You know as well as we do that even though there is a major focus on customer experience, it all comes back to your staff. How happy are they? Do they have the technology they need to do their job well? Are you giving them access to what they need to prepare for customer engagements properly?
There are so many questions to consider - and so many reasons why the staff experience is just as important (if not more) than the customer experience. Your employees are the ones interacting with your customers on a regular basis, whether in-person or remotely - so the more informed they are, the happier your customers will be with the level of service. In fact, according to MIT research, businesses in the top quartile on employee experience have double the customer loyalty of those in the bottom quartile.
So what can you do to improve the staff experience and thus improve the customer experience? By investing in an experiential relationship management (XRM) platform that empowers your staff to have the information they need to provide personalized services, your organization can increase engagement and revenue. Here are just a few of the benefits that implementing an XRM strategy and enabling your staff through technology can provide.
Increased employee engagement
Disengaged employees can cost companies between $450 and $550 billion dollars per year, according to Gallup. That’s why focusing on increased employee engagement is crucial to your success. With an XRM strategy and platform in place, you can increase your staff engagement by giving them access to the insights they need to properly prepare for their one-to-one engagements with customers.
Your staff will be able to review past appointments, communications history, and past outcomes to provide a unique and personalized experience tailored to the customers’ wants and needs versus providing generic recommendations or advice.
When your employees have the tools to properly prepare for meetings with clients, they have the opportunity to connect with customers on a deeper level and be more successful in their roles. All of this leads to increased employee engagement and higher customer satisfaction.
Managing customer flow and expectations
Customer expectations are ever-evolving and changing, and it can be hard to keep up. Whether your staff is behind on appointments leading to increased wait times, or they are having trouble managing the flow of customers during peak times, it can be easy to feel defeated in these high-pressure situations.
Out of your control or not, a bad experience can make or break your relationship with a customer. In a recent study from PwC, 1 in 3 customers will leave a brand they love after just one bad experience, while 92% would completely abandon a company after two or three negative interactions. All it takes is that one poor experience to lose a customer. And we know, especially in banking where the cost to acquire a customer is high, how important customer lifetime value (CLV) is.
With people overestimating the time they wait in line by 36%, it’s important to have your staff manage capacity and help reduce wait times - whether in-branch or in-store. By having an XRM platform that seamlessly helps your staff manage appointments, you can smooth the peaks and valleys of foot traffic. Along with crowd control, this also helps manage customer expectations. No one wants to wait in line or feel frustrated that they aren’t being listened to, and by using technology to help ease these interactions between your staff and customers, you are ensuring staff can remain focused on what matters most: providing great customer service!
Increased revenue
By giving your staff a way to engage with your customers and establish valuable one-to-one time with them, you have the opportunity to increase personalization and revenue. This is a great way to improve the staff experience because whether they are working toward a common goal or receive commission, having the right technology in place will help them meet their specific goals. And the benefit for your business? Personalization has been shown to lead to an increase in customer spend, customer retention, and customer loyalty:
- 64% of customers will invest more in a service after a personalized interaction
- When the shopping experience was highly personalized, customers said they were more likely to add additional items to 110% their baskets and 40% more likely to spend more than they had planned
- 91% of customers say they are more likely to shop with brands that provide offers and recommendations that are relevant to them
- For every $100 billion in assets that a bank has, it can achieve as much as $300 million in revenue growth by personalizing the interaction
As a bank, your staff can prepare for appointments with your customers by looking at past history, ensuring they are providing the proper services and information whether it’s opening a new account or advising on loans and investments. Your staff will be able to pull the information they need in advance to have a great customer interaction and increase customer satisfaction.
As a retailer, your staff can look into your customers’ profiles to see what types of products they like and can then tailor customized looks and shopping baskets for them. You can also ask the customer questions before the appointment to provide the most relevant choices and products, further enhancing their experience.
By deploying an XRM technology that helps your staff manage the experiences they are providing your customers, you can increase employee engagement, manage customer flow, and drive revenue growth. This will help your employees feel like they are set up for success, and will continue to motivate them to work hard to exceed your organization’s goals.
At JRNI, we have a staff tool that empowers your staff to get the insights they need to build personalized relationships at scale. Learn more in the video below:
And if you want to learn more about how JRNI improves the staff experience, empowering your team to easily prepare for appointments and provide unique, personalized experiences, then request a demo to speak with an expert!
