Unless you’re locked away or lost on some island, chances are you are serving someone whether you like it or not. For some, this process of serving someone is front and center to their way of living. They have a product or service, or perhaps both, and if they know what they’re doing, they have a pretty good idea of their customer constituency. Ok, great. But does the job stop there? I mean is it enough to have a great service and/or product, and knowledge of whom the product or service is for? Not quite. In this article, we will explore one of the more obvious aspects of dealing with customers. Unfortunately, as evident as that may seem, many fail to give it the attention it deserves.
What am I talking about? I’m talking about making the connection with the customer. Ask yourself this simple question: can they find you? If indeed your product and/or service (from hereon let’s call this your PS) addresses a customer’s need, then when the customer encounters that need, how likely is it that they will end up on your doorstep (or website as the case may be)?
If I were looking for an easy to use notebook computer for my daughter entering college, the first thing that comes to mind is Apple. Perhaps a Macbook Pro, and I could get that with a student discount and probably a deal on a printer as well. If I bought in the months leading to the start of the Fall semester, I may get a free iPod too. You see how that thought process went? Ok, so most will probably have stopped at the thought of the Apple Macbook Pro. But if that’s the case, then Apple has already accomplished the hardest part of the whole customer experience process. They got me thinking “Apple” when I was confronted with a need.
What about your company? Realistically, few if any companies are ever to going to match (at this point at least) the brand equity of Apple. Even Microsoft, with its deep pockets couldn’t make a dent. The more Microsoft tried, the worse the outcome. Google too, with its Android platform, isn’t expected to even scratch at the iPhone’s dominance.
Most people today would search, or, as many say, would “google” for an answer for what ails them. As obvious as it may sound, if you do not have a strategy to ensure that potential customers can find you online, then no amount of tactical moves will contribute to a lasting solution that will help funnel customers to your doorstep. And without visibility, you have no business.
In our next article, we will discuss this all-important first step in the customer experience process: finding you online. When your customer is ready to engage, will you be there to serve them? We’ll discuss that and more in our next installment.
Traci Nelson
Interesting start. Looks like a good, pragmatic blog is going to be born here…