✓ Improve your products and services.

✓ Benchmark against your competitors.

✓ Increase positive online reviews.

In summary, enhancing the employee experience is critical to creating a positive workplace culture that translates into a superior customer experience (CX) to drive business success ultimately. Investing in your employees benefits them and positively impacts your bottom line. By partnering with insight6, you will better understand the factors that affect your employee experience and how to enhance it to drive business success. Don’t let the cost of disengaged employees impact your bottom line! Get in touch today for a no-obligation chat or request a demo to see how instant insight can transform your business!

Consumer Duty and its impact on the retail motor sector 

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The Financial Conduct Authority's (FCA) new Consumer Duty regulation aims to create a higher standard of care for consumers. What does this mean to UK motor retailers and repairers?

Most dealerships distribute financial products to enhance vehicle sales. Under the new regulation, dealerships must evidence their Consumer Duty actions to ensure they meet the FCA's higher standards and expectations.

However, with fewer vehicle sales and changes in customer behaviour, Consumer Duty is an opportunity for automotive firms to build loyalty and drive profitability by exceeding regulatory requirements.

Putting the customers' needs first is the cornerstone of the Consumer Duty Principle. Here we look at what it means for those in the retail motor sector, whether online or in the showroom.

What is the FCA's Consumer Duty?

The regulation comprises three key components:

Firstly, an overarching Consumer Duty Principle sets a higher standard of care that the FCA expect companies to adhere to, evidencing their actions to deliver good client outcomes.

Secondly, the FCA has defined three cross-cutting rules that set out the standards of conduct expected across all areas of a firm's retail financial services activities, including:

    1. Act in good faith.
    2. Avoid foreseeable harm.
    3. Enable and support them to pursue their financial objectives.

Third and finally, four outcomes include rules and guidance across critical elements of the firm-customer relationship.

    1. Products and services.
    2. Price and value.
    3. Consumer understanding.
    4. Consumer support.

 

How will the Consumer Duty impact the retail motor sector?

As a distributor of financial products, such as automotive finance and Guaranteed Asset Protection (GAP) insurance, dealerships must demonstrate how they act to deliver good customer outcomes.

The FCA will expect dealerships to:

    • Have a robust Consumer Duty implementation plan outlining their steps to meet their obligations.
    • Show information they get from manufacturers on financial products they distribute, enabling them to meet their obligations, specifically on products, services, price, and value.
    • Demonstrate implementation and evidence of processes to meet the Duty for all products and services currently offered.

 

New regulations, production delays, supply chain disruption, market liquidity, fewer car sales and changes in customer behaviour are significant challenges affecting the automotive industry.

The changing landscape of dealerships means that improving retail profitability has never been more challenging. Market uncertainty makes it essential to manage customer expectations.

Consumer Duty is an opportunity for dealerships to build loyalty and drive profitability by exceeding their obligations. But to achieve this, dealerships must deliver a fantastic customer experience (CX).

In what way does the products and service outcome apply?

Automotive dealerships must ensure their vehicles are safe, reliable, and fit for their intended purpose. Here are examples:

Disclosure: Dealerships must disclose information about the vehicles they sell, including any known defects, accidents, or other issues that may affect their safety or performance.

Product liability: Automotive dealerships can be held liable for any injuries or damages resulting from defective vehicles they sell, including defects in their design, manufacture, or assembly.

Advertising: Car dealerships must ensure that their advertising is truthful and not misleading. They cannot make false or exaggerated claims about the safety or performance of their vehicles.

Consumer protection laws: Dealerships are subject to a range of consumer protection laws, including laws that prohibit unfair or deceptive practices, that require specific and conspicuous disclosures, and that provide consumers with certain rights and remedies.

Warranty: Automotive dealerships must honour any promises they offer on the vehicles they sell, ensuring consumers can have any covered repairs or services performed promptly and effectively.

In what way does the price and value outcome apply?

Traditionally, a car dealership will offer automotive finance as part of the vehicle sale. The uptake of vehicle ownership links directly to finance availability.

Figures from the Finance and Leasing Association show that consumer car finance increased by 9% by value and 3% by volume in 2022.

The price and value outcome requires that dealerships provide consumers with fair and transparent pricing and ensure that the product or service's value is commensurate with the price paid. Here are examples:

Pricing transparency: Car dealerships must provide consumers with clear and transparent pricing information, including the base price of the vehicle, any additional fees or charges, and the car's total cost. They must also be upfront about any discounts, promotions, or financing options available to consumers.

Fair pricing: Dealerships must ensure that the prices they charge for their vehicles are fair and reasonable. They cannot exploit consumers by charging inflated prices or engaging in price gouging. Fees charged must align with industry standards and not engage in discriminatory pricing practices.

Value for money: Automotive dealerships must ensure that their vehicles provide consumers with fair value. Vehicles must be reliable, safe, and fit for their intended purpose. Dealers must provide consumers with the features and benefits they expect based on the price paid.

Financing: Car dealerships must ensure that their financing options are fair and transparent and do not charge excessive interest rates or fees. They must provide consumers with clear information about their financing options, including the total cost of financing and the terms and conditions of the loan.

In what way does the consumer outstanding outcome apply?

The consumer understanding outcome requires firms to ensure that consumers understand the products and services they are buying, including the risks and benefits. Here are examples:

Providing clear information: Dealerships must provide consumers with clear and understandable information about the vehicles they are selling, including their features, specifications, and any associated risks. They must provide information about safety ratings, fuel efficiency, emissions, and other vital factors that may affect the value and performance of the vehicle.

Explaining financing options: Car dealerships must provide clear and transparent information about their financing options, including the total cost of financing, the interest rate, and any associated fees. They should also explain any risks or downsides related to financing options, such as balloon payments or variable interest rates.

Helping consumers make informed decisions: Dealerships must help consumers make informed decisions. They must provide guidance and advice about the vehicles based on the consumer's needs, budget, and other relevant factors to achieve this. Dealerships must also include recommendations on specific models or features and information about alternative options, such as leasing or buying used.

Providing ongoing support: Car dealerships must offer ongoing support to consumers after they purchase. Support could include guidance on maintenance and repairs and assistance with any warranty claims or other issues that may arise.

In what way does the consumer support outcome apply?

The consumer support outcome requires firms to provide ongoing support to consumers after purchasing products or services. Here are examples:

Assisting with warranties: Dealerships must provide ongoing support to consumers after purchasing a vehicle, including assistance with any warranty claims or other issues that may arise. They must provide evidence that consumers understand the terms and conditions of their warranty and provide support with any repairs or maintenance covered.

Offering maintenance and repair services: Automotive dealerships must provide maintenance and repair services to consumers through their service departments or partnerships with third-party service providers. They must guide routine maintenance and repairs and offer repairs for more complex issues.

Guidance on financing: Car dealerships must provide ongoing support to consumers who have financed their purchase, including advice on payments, interest rates, and any other aspects of their loan agreement. They must also help with refinancing or renegotiating the loan terms, if necessary.

Offering assistance with trade-ins and upgrades: Car dealerships must support consumers looking to trade in their vehicle or upgrade to a newer model. They must guide the trade-in process and offer competitive pricing for the consumer's vehicle.

How can dealerships achieve a higher standard of care?

The FCA will review Consumer Duty plans to understand a dealership's approach to embedding the regulation within the business. Putting the customer at the heart of the business means ensuring every procedure, process, and system keeps the consumer in mind.

Consumer Duty obligations require service providers to consider the customer's needs at every lifecycle. Therefore, customer journey mapping is the ideal way to see the business through its customers' eyes.

At insight6, we have the expertise to provide customer journey mapping, a valuable tool as dealerships begin to evidence their customer experience.

Feedback is essential to achieving a higher standard of care. Real-time, actionable feedback helps to deliver positive customer outcomes and will support evidencing Duty actions.

Often firms buy off-the-shelf systems to carry out their customer feedback. Unfortunately, some car dealerships can damage the customer experience (CX) in pursuit of feedback. An independent third-party assessment is best to achieve an accurate view.

Instant insight is our total feedback solution, enabling you to gather real-time feedback from your customers and team. We can work with you to understand your desired outcome and agree on the objectives. Doing so lets us explain how we plan to measure and report against these goals.

How can car dealerships increase loyalty and drive profitability?

The new regulation is an opportunity to deliver a consistently positive customer experience which will add value to dealerships over the long term. To improve the customer experience (CX), you must put the customer at the heart of the business.

The insight6 guide to Consumer Duty: Putting clients at the heart of business will show you how to build loyalty and drive profitability by exceeding your regulatory requirements with a CX approach.

Positive customer experiences make your customers happy and increase the likelihood of returning, leaving a positive online review, or recommending you to others. Car dealerships need a robust CX strategy.

By partnering with us, we can help you demonstrate and evidence your commitment to experience excellence, precisely how to deliver good customer outcomes and give you compliance confidence.

Our three-step process will help automotive dealerships address the Duty requirements across all four outcomes and give compliance confidence.

At insight6, we have developed some of the most advanced CX programmes. Our bespoke feedback tools, trained researchers and CX solutions have earned us a reputation as the partner of choice for many of the UK's largest automotive dealerships.

As well as working with hundreds of clients UK-wide, we are the only company with a network of CX Directors to support car dealerships locally. Get in touch today to see how we can transform yours.

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How to evidence consumer duty actions and ensure good consumer outcomes

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The Financial Conduct Authority's (FCA) new Consumer Duty regulation is one of the most significant shifts in UK financial services. The intention for companies to put the client's needs first is admirable, but evidencing actions can be a challenge. 

Putting the client at the heart of the business means ensuring every procedure, process, and system keeps the consumer in mind.  

Financial services firms that must be Consumer Duty compliant, but also want to build loyalty and drive profitability, will need a customer experience (CX) solution. Keeping clients is critical in a competitive environment, so a CX strategy is imperative.  

At insight6, our unique and tailored CX solutions and local specialists transform businesses, earning us a reputation as the partner of choice for many financial services firms. Here we share our three-step CX process to the FCA's Consumer Duty.

What is the new Consumer Duty? 

Consumer Duty is a regulation introduced by the UK financial regulatory body, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).  

There are three parts to Consumer Duty: 

  1. Consumer Duty Principle. A higher consumer protection standard for financial firms. 

  2. Cross-cutting rules. Overarching requirements for setting standards of conduct across all areas of a firm's retail financial services activities. 

  3. The consumer outcomes. A detailed set of requirements applies to four client/customer relationship aspects. 

Putting the client's needs first is the cornerstone of Consumer Duty Principle - it is a good business practice to ensure good consumer outcomes. So, a properly considered and managed customer experience (CX) programme is critical to regulatory success. 

What are the three cross-cutting rules of Consumer Duty? 

 The Duty's three cross-cutting rules set the overarching requirements setting standards of conduct expected across all areas of a firm's retail financial services activities. 

  1. Act in good faith 

  2. Avoid causing foreseeable harm. 

  3. Enable and support customers to pursue their financial objectives.  

What are the four outcomes of Consumer Duty? 

The Four Outcomes cover critical elements of the firm-customer relationship.  

Specifically, the outcomes require firms to ensure that products and services meet client's needs, that pricing is transparent and offers fair value, and that consumers receive communications to understand and get the support they need. 

  1. Products and services outcome. To ensure fit for purpose. 

  2. Price and value outcome. A focus on transparent pricing and fair value. 

  3. Consumer understanding outcome. To enable clients to make informed decisions. 

  4. Consumer support outcome - good quality support and after-sales care. 

Obtaining client feedback is one of the best ways to evidence your actions towards achieving the Four Outcomes. A robust CX strategy will provide you with insights to improve good consumer outcomes, become Consumer Duty compliant and increase your profits. 

Managing feedback is a crucial part of the CX process, so working with the right partner is paramount to evidencing your Consumer Duty actions. At insight6, our unique icx6 philosophy and partnership model is your guarantee of great service.

When does Consumer Duty take effect? 

There are five milestones to prepare for the new milestones to take effect.  

The FCA released the final guidance on its consumer duty at the end of July 2022. By October 2022, firms had to agree on their implementation plans. Now, firms must work towards achieving milestone three - completing reviews to meet the outcome rules. 

Duty rules start for available products and services on 31 July 2023, then a year later (31 July 2024) for closed products and services. 

You can view the detailed Consumer Duty timeline online. 

What does Consumer Duty mean for the industry?  

Consumer Duty aims to ensure financial firms take responsibility for operating in their client's best interests and treating them fairly. Financial services firms must look beyond compliance to strategy, data and technology to achieve this. 

To evidence their intentions and actions, firms must be client-centric, consistently reviewing practices and asking for feedback across multiple client engagement touchpoints.   

Consumer Duty is an opportunity to deliver a consistently positive client experience which will add real value to the business over the long term. Investing in a robust customer experience (CX) strategy and tailored solutions will put clients at the heart of the business to ensure good client outcomes whilst building loyalty and driving profitability. 

How to evidence Consumer Duty actions and ensure good outcomes 

Putting the client at the heart of the business means ensuring every procedure, process, and system keeps the consumer in mind. Repeatedly reviewing your business and asking your clients and staff for feedback is critical to proving your actions and becoming compliant.  

At insight6, we work with hundreds of happy clients to put the customer first by building a robust CX strategy to improve the customer experience, build loyalty and drive profitability.  

Our three-step CX process to the FCA's Consumer Duty will help financial firms evidence their actions and ensure good client outcomes. 

insight6 three-step CX plan to Consumer Duty compliance: 

  1. Putting the client at the heart of the business - the customer journey 

  2. Embedding a client engagement programme - regular customer feedback  

  3. Creating a client-centric culture - training, mentoring, and coaching 

How to put the client at the heart of the business 

We recommend you map the client journey alongside where the business currently sits within the new Consumer Duty requirements.  

You can map the client journey internally, but using an independent facilitator will ensure an accurate picture of your business through your client's eyes. 

Mapping the client journey will enable you to look at multiple consumer touchpoints. From how your teams handle initial enquiries, respond to clients, provides information requested, or respond to messages right through to effective complaint management and encouraging client referrals - the list of things you can review is endless.   

How to embed a client engagement programme 

To embed an effective client engagement programme, you need data and feedback. 

Ideally, data and feedback based on actual customer experience reviews (also known as mystery shopping) as well as other client feedback 

The FCA will likely want to see client trust, confidence and fair value measured as a bare minimum. Still, Consumer Duty is an opportunity to delve deeper into your client's experience and achieve better results. 

Consistently asking for, reviewing, and acting on feedback will help evidence your Consumer Duty actions to become compliant. Importantly, embedding a client engagement programme will enable good customer outcomes by helping to improve your overall client experience. 

The Duty emphasises supporting clients to make informed decisions on financial products and services, especially safeguarding vulnerable clients.  

Careful consideration of the client journey and evaluation of every touchpoint with the client will enable a firm to evidence how it regularly tracks any changes to a client's situation and detail fallback plans.  

How to create a client-centric culture 

Creating a client-centric culture is imperative to become Consumer Duty compliant.  

Your employees play a pivotal role in delivering your product or service. Workplace culture is part of everything an organisation says and does, making it difficult to transform even when necessary.  

In the current climate, the working environment is constantly changing and challenging to predict. Plus, the new regulation will likely bring new challenges for your team. It's essential to know the impact it's having on your staff.  

Measuring employee engagement and giving the proper support, training, mentoring, and coaching will be critical to ensure your firm and staff meet Consumer Duty requirements. 

Creating a great working culture within your business ensures that your team can give the best experience for your clients. You need access to fast, actionable feedback from your team that makes them feel highly motivated, engaged and respected.  

Key takeaway on Consumer Duty 

Putting the client's needs first is the cornerstone of Consumer Duty. Financial services firms must evidence their actions and ensure good consumer outcomes to gain regulatory approval. Investing in a robust CX strategy will put clients at the heart of the business, enabling you to improve the customer experience, build loyalty and drive profitability. 

If you need help or advice navigating the new Consumer Duty regulation, get in touch today to find your local customer experience specialist and to arrange a no-obligation chat.  

Like what you've read? Sign up to the insight6 newsletter to keep up to date with everything you need to know to improve your customer experience.   

The best ways to make your customer experience shine this holiday season 

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A gloomy economic outlook has left many with a distinct lack of holiday cheer. However, now is the time for businesses to pull on their jolly pants and deliver a more joyful customer experience.  

Squeezed incomes mean shoppers will rein in their spending, and consumers will look for better service deals. Don't let margins be the Grinch that steals your Christmas.  

The customer experience is fast becoming the main reason people choose to buy from a business. Yet, research shows that 80% of companies say they deliver a 'superior' customer service, while only 8% of customers thought the same about those companies. 

We believe the customer experience is everything. How you make people feel will be this season's smartest strategy to win and keep customers. Christmas isn't a season, it's a feeling.  

At insight6, we partner with hundreds of happy clients to improve the customer experience and transform businesses. Here, we share tips to make your customer experience shine this holiday season. 

Six simple ways to sprinkle some customer experience magic

1. Engage and empower your team 

Your employees play a pivotal role in service delivery. Have a clear service plan and communicate it regularly to your team. 

The festive period can be a stressful and busy time. Understand the work pressure that squeezed deadlines, increased footfall and sales can bring on service delivery. Regularly check in on staff wellbeing.

80% of the UK's workforce work in customer-facing roles. Sadly, research shows that more than half of customer-facing staff have faced abuse from customers since the start of the pandemic. 

Consider what to do when things go wrong. Empower your staff to act and fix problems and handle complaints cheerfully.  

Disengaged staff do not go the extra mile for your customers. Think about the best ways to recognise and reward great service.  

2. Manage customer expectations  

Christmas is a busy time of year for everyone. Encourage frontline staff to be honest to avoid over promising and under delivering.  

Handling new enquiries effectively can make or break a sale. Understanding your customer journey will help you to engage staff, prepare for the unexpected and polish your frontline service. 

Customers may look for alternative ways to get in touch or complain, such as webchats, email and social media during busy periods. Make sure your staff and outsourced service providers are ready.  

Delays can't be helped but you can turn a potentially frustrating experience into a pleasant one. Make hanging on the telephone joyful, switch traditional hold music to upbeat festive favourites.  

After a busy year, everyone looks forward to a break. Be clear about your opening hours, ability to deliver and shipping deadlines. Don't forget to put your out-of-office on and include a seasonal sentiment. 

 3. Create WOW moments 

WOW moments are memorable experiences that you create for your customers by exceeding their expectations. Delighting your customers will help turn them into loyal fans and keep them coming back. 

First, do what you say you are going to do. If your service delivery falls short, you can still WOW customers when they complain. Empower staff to tackle issues, say sorry and offer suitable compensation. 

Christmas is the season of giving. Offer something your customers didn't know they needed. Look for ways to WOW with an upsell or make small gestures that show you pay attention.
 

Examples: 

  • Send handwritten Christmas cards. 

  • Carry their shopping bags to the car. 

  • Remember names of spouses and kids. 

  • Donate to a cause close to their heart. 

  • Offer discounts or free delivery. 

  • Send a bottle of their favourite tipple. 

 

4. Draw on past experiences 

An effective way to prepare for the holiday season is to draw on past trends. Review data and customer feedback from past seasons. 

Look at enquiries, sales, returns, complaints, reviews. Spot when you first saw an uplift and when things started to return to normal. Demand data such as this can help you prepare and plan for what might come. 

The more data you have, the better prepared and more strategic you will be. Don't just consider quantitative data. To improve the customer experience and create WOW moments you need qualitative data. 

Mystery shopping is a wonderful way to see the business through the eyes of the customer. Repeatedly asking for feedback will enable you to understand what you are doing well and show what can be improved. 

Remember, if you've invested in data and customer feedback, be sure to use it. Many businesses collect valuable information but many more fail to act on it. 

5. Optimise self-service for higher satisfaction 

Self-service is about enabling customers to answer their own questions whenever possible.  

One of the easiest ways you can do this is through the content on your website. Make sure your content is correct and easily accessible. Spread some holiday cheer by adding festive imagery. 

Create seasonal FAQs which can be added to your homepage to quickly answer specific Christmas related questions. 

Another fantastic way to help with customer self-service is a conversational virtual agent. Live chat and outsourced telephone answering services can support you to meet increased demand. 

 6. Commit to service excellence 

Engaging your employees is critical to business success. Training and developing your staff on the customer experience process is essential so that they can see things from the customer's perspective. 

A word of caution, having an ill-thought-out customer experience strategy can be more damaging than not having one at all. Managing and implementing feedback is a crucial part of the process, therefore working with the right customer experience partner is imperative. 

At insight6 we understand that feedback is data, not judgement. We use feedback and the experience of our local customer experience specialists to deliver workshops that inspire and motivate teams. 

Are you ready to transform your business? 

Giving an exceptional customer experience can be challenging during the peak periods like Christmas. 

Unfortunately, customer demands and expectations don't decrease during this busy time. In fact, they are far more likely to skyrocket! 

With the tips shared in this article, you can take essential steps to make your customer experience shine this holiday season. 

But the customer experience is for life (if done right), not just for Christmas. Repeatedly asking your customers or clients, and staff for feedback is critical to building loyalty and driving profitability. 

And that's where insight6 comes in. 

Our total feedback tool, instant insight, along with our team of local experts, will transform your customer experience. 

By analysing feedback from your team and customers in real-time, instant insight will provide you with actionable comments. You will also be able to generate positive customer online reviews. 

In addition, instant insight enables you to benchmark your business against others within your sector.  

The more feedback you receive, the more confident you will be in making great decisions for your business. 

So, what are you waiting for? Book your instant insight demo with us today and take the first step to delivering a world-class customer experience.  

How to build loyalty and drive profitability with regular customer reviews (aka mystery shopping)

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Customers or clients are the people who decide whether a business will succeed or not. Meeting these stakeholders' needs is critical to building loyalty and driving profitability but to achieve this you must investigate the customer experience.  

No matter the sector, keeping clients is crucial to improving the bottom line, especially in such a competitive market. Therefore, delivering a positive customer experience (CX) should be every business's top priority.  

Positive customer experiences not only make your customers or clients happy but also increase the likelihood they will return, leave a positive online review, or recommend you to others. However, you would be surprised how many firms do not ask for feedback, or worse still, fail to act upon it.  

Businesses looking to grow must focus on understanding the experience they provide through the eyes of their customers or clients. 

 

"Businesses looking to grow must focus on Tweet: understanding the experience they provide through the eyes of their customers or clients," says @GrahamHillCX of #CX Specialists @insight6CX 

Historical research shows that 80% of companies say they deliver 'superior' customer service. Yet only 8% of customers of those companies thought the same. Moreover, people that have had a bad customer service experience do not complain, they simply walk away. 

The value of existing customers to profits cannot be overestimated. The cost of gaining a new customer is five times the cost of retaining an existing one! ​​Repeat customers deliver more top-line revenue, they cost nothing more to acquire and so a greater proportion of that revenue finds its way to the bottom line. 

Consequently, knowing how your customers or clients feel about your company, the products, or services you provide, as well as the experience they receive is essential if you are looking to build loyalty and drive profitability. 

Customer Experience Reviews (CX Reviews), more commonly known as Mystery Shopping, is one of the best ways to test the service a company provides through the eyes of its customers or clients. 

What are Customer Experience Reviews?

Customer Experience Reviews, aka Mystery Shopping, enables you to collect valuable information about a service delivered. When conducting a review, a mystery shopper or researcher will record their experience while pretending to be a customer or client, during interactions with your staff or online. 

Although Mystery Shopping is often associated with the type of CX research employed by businesses in the retail, leisure, and hospitality sectors, it is a valuable exercise for firms in any industry keen to up their game and profits. 

Poor customer service received at a key touch point of the customer journey can easily throw away sales opportunities. Our market study of how the professional services sector handles new enquiries, revealed many areas where accountancy, financial service, property, and legal firms are losing potential revenue. 

Why undertake Customer Experience Reviews?

Customer Experience Reviews supply an exact view of your business from your customers' or clients' perspectives because they are carried out by a third party. Getting an independent assessment of the 'real experience' is critical to understand what you are getting right and find areas for improvement. 

You can use Customer Experience Reviews to evaluate the quality of your service or robustness of your processes and even obtain a benchmark against your competitors. As a result, you will be better equipped to find opportunities for improvement to increase customer loyalty and drive profitability. 

Engaging your employees is also critical to business success. Happy and engaged staff will always go the extra mile for your customers or clients, thereby delivering superior customer service. The one simple (but essential) thing leaders can do to improve employee engagement is regularly check in on staff wellbeing. 

How to conduct Customer Experience Reviews?

Customer Experience Reviews are a great starting point in your customer experience improvement process. But it can be a complex and emotive process for everyone involved. Having an ill-thought-out customer experience strategy can be more damaging than not doing Customer Experience Reviews at all. 

Managing and implementing feedback is a crucial part of the process, therefore employing the right Customer Experience partner is imperative. The entire process must be carefully considered, ensuring that goals are set from the outset and reviews and feedback are managed by a skilled team. 

At insight6 we understand that feedback is data, not judgement. We design and deliver some of the most advanced feedback programs and are the only CX specialist consultancy in the UK with local experts on the ground. 

 "Feedback is data, not judgement," says @GrahamHill of #CX STweet: pecialists @insight6CX when talking about #CustomerExperience Reviews (aka mystery shopping) 

A one-off Customer Experience Review program supplies a snapshot of your business and the experience you provide at a particular point in time. To embed change in your company, build loyalty and drive profitability you must conduct reviews regularly, consistently asking for feedback and acting upon it. 

How can insight6 help with Customer Experience Reviews?

At insight6, we have transformed hundreds of businesses, helping them to implement a robust customer experience strategy and deliver a superior customer experience. 

With a team of professional researchers trained explicitly for each sector, and our sophisticated feedback system, we conduct complex and detailed enquiries to simulate and evaluate real customer or client experiences. 

Our six-stage model is designed to find issues, challenges, and opportunities, help you to gain buy-in from key decision-makers and your employees, and to develop new strategies, and analyse progress. 

Below is an overview of our six-stage model to build loyalty and drive profitability with regular customer reviews. 

1. Set up for success 

The first step is always to understand your desired outcome and agree on the objectives. Doing so allows us to explain how we plan to measure and report against these goals. Then, we create a communications plan and share it with your management team and staff to get their buy-in, helping them understand the aims behind the customer reviews research and inspire them to take part in the process. It is vital that from the beginning, your employees are onboard to ensure their voices are heard. 

2. Build a recognition plan 

The feedback you receive will highlight how your firm and staff are performing, finding areas of excellence and those where improvements can be made. Many firms find it challenging to communicate this type of feedback internally. Therefore, using an external, no-bias company like insight6 is a wonderful way to manage feedback to keep teams engaged and motivated.  

 3. Prepare for launch 

For staff, a Customer Experience Review or Mystery Shopping exercise may seem overwhelming. Nobody likes thinking they are being checked up on! That is why we always carefully plan for the emotive side of the process to take employees on the journey with us to protect their mental wellbeing and productivity. 

 4. Briefing & reporting 

Each business industry has different demands and challenges. Our researchers aka mystery shoppers are professionally trained, so they have the ability and resources to test even the most complicated scenarios. We work with you to build a bespoke reporting process, ensuring questions are weighted to support specific aims or feed into balance scorecards. 

5. Carry out the reviews  

Depending on your business, your Customer Experience Reviews can be performed online, over the phone, or in person. Once completed, we will provide you with a detailed report on the feedback received. 

 6. Make a plan 

Based on the findings, we will give you our recommendations and help you create a plan to implement any changes needed to improve the customer experience. Working with you we will embed a regular review process, consistently reviewing and reporting on feedback to ensure your business delivers the best possible customer experience. 

Remember, a one-off Customer Experience Review program supplies a snapshot of the experience you provide at a particular point in time. To embed change in your company, build loyalty and drive profitability you must conduct reviews regularly, consistently asking for feedback and acting upon it. 

 At insight6, our unique and tailored solutions allow businesses to transform their customer experience cost-effectively, from end to end, with the dedicated support of a local expert. Get in touch today to find out more or to discover how insight6 can help transform your customer experience.  

 Like what you have read? Sign up to the insight6 newsletter to keep up to date with everything you need to know to improve your customer experience. 

Have you ever thought about being a Mystery Shopper?

We are always on the hunt for researchers aka Mystery Shoppers to add to the insight6 team. If you like the idea of helping businesses improve their customer experience, we would like to hear from you. Apply today to join our Researcher and Mystery Shopper team. 

 

Graham Hill

Find me on LinkedIn 

 

How car dealerships can damage CX in the pursuit of feedback.

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Measuring Customer Feedback 

Many dealerships are aligned with the notion that customer feedback is an essential way of measuring success, but it isn’t always a true reflection of the customer experience (CX).  

Customer feedback can be obtained by telemarketers – usually, an outsourced personal calling on behalf of the dealership, face-to-face surveys, or via online review tools such as instant insight. In each scenario, the customer is asked a series of set questions about a recent experience with the company. 

Generally, dealerships will want to determine what their Net Promotor Score (NPS) is based on rolling customer feedback. This score is then often used to demonstrate how well they are performing to those higher up the chain of command – and is often linked to bonus schemes.   

There is nothing wrong with taking this approach, and it can be a valuable tool to motivate staff and improve CX. However, we are seeing instances where the pursuit of a positive NPS is having a detrimental effect on their customer’s experience – and the business has no idea that it is happening.  

Victoria from Surrey said: 

“Every time I take my car into the local dealership I go through the same feedback process – the service representative informs me that I will receive a feedback call and asks me to rate them a 9 or 10, unless I have been unhappy with the service. 

“The next day when I receive the call, I am again asked to rate the service I have received – scoring the dealership a 9 or 10 if I was happy and only and 8 or below if I was dissatisfied.  

“The way in which these requests and questions are posed to me feels very pushy. I’m never unhappy with the service but I wouldn’t say I am blown away by a distinctly higher level of service than you would expect at any other dealership. However, I feel pushed into giving them a 9 or 10 when I feel they only really deserved a 7 or 8 and always come away irritated and annoyed by the whole process. If I had a choice of dealerships locally, I would certainly switch.”  

This example shows how the customer had a perfectly OK experience in the dealership, but the overall experience ended negatively because of a pushy feedback process that is designed to chase a score and not seek ways to provide an even greater service.  

What’s more worrying is that the dealership is probably unaware of the negative impact their feedback process is having on the overall customer experience, and at some point, their score-chasing strategy may backfire.  

By really understanding your customer's journey and managing their experience, you can achieve a high NPS organically, without the pushy tactics that then leave your customers with a sour taste.  

 

What is NPS? 

NPS is one of the most tried and tested methods of measuring a customer’s experience. Through NPS you can understand the likelihood that a customer will recommend your product and service to someone in their community.  

The question usually states, ‘on a scale of one to ten, how likely are you to recommend the business to a friend?’ 

NPS is calculated by subtracting the percentage of customers who scored a 6 or lower (known as detractors) from the percentage of customers who scored a 9 or 10 (known as promoters).  

So you can see why it is in the dealership's interest to receive as many 9’s and 10’s as possible – 7’s and 8’s don’t influence their score.  

 

Great CX drives a higher NPS 

To be consistently achieving nine and ten’s on NPS trackers, dealerships need to take a step back and look at what small extra details or changes would make their customers think ‘wow’.  

Autotrader’s Car Buyer of the Future Study found that if the buying process was improved, 72% of consumers stated they would visit dealerships more often. 66% said that they would be much more likely to buy from a dealership that offers their preferred experience, and 53% stated they would buy a vehicle more often. 

We work with a number of dealerships and online retailers in a variety of ways to achieve ‘front end’ insight, before working with teams to implement strategic plans which deliver what the customer is asking for and ultimately those essential NPS figures.  

 

How can customer journey mapping improve CX? 

By mapping the customer journey from the very start of the process, a phone enquiry, or web browsing, to the very last point, picking up a new car or serviced vehicle – you get crucial insight and understand how your customer thinks and feels at every step.  

Our process helps you to identify any kinks in the process, potential frustrations, things that really add value, or major pitfalls in service or consistency. Once you have a true understanding of what you are working with, it becomes a much easier process to streamline the process, iron out any issues and look for opportunities to add an even better experience.  

Research by Economist Intelligence Unit revealed that the top five areas consumers identified as leading to a positive experience included: 

  1. 47% – Fast response to inquiries or complaints 
  2. 46% – Simple purchasing process 
  3. 34% – Ability to track orders in real time 
  4. 25% – Clarity and simplicity of product information across channels 
  5. 22% – Ability to interact with the company over multiple channels 

But to really offer the best CX you must go beyond ‘functional’ and look to evoke an emotional connection.  

Dealerships have started to work on this with the addition of new car owner ‘reveals’ and gifts but there are many much simpler and free ways to connect with your customers. Reserving parking spaces with names for when your customer is booked in for a service, or training the reception team to note the reg of vehicles coming in so that they can have names to hand – these small but very personal touches can turn an OK seven or eight into a nine or ten on the NPS scale.  

 

Test your customer experience with CX Reviews 

CX reviews – also known as mystery shops – are another way of testing your customer journey in real time and analysing how your business, and team perform against your ‘ideal’ on a given day. Many dealerships use mystery shops as a vehicle to test their FCA compliance, however our team of over 1,000 highly trained researchers can delve into many different scenarios which can provide detailed feedback for every point of your customer journey.  

 

Training & development for your team is key to great CX 

Following our in-depth CX review process and customer journey mapping, its crucial to not let plans go to waste. It’s the team on the frontline that must deliver the experience you have designed and tested, day-in, day-out. You must make sure that you take your team on the journey with you and that they are bought into the customer experience strategy. We can help train staff so that certain elements come more easily to them through the use of role play and workshops, but what is also really helpful is to get feedback from your staff in the same way you request it from your customers.  

A team that has free flowing communication and an outlet to feedback is a more engaged team which in turn leads to better CX. 

 

To find out more about how we work with dealerships or the wider auto-motive industry, please get in touch with your local CX Director. All of our CX Directors are based locally, out in the field, so that they can be on the ground to best benefit the clients in their area – find your local contact here.  

6 things every Law firm can implement to improve their CX and increase their bottom line…

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Customer experience (CX) is the new business battleground for the Legal sector, yet our recent research study, The Professional Services Customer Journey Report, showed that many legal firms are failing to get the basics consistently right – and this could be affecting their bottom line. 

In fact, out of all the professions analysed, the legal sector was found to be performing worst when comparing NPS (Net Promotor Score), with a sobering -54, a sharp decline from its score of -15 in 2019. 

By surveying over 250 professional services firms in the UK, our research analysed the full customer journey when making a new enquiry. The findings, although harrowing, now provide a benchmark for improving CX and offer an immediate checklist for every Law firm.

  1. Offer a human touch. Make sure that all employees offer their names to callers when they answer the phone. It sounds so basic, but our research revealed that 22% of reception staff did not answer initial calls with their name, and when put through to a law expert, an astonishing 60% of these people did not offer their name. 
  2. Regularly test your messaging services to ensure they are working correctly. Technology is great, until it fails! Our research found that 43% of messages left (including personal voicemails) did not get a response. 
  3. Develop your team’s emotional intelligence. When clients or potential clients are facing stressful situations, it is critical to establish a positive connection with understanding and compassion for their situation. 
  4. Check website contact forms and web-chat services work correctly and that they are treated in the same way as phone or email enquiries. Implementing new technology is a great way to improve CX – but only if it is done with care and consideration. Our research found that over a third of web enquiries were left completely unanswered. 
  5. Follow up! We were astounded to find that only 8% of companies bothered to follow up a potential new client lead, and where more information had been requested, 38% of the time it never arrived. 
  6. Make it personal! People want a personal service more than ever, but our researchers found that only 53% of email exchanges were personalised and more worryingly, 57% were poorly written with grammatical errors. 

Research by the London School of Economics shows that for every 7% increase in a brand’s NPS, their revenue will grow by 1% as a direct result – that’s a whole lot of untapped revenue to gain from some basic day-to-day improvements. 

“It is clear that legal firms, along with the whole professional services industry, have a huge opportunity to improve CX, deliver a superior experience to both new and existing clients, and reap significant business benefits in doing so,”says Jonathan Winchester, insight6 CEO.

Behind poor CX you can find underlying problems in a firm’s culture

Overall, insight6 researchers were underwhelmed by how the firms handled their enquiries. Just 23% felt the team member attempted to add value or go further to help them, and only 43% said that they would recommend the business to others. 

What we do know to be true, is that underlying problems within a firm’s culture can often be found behind poor CX. Issues such as short-term targets, disengaged teams or siloed working - effective CX is often about empowering staff and providing them with the skills, tools, and authority they need.  

One organisation that absolutely have got it right and understand the benefits of delivering great customer experience is LawNet. In next month’s blog you can read more about how LawNet has partnered with insight6 to help its members put CX at the heart of their businesses.