Another Way of Increasing Customer Satisfaction

Anyone who's been in an industry long enough notices the changes happening around them. With the wisdom of intuition, academics, and industry experts, we can safely say that customer interactions in sales have undergone a noticeable shift. The biggest change? A move away from isolated touchpoints toward the complete customer journey.

While this shift started years ago, adoption isn't the problem, execution is. Most businesses are still operating as if individual touchpoints are what matter, not the complete journey.

The Real Opportunity

At its core, the customer journey is about understanding your customer's path from problem recognition through consumption evaluation. But here's where most businesses miss a competitive advantage: they haven't aligned their processes, products, and people to match that journey.

Two Critical Steps

1. Map Your Customer Journey

Identify every step your customer takes, from initial problem recognition through post-purchase.

But here's the crucial part: customers don't think in steps. They flow through the journey seamlessly. Your internal map must show the overlaps between what used to be separate touchpoints, so the customer experience remains smooth and uninterrupted.

2. Align Your Business to the Journey

At each step of the customer journey, evaluate what's needed: process, product, or people, then adjust your resources accordingly.

Process alignment: Your processes must match how customers search for information, how they evaluate you as a problem solver, and how they consider your alternatives.

Product alignment: Your products and services must meet customer needs at each stage - price, quality, functionality, and solving underlying problems.

People alignment: Your team has multiple roles throughout the journey:

• Providing information

• Influencing evaluation of alternatives

• Supporting purchase decisions

• Enabling consumption

• Resolving post-purchase issues

• Offering ongoing support

Some journey steps need minimal human involvement, your people play a supporting role while processes and products take the lead. Other steps demand strong human engagement. Adjust accordingly.

The Result

When done right, alignment across processes, products, and people drives:

• Increased revenue

• Higher repeat purchase rates

• Reduced customer churn

• Improved customer satisfaction