customer feedback

WOW Moments in Customer Experiences

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WOW moments - how to create them.

Creating ‘WOW’ moments will take your customer experience (CX) to the next level. In the fast-paced business world, exceptional customer experiences are not just a luxury – they’re essential. But what exactly are ‘WOW’ moments in customer experiences, and why should companies care about them? Here, we delve into ‘WOW’ moments and explore how you can elevate your customer interactions to leave a lasting impact.

Table of contents:

What defines a WOW moment in customer experience?

A ‘WOW’ moment is that extraordinary interaction that makes customers stop, smile, and remember. It’s when your service or product delivers above and beyond their expectations, creating a positive, memorable experience. Can you think about the moments you received exceptional service or encountered a product that exceeded your expectations? Those are ‘WOW’ moments. Let’s look at some examples:

Example #1 - Imagine walking into a local coffee shop, and the barista not only remembers your name but also knows your favourite coffee order. That personal touch is a 'WOW' moment that can turn a casual coffee drinker into a loyal, repeat customer. 
Example #2 - At an automotive dealership, a 'WOW' moment might involve a salesperson going the extra mile to explain the features of a car, arranging a customised test drive experience, or offering a complimentary first service. Such personalised attention can foster customer loyalty and referrals.
Example #3 - In the case of a law firm, a 'WOW' moment could be delivering a quicker resolution to a client's legal issue than expected or providing them with a comprehensive, plain-language guide to the legal process. Exceptional communication, empathy, and transparency can set the stage for lasting client relationships in the legal field.
In the e-commerce world, Amazon's one-click purchase option is a prime example of a 'WOW' moment. It streamlines the buying process to such an extent that customers often don't think twice before making a purchase.

Why are WOW moments important?

Simply put, these moments are more than just fleeting instances of happiness – they have tangible benefits for your business. ‘WOW’ moments can turn first-time customers into loyal advocates, boost your brand’s reputation, and drive revenue growth. Indeed, research has shown that customers who experience ‘WOW’ moments are more likely to recommend your business and return for more.

Positive experiences play a crucial role in customer satisfaction. Moreover, an astounding 90% of customers who are highly satisfied with a brand say they are highly likely to return to that brand to make more purchases (source: SMG research into CX metrics).

Furthermore, experiences have a direct impact on revenue. Brands that prioritise offering exceptional experiences to their customers witness a positive impact on their bottom line, with 84% of companies reporting increased revenue after improving their customer experiences. Additionally, customers are willing to pay a premium for these exceptional experiences, often contributing to an increase in revenue by upwards of 18% says PWC.

These statistics emphasise the concrete advantages of creating ‘WOW’ moments and underscore the importance of delivering exceptional customer experiences.

How can I identify opportunities to ‘WOW’?

Creating ‘WOW’ moments requires a proactive approach. Start by mapping your customer journey and analysing feedback from your clients. Identifying touchpoints and pain points can lead to opportunities for ‘WOW’ moments. Additionally, engaging and empowering your employees can help them deliver exceptional service consistently.

What strategies can I use to create WOW moments?

To create ‘WOW’ moments that leave a lasting impact, businesses should consider several strategies to prioritise customer satisfaction and exceptional experiences. Likewise, it’s essential to know how your customers or clients feel about your company, the products or services you provide, and the experience they receive if you’re looking to build loyalty and drive profitability. Let’s dive into some strategies to create ‘WOW’ moments.

1. Customer Experience Reviews (CX Reviews):

Often referred to as Mystery Shopping, CX Reviews are one of the best ways to test a company’s service through the eyes of its customers or clients. While Mystery Shopping is commonly associated with those in the retail, leisure, and hospitality sectors, it’s a valuable exercise for firms in any industry keen on enhancing their customer experiences. It enables you to see your business through your customers’ perspective and uncover areas for improvement.

2. Identifying Key Touch Points:

Every customer journey has critical touch points that significantly impact their experience. For example, poor customer service at a crucial touch point can easily throw away sales opportunities. In our market study – The Professional Services Client Journey Report – we discovered numerous areas where accountancy, financial service, property, and legal firms are losing potential revenue due to subpar customer experiences.

3. Effective Customer Experience Strategy:

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

4. The Role of Technology:

Technology solutions can streamline processes, making the customer experience more seamless and convenient. Indeed, implementing an online feedback tool to regularly and consistently ask and act on feedback offers many benefits to your business. It makes the feedback process easier and more accessible to customers, increasing their willingness to participate and provide valuable insights.

These strategies are the foundation for building exceptional customer experiences and creating ‘WOW’ moments. They help you uncover areas for improvement and enhance the overall quality of service and products your business provides. As the saying goes, “You can’t manage what you can’t measure” and these strategies offer the tools and insights needed to manage and enhance your customer experience.

How can I transform the customer experience?

Transforming the customer experience isn’t a journey to embark on alone. Consequently, it requires expertise, strategy, and tools to turn insights into actionable improvements. To explore how you can make this transformation and learn more about the solutions available, visit our About insight6 page for comprehensive information on how we can assist you in enhancing your customer experiences.

How we can help you create WOW moments to transform your business

At insight6, we understand that feedback is data, not judgment. We are deeply committed to helping businesses create ‘WOW’ moments for their customers. Furthermore, our services are designed to provide you with the insights, strategies, and technology you need to unlock the full potential of your customer interactions.

From Customer Experience Reviews (CX Reviews) to advanced feedback programs, our local experts in the UK are ready to work with you to transform your business. Moreover, we believe that to build loyalty and drive profitability, it’s not enough to conduct one-off reviews.

Regular, consistent feedback and action are critical. Our online feedback tool makes it easy for your customers to share their insights, allowing you to gather in-depth information about how they feel about your services, products, and company.

WOW moments with insight6: Exploring what we do with our icx6 model.
– Our unique process for transforming your business with insight6

By partnering with insight6, you gain access to a wealth of experience, knowledge, and a deep commitment to elevating the customer experience. We’re here to help you implement effective strategies and make data-driven decisions that lead to increased customer loyalty and revenue growth.

Now that you understand ‘WOW’ moments and their importance, we invite you to get in touch for a no-obligation chat or to request a demo of our online feedback tool ‘instant insight’. Transform your customer experience with insight6 and see the results for yourself!

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Customer Loyalty vs. Satisfaction: What’s the Difference?

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Customer loyalty - a customer giving feedback.

Welcome to the world of relationships, where two key players take the stage: loyalty and satisfaction. Often used interchangeably, these terms pack distinct punches. Think of loyalty as the rock-solid bond you build and satisfaction as the smile you put on your customers’ faces. Building customer loyalty is critical to business success. Why? So you can drive revenue, cost efficiencies, brand advocacy, and long-term growth. Here, we uncover the differences between the two, enabling you to make the most of their impact on your business. 

What is the difference between loyalty and satisfaction? 

Customer loyalty and satisfaction are crucial for businesses to do well. They contribute to the customer experience, adding different things to how customers feel. Satisfaction is about making customers happy with every interaction. Loyalty is more profound – it’s about the strong connection between customers and a brand. Customers stick with one brand because they trust and like how they feel about it: positive experiences, trust, and emotional engagement fuel loyalty. Satisfaction is more about feeling good right after an interaction.  

While a satisfied customer may be content in the moment, a loyal customer becomes a brand ambassador, repeatedly recommending and returning to the company. Therefore, understanding and enhancing loyalty and satisfaction are essential for businesses to forge strong relationships, drive revenue, and ensure sustained growth. 

Why is customer loyalty important for business success? 

Customer loyalty lies at the core of business success but is often overshadowed by the lure of gaining new customers. Yet, embracing customer retention is pivotal for growth, with statistics indicating that acquiring new customers can cost as much as five times more than satisfying and retaining current ones. 

Retention is the art of nurturing meaningful connections with existing clients that repeatedly keep them engaged – and loyal. More than an accessory, it’s a pivotal driver of business success. By nurturing loyal customers or clients, you solidify your bottom line and unleash many positive outcomes, from word-of-mouth advocacy to candid feedback that can be turned into actionable insights. 

How do you measure customer loyalty?

In pursuing business success, understanding and measuring loyalty is paramount. Customer feedback is a vital source of insights into these experiences, expectations, and pain points. Research shows that a staggering 84% of customer’s expectations are unmet, and 6% say they would cease doing business after just one bad experience. By actively addressing feedback, companies can establish trust and strengthen relationships, increasing loyalty, revenue, and differentiation from competitors.  

Businesses should leverage various touchpoints along the customer journey to effectively measure customer loyalty, employing tools like surveys, feedback forms, and experience reviews (Mystery Shopping). The insights gathered improve products and services and position businesses to stand out, ensuring long-term growth and success.  

When should I survey or gather feedback to measure customer loyalty?

To build customer loyalty, the timing of gathering feedback is critical. The ideal times to get essential insights are at key customer touchpoints. After buying something, getting support, or finishing a service, these moments give a chance to understand how customers feel. By smoothly asking for feedback during these times, businesses show they care about understanding and enhancing customer experiences immediately. 

Where can I get insights to measure and improve customer loyalty?

You can gather insights to measure and improve customer loyalty by focusing on critical touchpoints throughout their interactions with your business.  

At insight6, we partner with our clients to create and deliver customer experience (CX) strategies tailored to their needs. Whether it’s understanding your customer’s journey to improve the experience and operational efficiencies or training, mentoring and coaching teams to implement change and skill development, we can help you. We are one of the UK’s leading customer experience specialists and the only one to offer end-to-end solutions backed up by a team of local experts. 

Using our total feedback solution instant insight, you can seamlessly gain actionable insights from customers and employees. Our bespoke tool is cost-effective and quick to implement, allowing you to analyse real-time feedback, benchmark against competitors, and improve your offerings. You can drive continuous improvement and achieve business growth by consistently measuring customer satisfaction and loyalty. 

Using instant insight will:  

  • Help you gain customer feedback.  
  • Allow you to acquire employee feedback.  
  • Analyse/report on real-time feedback.  
  • Obtain actionable comments.  
  • Improve your products and services. 
  • Benchmark against your competitors.  
  • Increase positive online reviews. 

 

instant insight is your total feedback solution – book your demo today!

At insight6, we’re all about helping businesses build strong customer loyalty for real and lasting growth. Partner with us to understand and boost your customer experience (CX) – a game-changer for your business success. Don’t ignore unhappy customers’ impact on your profits! Let’s chat or book a demo of instant insight to see how quick insights can transform your business! 

Customer Journey: Understanding Touchpoints 

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Customer journey mapping - Customers viewing a business on a mobile device.

Mapping the customer journey gives valuable insights into touchpoints and interactions that shape the overall experience. Many businesses believe they offer a good customer experience, but research shows that only a small percentage of these customers feel the same way. Seeing your business through the customers’ eyes is essential. Why? So, you can improve satisfaction, build loyalty, and boost profitability. Here, we explore the benefits of the mapping process in shaping remarkable experiences.

What is customer journey mapping, and why is it important? 

It is a powerful tool to learn the hidden gems of customer interactions with your business. Tracing the customer’s steps and illustrating their journey gives you invaluable insights into their trials, delights, and frustrations. Armed with this knowledge, you can proactively find areas where they may stumble and take decisive action to improve their experience. 

Personalised customer journey maps allow you to laser-focus your efforts, addressing pain points and implementing strategies to deliver a seamless experience. The result? Enhanced customer satisfaction, reduced churn, and exponential business growth. You can unlock remarkable experiences and forge lasting customer connections with customer journey mapping.

How can the mapping process benefit businesses? 

The customer experience is everything. Mapping the journey will give you insights to transform your businesses. Effective implementation based on real insight will improve the overall experience, enabling you to win new business, increase satisfaction, foster loyalty, and drive profitability. A well-crafted map should reflect the customer’s reality.

In contrast, meaningless maps hinder progress. Despite billions spent on customer experience technologies, customer satisfaction is declining, according to the latest ICS UK Customer Satisfaction Index. Getting an independent third-party review is important to avoid bias and to protect your investment.

What is involved in creating a customer journey map? 

Creating a journey map involves turning customer feedback into actionable insights. You can overcome common pitfalls and identify improvements with mapping workshops. A customer experience solution like this will enable you to visualise scenarios based on customer interactions with your business.

Customer journey mapping – a step-by-step approach:  

  • Conduct thorough research: Gather data to gain profound insights into customers’ experiences.
  • Develop detailed personas: Capture the goals, needs, pain points, and behaviours of your target audience.
  • Detail touchpoints: Find where customers interact with your business online and offline.
  • Break it down: The customer journey into stages, outlining key actions, emotions, and expectations at each step.
  • Visualise the journey: Use diagrams or infographics, aiding effective communication and understanding.
  • Analyse the map: Find pain points and areas for improvement.
  • Prioritise improvements: Base these on impact and feasibility, focusing on areas that influence the overall experience.
  • Implement targeted changes: Monitor and measure their impact and refine the map accordingly. 

Following these steps, businesses can create comprehensive and actionable customer journey maps, resulting in remarkable experiences and heightened customer satisfaction. 

How can mapping improve the overall experience? 

With a holistic view of the customer experience, companies can explore pain points and identify ways to improve the customer experience. These insights enable businesses to make informed decisions, helping them to increase efficiencies and deliver seamless interactions. Customer journey mapping is pivotal in creating remarkable experiences that exceed expectations by addressing common pain points and ensuring consistency across touchpoints. Ultimately, this leads to increased customer satisfaction, improved loyalty, and a competitive edge in the market. 

How do touchpoints affect the customer journey? 

Touchpoints play a crucial role. These interaction points, whether digital or physical, directly affect the customer’s experience and perception of a company. Positive touchpoints can create moments of delight, build trust, and strengthen the overall journey. On the other hand, negative touchpoints can lead to frustration, dissatisfaction, and even customer churn. By effectively managing touchpoints, businesses can create a positive and cohesive journey that leaves an impression on customers. 

What are some common customer touchpoints? 

There are several common touchpoints appear across various customer journeys. These touchpoints can occur at various stages and through various channels. Here are some examples:

  • Website: Customers visit to gather info, explore, buy, or seek support.
  • Social Media: Engage for communication, feedback, and updates.
  • Physical Stores: Browse, get help, and buy in-store.
  • Customer Service: Address enquiries and resolve via phone, email, and chat.
  • Mobile Apps: Access services, track orders, and engage loyalty via apps.
  • Email Communication: Newsletters, promos, updates, offers.
  • Online Reviews: Influence others via platform or site reviews.
  • Post-purchase Follow-up: Feedback, cross-selling, and support after purchase.

By recognising these common touchpoints, businesses can focus on optimising each interaction to give a seamless and consistent experience across various customer journeys. 

Mapping is a powerful tool that empowers businesses to see through the eyes of their customers. By gaining valuable insights into the genuine customer experience, companies can bridge the gap between their perception and reality.

At insight6, we partner with thousands of companies to transform their businesses by delivering a world-class customer experience. We bring teams together through the journey mapping process to understand what happens for your customers. Enhancing how your customers see and interact with your business will improve satisfaction, encouraging advocacy and repeat business. You work hard and spend money to find and attract new customers. Do not let the cost of unsatisfied customers affect your reputation and bottom line. Get in touch today for a no-obligation chat to see how we can transform your business. 

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Read more: Customer Journey: Understanding Touchpoints 

How to generate positive customer reviews online

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When we talk about positive customer reviews, we are talking about a positive customer experience or CX. People trust online reviews so they should be part of your marketing strategy.

If you want to compete online then customer reviews are essential. Positive customer reviews are the end goal, but negative feedback also provides an opportunity for improvement.

We believe customer experience is everything and that positive reviews are important for businesses looking to increase loyalty and profits. So, here we share our insights and advice on how you can generate more positive customer reviews online.

Why do I need customer feedback for my business? 

The more feedback you receive, the more confident you will be in making great decisions for your business. Insights will enable you to improve the customer experience and ultimately your profits.

Here are six reasons why customer feedback is important in business:

  1. Customer feedback helps improve products and services.

  2. Customer feedback enables you to measure customer satisfaction.

  3. Customer feedback provides data to empower business decisions.

  4. Customer feedback builds loyalty by showing customers you listen and care.

  5. Customer feedback can create better customer experiences.

  6. Customer feedback can increase staff satisfaction by rewarding good behaviour.

However, customer reviews, particularly online reviews, can be a divisive topic amongst business owners. 

People fall into one of two camps, either 'too nervous to ask', fearful of any negative comments, or the 'I know best', dismissive of any feedback that doesn't align to their thinking. Neither set a helpful foundation for achieving positive customer reviews.

Research shows 80% of companies say they deliver 'superior' customer service while only 8% of customers thought the same about those companies - how would your customers rate your brand?

The holy grail is a business leader who understands the importance of genuine customer feedback, is accepting of the feedback, and is prepared to alter or improve certain aspects of the business to enhance the overall customer experience. 

Essentially, you can't fix what you don't know is broken. 

How important are customer reviews to a business? 

Reviews not only have the power to influence consumer decisions but can strengthen a company's credibility. Reviews have the power to gain customer trust, and they encourage people to engage with the company. Engagement ultimately leads to improved profits for businesses.

  • 91% of 18-34-year old's trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations. 

  • 93% of customers have been influenced to make a purchase by an online review.

  • 4 out of 5 customers have changed their mind on a purchase after reading a negative review.

Love them or loathe them, these are the facts that sit behind purchasing behaviour today, and if you don't have positive online reviews, you are at a disadvantage to a competitor who does. (Source: Qualtrics October 2020).

Six-steps to generating positive customer reviews

As the UK's largest customer experience consultancy in the UK, insight6 Specialists have worked with hundreds of businesses to improve their CX. So, we have put together a six-step method to help you generate more positive customer reviews for your business.

  • Map and test your customer journey 

It's crucial to walk in your customer's shoes - and regularly map your customer journey - to see what they see and experience the customer journey as they do. 

Mapping your customer journey will give you first-hand knowledge of any glitches in your processes, where you really add value, and where you may need to make improvements or streamline. 

  • CX culture must be instilled from the top 

The phrase 'a fish rots from the head down' is true when it comes to CX. You must set the tone for the culture and deliver the experience you expect your employees to replicate. A good leader is prepared to ask the questions they may not like the answers to.

In fact, your employees are your biggest customer group. 

To enable your employees to deliver a great experience to your customers, you need to deliver a great experience to them to ensure that they remain motivated and engaged. Do you know the one simple (but essential) thing leaders can do to improve employee engagement?

How many negative reviews do you think could result from a disgruntled employee? Mentoring and coaching for leaders can really improve the CX internally and result in better customer reviews.  

  • Have a robust resolution plan 

Every business is going to come up against issues from time to time. The skill is turning a negative aspect into an overall positive experience. 

You need to be able to see your business through the eyes of the customer. Make sure that you have mapped your customer journey and know exactly where all the potential pitfalls lie. 

Once you have identified potential gaps in the customer journey you can begin to put robust resolution plans in place for each scenario, enabling your employees to help rectify the issue for the customer as quickly and painlessly as possible - delivering an overall good experience.

  • CX Reviews (mystery shoppers)

Forget the cliché 'mystery shopper' of the 90's retail world. A detailed CX Review should report everything, from the number of times a phone rang before answering to how many days it took to receive a follow-up call or email and specific questions you may want answers to. 

You need a level of analysis that provides you with actionable insights, allowing you to identify and address any potential issues that could generate negative reviews.

At insight6 our CX Reviewers are highly skilled and trained research professionals - regarded as the best in the world. Yes, our team will check if your staff are polite and friendly, but they delve much deeper into your business to test your entire customer journey, from how you deal with initial enquiries to delivery of services, aftercare and more. Each CX Review is designed individually to suit every business. 

  • Customer feedback

Asking for feedback proactively forms part of the strategy to developing organic positive customer reviews online. 

Continuous customer feedback enables you to monitor how your business is performing and how customers feel about you - depending on the type of feedback tool you use; this can even be done in real-time. Instant online feedback tools such as our instant insight solution is the quickest and most efficient way to spot any blips in your customer experience.

More detailed customer feedback should be undertaken periodically to delve deeper into any themes that come up in your rolling feedback - this is generally better done as a focus or listening group - to fully understand the customer viewpoint. 

  • Training and development 

One of the most common and frustrating mistakes we see is businesses collecting customer feedback but failing to do anything with it. This is where it really helps to work with a CX specialist. 

You need to analyse all the data from your customer feedback, mystery shops, and customer journey map and identify where your business or team would benefit from specialist training or development.  

insight6 Specialists take this data and design bespoke training and development workshops for their team that have a positive impact on customer reviews. 

How to decide which online review sites are the best

Google reviews, Facebook reviews, Trustpilot? There is no simple answer.

Firstly, it depends on your objectives behind the reviews. Are you looking for detailed feedback to really understand how your customers are feeling about your business so that you can continuously improve? Or are you looking to use online reviews as a promotional tool to increase business? 

With so many online outlets for customers to leave reviews, what works best for your business will very much depend on your target customer, what media they consume and what channels they use. It's also worth remembering that many customer reviews are never made public, and in many cases, these can be the most powerful and valuable reviews to a business. 

How to maximise the value of customer feedback

Online customer reviews are great for building trust, proving credibility and increasing sales but they offer so much more to a business if collected and analysed correctly. 

At insight6 we work with our clients to fully understand the objectives and target market when designing a feedback system.  If feedback is not requested appropriately, it is a wasted opportunity at best; at worst, it can create a negative experience and become counterproductive.

With our instant insight solution, we can help you analyse the feedback from your customers (or team members) at a much deeper level than self-service alternatives, enabling you to benchmark different criteria over time but also against competitors in your sector. 

Where a business will really see the benefits of a tailored feedback system is in the front-end design. Our CX Directors work with clients to pinpoint the correct questions to ask, in the right tone of voice and the correct time to request feedback. 

Are you looking to increase online customer reviews to drive traffic or sales to your business? In that case, our instant insight solution is a great way to capture quick and simple feedback or reviews from your customers with the option to automatically post to a whole host of public review platforms such as Google reviews, Facebook reviews, and Trustpilot, Trip Advisor and many more.

How to manage negative online reviews

Don't be afraid of the odd negative review. Nobody is perfect 100% of the time, and customers would be suspicious of any business that had a perfect 5* record - fake reviews are bad for business.

If you have mapped and regularly tested your customer journey, you're happy with the motivation and culture of your team, and you are regularly seeking and monitoring customer feedback, then you can be confident that it's an anomaly. The key is how you handle it.

Remember, customers aren't always right, but it's your job is to make them feel that they are! Acknowledge and thank them for their feedback, apologise for the issue and assure them that it will be investigated and if the issue remains, it will be rectified. 

Serial complainers will always do what they do best, but, if your business is generally delivering a great customer experience, you can usually rely on your customers to defend and call out a rogue review - and this is worth its weight in gold.  

Ultimately, improving your customer experience is the surest way to retain loyalty, reduce cost and increase profits. And it's easier than you might think. 

The very act of asking customers for feedback has been shown to increase customer loyalty three-fold whilst also making them more profitable customers. 

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. To find your local CX Specialist and discover how we can transform your customer experience, call +44 (0) 800 970 8987 or visit www.insight6.com.

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