Today the customer journey is a multi-faceted force. One that is played out as much online as it is in-store. Whether customers are purchasing for pleasure, utility or need, how satisfied they are at the end comes down to their shopping experience. As such, those retailers that meet and better yet exceed customer expectations are the modern success stories.
Could your customer journey do with some polish? Here are five ways to improve your customer journey and in doing so garner greater consumer satisfaction and loyalty:
1. Technological connectivity
Almost every customer journey is touched by the digital space at some point. This places customers in ultimate control. So many customers will visit a physical store simply to get the low down on a product only to go and buy this online. While control may lie with the customer, retailers can use powers of persuasion to guide the customer journey. The answer lies in simply making in-store purchasing more attractive through measures such as price matching, easy competitor price comparisons via kiosks or mobile apps and more.
2. Cohesion
Organisational silos have got to go. These sap the lie from your customer journey by creating bumps in the road and often just plain old obstacles. Cohesion is key. Every aspect of your organisational marketing, communication, consumer-facing online interfaces such as product availability checking and more must be seamlessly in tune.
3. Bespoke service for one and all
No customer journey is identical to another. That means personalisation is mission critical to enhancing the customer journey offered by your organisation. You want to leverage smart technology, staff and all other capabilities at your disposal to tailor special offers, discounts and recommendations to individual customers.
4. Brand integration
Your brand is the blueprint to your retail organisation identity. As such, one of the most powerful ways you can forge a seamless smooth customer journey is through a consistent brand experience throughout all customer touch points. Online and instore service should all work in unison to reinforce your brand.
5. Customer inclusion
What better way to tailor a memorable customer than by prioritising connections with your customers. That means gathering information about their individual shopping motivations and needs plus fostering a customer-centric culture throughout your organisation. Be sure to keep your customers front of mind when compiling and deploying your digital strategy too.
Keen to enhance your customer journey? Speak to Design Clarity for results already being enjoyed by retailers such as:
