As customers, we know very well which companies we trust and which we dislike. But when we're on the other side, it's often difficult to know with complete certainty what our customers think of our brand, product, or service, right?
But rest assured, with advances in technology and customer-centric strategies, it's becoming increasingly easier to find answers to these concerns.
Today, there are several tools and methods for identifying what customers are saying about our company and whether or not they are recommending our brand to others. And that's what I'll tell you all about next!
The New Market
With the Internet, companies have expanded their contact with their customers, precisely because they have more points of contact: social networks, blogs, YouTube, websites, WhatsApp, etc.
The market and customer behavior change very quickly, and what was essential not long ago, digital marketing, is no longer enough.
Digital interaction alone is no longer sufficient or efficient for the new feedback economy . In fact, in an increasingly online world, offline interactions with customers can represent a major competitive advantage .
The stakes for artificial intelligence technologies are high. Marketers will be able to be more assertive in campaigns by knowing their customers' pain points and the true differentiators of their business. And customer service will also be optimized, leading to greater engagement in H2H, or Human-to-Human .
And in this new scenario, companies face some challenges:
- How can I get my customer's attention?
- How can I engage the customer?
- How do I generate more promoter customers who will recommend my brand?
Changes in Customer Dynamics
Thanks to the internet, consumers are much more concerned about the quality of products and companies before making any transaction. You can find out anything about a company using Google: do they have any complaints? How do they treat their customers? What are the main problems and difficulties their customers face?
And that's where we encounter a major bottleneck in business. Today, customers have much more information about the company than the company has about them . This makes everything more complicated when it comes to decision-making.
And all this abundance of information has made customer service a challenge. After all, if a customer receives poor service at the establishment, or even online, they'll complain to others about the company . And the chances are high that the business owner or management won't even find out. This makes it impossible to solve a problem, which in many cases could be simple.
Because of all this, it's much harder for organizations to capture their customers' attention. And if you're thinking about creating an assertive marketing campaign and engaging customer service, you should ask the most important person in your business: your customer!
Customers can fire everyone in a company, from the top executive on down, simply by spending their money elsewhere.
Sam Walton – Founder of Walmart
Good products and services are always welcome, and no one likes something that is defective or has an error, but unfortunately, this can happen.
And it is the company's role to understand the customer's side and provide the necessary support and attention to customer satisfaction and loyalty .
The Market Is More Inclusive
A few years ago, if you bought a substandard product, your complaint would reach some family members, close friends, and perhaps even acquaintances. The information wasn't passed on because the channels were limited and exclusive.
These days, if you buy a bad product, you can complain on social media and express your dissatisfaction to people you don't even know by tagging the company's name. This way, if someone else decides to research the product, they'll have access to your complaint and may be influenced by it. Today's world is inclusive, social, and horizontal.
Therefore, if a company wants to achieve success, it needs a horizontal structure. It's no longer enough to simply develop products and distribute them to the market. The company needs to involve the customer in this development process , ensuring that it reflects what's happening in the digital world.
Power has long since shifted from the company's hands to the customer's . Consumers no longer trust brand advertising, becoming much more influenced by friends, family, and social media, for example.
The New Customer Journey
These points I'll share now are taken from Philip Kotler's fantastic book Marketing 4.0 . I recommend it to everyone.
The goal of the new customer journey is to guide customers from the moment they become aware of your brand to the moment they become advocates and representatives of it. The steps of this journey are represented by the following 5 A's:
Aware : At this point, you need to let your customers know that your brand exists in the world. You can achieve this in a variety of ways, such as advertising, social media, AdWords, blogs, etc.
Appeal : Here, you need to demonstrate your uniqueness to the potential customer. This means standing out from your competitors, whether through design, company values, vision, or any other characteristic that catches the potential customer's attention.
Ask : At this stage, your potential customer will research your company. They might search on Google, ask an acquaintance or friend, or look for information in online communities. This is crucial and the main reason brands maintain a strong relationship with online communities. Positive search results will influence your potential customer, making them want to continue with your business.
Act : This is the purchase completion stage. The user pays for the product, completing the purchase. However, they generally only get this far if their search results are positive.
Advocate (Defender) : This is the post-sale stage. Customers satisfied with the product and the company's relationship will advocate for it.
The 'O' Zone
Zone O represents a person's sources of influence in decision-making. These sources are:
Own : These are the negative or positive experiences each individual has had with each brand. The company cannot control this source.
Other : This is information acquired during the 'Ask' phase of the five A's. These sources help the customer make their final decision. The company also has no control over these sources.
Outer : These are the sources of information received through digital and traditional communication channels. The company only has control over this source.
The company needs to position itself well in these three sources, maintaining a good relationship with customers and ensuring their satisfaction. Consider how your company positions itself within each of these sources. What is the online community saying about your product? How will these sources influence your potential customers?
Understanding each of them and improving your positioning can help you be successful.
Remember, a well-served customer speaks highly of your company, but a well-understood customer defends your company! Lucas Hansel – CPO of Harmo
In Search of the WOW Moment!
This is the moment when you surprise the customer and create a positive reaction. An example of this was Nubank . A woman sent a message to the company after her young son dropped her phone and she couldn't pay the bill. Customer service sent a letter with a phone case to protect her device and apologized for the incident! Many people were delighted with the company's customer service and shared the post on Facebook.
Winning companies are those that don't forget to create WOW moments in their customers.
Choose the Right Tool
I've talked about a lot of cool stuff so far, haven't I? But what about now? You might be wondering, how can I better understand my client and get more information about them ?
You need a tool that can track the scale of your challenges and bring intelligence to your operations—and implementing this can be challenging! Unfortunately, we don't have a mature feedback culture in Brazil, which leaves companies with little information about their consumers.
Did you realize that if you have vital and valuable information about your customer, you'll be able to effectively identify and solve problems, as well as anticipate trends and behavior patterns? And will all those A's and Philip Kotler's Zone O be a success?
Well, everything is resolved easily when we have accurate and quick information about our customers.
But let's move on to choosing the tool. What it should have:
- Be simple and in real time;
- Have multiple channels to reach the customer wherever they are;
- Be flexible and multi-metric to have a complete view of the customer experience;
- Have easy and hassle-free access to data to work with;
- Questions that automatically generate graphs;
- Have data crossing and filters for customized comparisons;
- Reporting;
- Have a good experience when answering the questionnaire;
Be where your customer is! Don't use a tool that limits you when it comes to collection points. Since the power lies in the consumer's hands, they will choose which channel to use to provide feedback.
And one tool that meets these needs is Harmo , the most complete platform on the market for managing and controlling feedback between brands and consumers.
