Here's the premise: Most organizations focus most of their Customer Satisfaction time and metrics on the outcome of a transaction or project. Outcome is important -- measuring things like quality, on-time delivery, return rates, etc. has brought the world a long way, particularly in manufacturing. But services can be measured in terms of outcome, as well -- Did it get fixed? Did it get fixed on time? Did it stay fixed? Etc. etc.
Outcome
alone
will
not
ensure
your
long-term
success
with
a
customer.
Rather,
creating
a
"raving
fan"
is
a
more
appropriate
goal
--
to
create
a
customer
who's
out
there
advocating
for
you,
recommending
you,
and
bringing
you
up
in
conversation
unprompted.
This
is
the
stuff
"word
of
mouth"
is
all
about.
What
else
does
it
take
besides
a
great
outcome?
A
great
customer
experience.
Customers
are
people,
too,
and
they
remember
just
how
easy
(or
hard)
it
was
to
do
business
with
you.
They
remember
not
only
how
it
ended,
but
also
how
it
felt
during
the
process.
Did
they
have
to
call
you
for
updates,
or
did
you
provide
them
at
the
appropriate
intervals?
How
many
rings
did
it
take
for
them
to
get
an
answer,
or
were
they
able
to
get
around
the
"dial
through
Hell"
inbound
call
menu
(raving
fans
expect
a
hotline
--
not
to
be
treated
like
any
other
random
phone
call
that
rings
into
your
business).
It's the combination of outcome and customer experience that creates a raving fan, and there are several gradations below that point:
- Raving
Fans
--
They're
out
recommending
you
and
mentioning
your
name
unprompted
- Loyal
Customers
--
They're
solid
with
you,
and
would
probably
stiff-arm
a
competitor
who
called
up
and
suggested
he
come
over
to
"get
acquainted."
Their
response,
"I'm
well-served
by
my
current
supplier."
- At
Risk
Customers
--
They're
still
on
board,
but
would
probably
grant
an
appointment
to
a
competitor
who
called
up
and
suggested
he
come
over
to
"get
acquainted."
And,
left
alone,
may
decide
to
try
his
product
or
service
- Searching
--
These
customers
have
been
poorly
served
in
either
outcome
or
experience,
and
had
mediocre
results
on
the
other,
as
well.
They're
out
actively
seeking
an
alternative
to
your
product
or
service
- Gone -- Most of us have one or more of these -- when you look back, it's usually a "perfect storm" of not only marginal outcome, but also a bad customer experience, to boot.
I'm willing to presume that most companies today do something to measure, track and improve the outcome of whatever deliverable they provide. What is it that you're doing to measure, track and improve the experience your customers or clients have in their ongoing relationship with you? This is the "foreword" article of several in which we'll highlight things real CEBI member companies are doing to measure, track and improve customer experience. Stay tuned.
