Invisible heroes
Staffino’s co-founder, Tomáš Rosputinský, used to explain why children never want to become call centre agents or shop-floor assistants. One of the reasons, he explained, was that those professions lacked heroes. But is this really true? Are these heroes missing or are they just invisible?
I truly enjoy those instances large organisations have an epiphany – when they realise that improving customer satisfaction and experience (CX) is a necessity. When they want to raise that experience, for either existing or new customers (but ideally both!), all the noteworthy managers and experts gather together (physically or virtually) to kick off a project that will “revolutionise their business”. Rarely this ends in one meeting, rather with dozens of them, each taking many hours. This sound familiar? Then bear with me!
VIPs only! Really!?
You don’t need to be a detective to deduce that in these meetings there are typically no shop-floor or contact centre workers. I am not talking about managers, but call centre agents themselves, the shop-floor assistants, the field technicians… People who work the front line, serving customers every day. If this doesn’t apply to your situation then I truly congratulate to you. You’ve nailed it! And I’m more than sure you are on the right track in your journey towards better CX. If no, then maybe it’s time to change something.
Data versus front-line staff. It’s not a battle!
It doesn’t need to be either/or. Both are needed to ensure excellent customer experience. I’m really not arguing against data. On the contrary, before initiating any intervention into your 4+2P (a quick reminder: 4+2P=product, price, place, promotion, people, processes) it is undoubtably worth checking market and sales data. With AI, as with all smart systems and gadgets, this is no longer a huge challenge if you know how to use them. But that all said, I tell you honestly, nothing is capable of replacing the know-how and benefit your front-line staff can bring to the table.
You have a secret weapon in your company. Why are you hiding it?
Your shop-floor assistants, contact centre agents, field technicians… even your receptionists are the true CX gurus. They know (or at least should, and I trust this):
@ your customer personas (who your typical customers are, their shopping patterns, motivations, what they are looking for and more besides)
@ their part in the customer journey (what is typically going wrong, the pain points, what customers appreciate)
@ and usually full of ideas (how to make customer – and staff! – journeys easier and convenient, where the low hanging fruit is and how best to pick it)
More often than not these people aren’t invited to join the discussions. Or they are simply not asked the right questions. This is truly a waste.
So now what?
If you want to improve a single element of your CX strategy, start by bringing some of your true heroes to the table (or to Zoom/Teams/Hangout/… screen). Shine a light on them. Make them visible and give them a voice! Be curious and listen carefully. And watch as the miracles happen 🙂
Kristína Félová
If you found this article helpful stay tuned as there is more to come, including hot tips and tricks to get CX right!
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