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Get free accessThe customer experience lifecycle is perpetually interrupted – with poor sales funnels and unprepared teams unable to capture interest, dollars, or sustainable relationships. The experiences instead prove short, and they end in lost conversions.
According to a recent study from Fox Business, significantly impacts profit streams:
25% to 40% of total revenue for stable businesses comes from repeat consumers.
Returning consumers spend 2.6 times more than single purchasers.
Customers who make a single purchase are 27% more likely to return (if their experiences with the company are satisfying).
These statistics highlight the value – and necessity – of cultivating a long-term, mutually-beneficial relationship over the entire customer lifecycle.
Through proactive sales cycles, companies can enhance revenue and brand loyalty alike, ensuring successful quarters. This process requires an understanding of both the customer experience lifecycle and the of role the telephone plays in that experience.
What is the Customer Lifecycle Experience?
With every call comes a chance for connection – with the sales team and managers alike seeking to engage with consumers. These engagements are known as customer experience lifecycle, and they’re essential to the funnel process.
Simply explained, the customer lifecycle experience represents each stage of communication between companies and consumers. These stages – which include Reach, Acquirement, Development, and Feedback – shape each sale, guiding men and women toward check-out lines (whether virtual or brick-and-mortar). When optimized, they ensure success.
Optimization is no easy task, however. At the core of every customer experience lifecycle is a need for stellar service – with customers demanding more than products and marketing strategies. They also crave relationships.
76% of consumers claim that the quality of service reflects how much each brand values them.
47% of consumers claim that fast responses to both questions and complaints are essential to their satisfaction.
45% of consumers claim that a lack of interest prevents brands from achieving seamless experiences.
The customer experience lifecycle is no longer just a series of sales tactics. It’s instead direct communication between companies and their key demographics – and those demographics now require enhanced responses. Fusing marketing with the telephone, therefore, is vital for every brand.
What is the Role of the Telephone in the Customer Experience Lifecycle?
Phone calls still provide viable alternatives to Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube – allowing for personalized responses throughout every step of the process.
The Reach
Every cycle begins with The Reach. This is the initial contact made between brands and consumers, establishing connections that will (ideally) blossom into sales. It’s a form of outbound marketing – which employs broad strategies to attract potential demographics – and its purpose is to locate, and engage with, possible purchasers.
While not the only method used (other outbound options include radio ads, trade show appearances, press releases, direct mail campaigns, and branded giveaways), telemarketing is a reliable option for companies. It offers an instant link to consumers, with human interaction proving appealing. According to a recent study by Accenture, 83% of U.S. customers prefer conversing with individuals, rather than reading emails or responding to digital posts.
This makes a telephone call a worthy addition to every funnel.
The Acquirement
The next step in the customer experience lifecycle is The Acquirement. After establishing contact during The Reach, companies can then begin to cultivate relationships with their customers – gaining critical insights into their service expectations, product demands, and more. This shifts the marketing strategy from outbound to inbound, emphasizing personalization with every call.
Personalization is the process of tailoring sales strategies to specific demographics, fusing their needs with every pitch. This helps to create trust between all parties, proving a brand’s desire to enhance each customer’s experience. This is a fundamental element to every funnel, with a study from Forrester noting the positive effects on:
Awareness : 31% (High Impact) and 42% (Moderate Impact).
Acquisition : 27% (High Impact) and 40% (Moderate Impact).
Efficiency : 28% (High Impact) and 33% (Moderate Impact).
Client Consideration : 24% (High Impact) and 51% (Moderate Impact).
Effectiveness : 24% (High Impact) and 50% (Moderate Impact).
Retention and Loyalty : 24% (High Impact) and 49% (Moderate Impact).
These numbers highlight the importance of personalization – and, when employed through telephone marketing, this process delivers strong sales results.
Incorrect Example of Personalization
“Good afternoon. I’m from Company ABC and wish to speak with you about our latest service.”
Correct Example of Personalization
“Good afternoon, Ms. Smith. This is Jane Doe from Company ABC. I see that you recently purchased Product A, and I just wanted to let you know that we’re launching a new service for that line-up. I thought you might be interested.”
By addressing consumers – both by name and their past purchases – representatives help to generate trust; and this leads to successful Acquirements.
The Development
Each lifecycle shifts seamlessly from The Acquirement to The Development. This stage stresses the need for lead nurturing, with sales teams routinely seeking out customers to enquire about their purchases and to reinvigorate their interest in the brand. It’s a targeted campaign (still utilizing personalization techniques) that strengthens relationships and encourages constant communication.
Example One : “Hello, Ms. Smith. This is Jane Doe from Company ABC. I was just calling to remind you that your Product A’s annual service check is coming up soon. Would you like me to go ahead and schedule your appointment?”
Example Two : “Good afternoon, Ms. Smith. This is Jane Doe from Company ABC. We’re hosting a special event this weekend in your town to celebrate our latest product launch, and we were hoping you could attend.”
Example Three : “Good evening, Ms. Smith. This is Jane Doe from Company ABC. I wanted to let you know that you order has been confirmed and should arrive by the end of the week.”
Through these interactions, The Development stage enables companies to nurture every lead – bolstering relationships through simple courtesy and communication.
The Feedback
Retention defines every marketing strategy. No company can survive without dedicated demographics – each willing to purchase, promote, and praise products. Ending each lifecycle with The Feedback stage, therefore, is important.
The Feedback stage is aptly named, with marketers calling customers and asking for candid assessments of their goods, services, and team members. Through this, brands can better understand their strengths and weaknesses – as well as provide assurance that they care about public opinion. Through this, loyalty is achieved.
With that commitment comes profits. According to a study from Bain & Company Inc., satisfied consumers are more than twice as likely to become repeat customers, with their spending habits growing with every quarter.
By retaining clients, companies can bolster their revenues – as well as their referrals. The same Bain & Company Inc. survey noted that loyal customers frequently promote brands, leading to a surge of new demographics:
Referrals for First Purchase: 3.1.
Referrals for up to Five Purchases: 5.4.
Referrals for Ten or More Purchases: 7.1.
By implementing The Feedback stage, companies can quickly access consumer opinions – using these to enhance their operations and further improve relationships, promising value for every man and woman.
Example One : “Hello, Ms. Smith. This is Jane Doe from Company ABC. I know you’re busy, but I was wondering if you had a few minutes to spare for a product survey? We’re hoping to find ways to serve our customers better and your feedback would be a tremendous help.”
Example Two : “Good afternoon, Ms. Smith. This is Jane Doe from Company ABC. I know you recently purchased Product A, and I was wondering if you could tell me about your experiences with it so far? We want to make sure that you’re completely satisfied with it.”
Example Three : “Good evening, Ms. Smith. This is Jane Doe from Company ABC. You were kind enough recently to answer an online survey about our products. We wanted to contact you about some of those answers, though, since you reported that you weren’t happy with your purchases. We hate to think that any of our clients aren’t satisfied, and we were hoping you could give us some further details. We want to make sure we fix this problem for you.”
Through The Feedback stage, companies can redefine both their relationships and their production practices – gaining critical consumer insights. With these insights (both positive and negative) comes a chance for growth.
Through the four stages of the customer experience lifecycle – Reach, Acquirement, Development, and Feedback – brands can transform their sales funnels and accelerate their operations. The telephone just expedites this process, offering one-on-one interactions and viable B2C results.
Published on July 16, 2016.
