Entrepreneurs and business owners are well aware that customers are important for business. But how and where customers are placed in the entire organization’s structure can tell us a lot about its future. Irrespective of past and present performance, if a company is not customer-centric, it doesn’t have a future.
What is the meaning of being customer-centric?
The term customer-centric means keeping clients at the focal point of your venture. If you look at the structure of an atom, it has a nucleus, and electrons revolve around it. The nucleus, in this case, is the client, and all business functions, including support, are the electrons. This is the ideal structure of an organization. Creating a customer-centric business pays rich dividends.
Key elements of customer-centricity
The ability to continuously adapt to consumers’ growing needs is customer-centricity. This means fostering a culture where the consumer is prioritized. A customer-centric organization will ingrain the following values/elements within it. These are:
- A dedicated customer support team and empathic support agents.
- A common agenda among all employees — To improve the customer’s brand experience.
- Mechanism to collect customer feedback and work on them.
- Continuous upgrades and improvements in products and services are needed.
- Thorough customer service training for all employees at regular intervals.
- Initiatives for boosting customer engagement at every touchpoint.
Now that we know the common characteristics exhibited by customer-centric organizations let’s understand how an organization can become customer-centric.
Customer-focused means the business focuses on the customer to benefit from the relationship. Customer-centric, on the other hand, implies that the company exists solely to benefit the customer. If the customer benefits, the business benefits. That is the essence of being customer-centric.
How does customer-centricity benefit your business?
Improves customer experience (CX)
A customer-centric business does not have to try too hard to please customers. Providing a delightful experience comes naturally to them. Business owners do not have to worry about churn when the customer experience (CX) is delightful. It makes retention easy and keeps the cost of new customer acquisition low.
Increases revenue inflow
Truly delighted customers are a rarity these days. With online marketplaces flourishing and customers having a wide range of options, businesses struggle to keep their customer base intact. This is where customer-centricity helps.
Customers do not mind paying extra if the experience is delightful. When needs are fulfilled and expectations met, they will reward the brand by giving them business. It’s the customers’ way of rewarding you. They will anticipate the stellar experience you provide them whenever they use your products and services or do business with you. This continued relationship ensures a steady rise in your revenue.
Boosts brand advocacy
Customers love to talk. Good, bad, or moderate — whatever the experience they might face during their brand journey, you can count on customers to voice their opinions. When the business prioritizes them, they feel happy, speak about their good experiences, and become brand advocates by choice. Good brand advocacy is more valuable than advertising and marketing. Potential customers want to know about the experiences of existing customers before making a choice. If you want your brand or product to be the topic of good conversations, being customer-centric is one way to attain that.
How to make your business customer-centric?
Customer centricity is a core value that organizations need to imbibe within. It lies strategically between Customer Experience (CX), Customer Value, and Customer Lifecycle.
A people-centric service and support strategy that engages existing and prospective clients through multichannel support and brings value to the brand-customer relationship is crucial to becoming customer-centric.
In the customer service and support industry, this implies treating all incoming calls/requests as real human beings, valuing customers for taking the time to reach out to you and seeking assistance. Listening to them, empathizing with them, and making them feel important when doing business with your company. The crux of a customer-centric mindset is valuing human relationships.
A customer-centric mindset is created when support agents do not treat cases or calls as tickets or tasks that must be completed. When an agent understands the customer's position seeking help, provides resolution in the first instance, and acknowledges the customer for doing business with your brand, your business qualifies as customer-centric. Recruiting the right people, providing suitable training to employees, and sensitizing them to customer problems help in a big way.
These are the best ways for a business to be customer-centric:
- Collaborate with customers on a solid foundation of technology
- Transform customer service (CS)
- Promise to deliver the best product, service as well as support
- Elevate overall customer experience (CX)
In addition, service managers and support teams may consider the following steps:
- Listen to your customers — Optimize omnichannel customer support and messaging. Collect consumer feedback and work on them.
- Engage meaningfully with customers — Anticipate customer needs proactively. Prioritize pricing, value, and convenience. Align your services with your customers’ needs.
- Ensure quality and convenience—Adopt robust yet easy-to-use technology to serve customers. Connect touchpoints and take swift action to resolve customer problems.
- Gather valuable insight from data — Use customer data to drive personalization at scale. Follow trends and insights that shape the future of customer service.
- Choose the right helpdesk software!
Quality of service and support are deciding factors for consumers before finalizing a brand to purchase any product. Speed, convenience, knowledgeable help, and friendly service across multiple channels are essential elements that reinforce a brand's customer-centricity. At this crucial juncture, choosing the right helpdesk software can make a difference for your support agents and customers.
Also Read: What Are Customer Touchpoints – And Why They Matter
ThinkOwl is AI-powered helpdesk software to help your service and support team become more customer-centric. It has a multichannel inbox and supports integrations with other software or applications. It is cloud-based, which means round-the-clock service from anywhere in the world.
A customer-centric company puts client satisfaction at the forefront and aims to have a long-term association with clients in a peaceful, courteous, and collaborative manner. When customers feel valued, they do more business with you. More business means a sustainable and profitable business.
With ThinkOwl, you can pay attention to details, improve service quality, and deliver an exceptional experience your customers will love. Sign up for a 30-day free trial now.