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Business IS Emotional
Traditionally it has been assumed that B2B decisions are made on price, product and other profoundly physical and rational aspects of the Customer Experience with only limited recourse to the emotions. However, in a recently completed research study conducted by Beyond Philosophy on 33 leading organizations in the USA and UK, we reveal that emotions and their management are in fact a fundamental and undervalued source of value.
Don't take that tone with me!
Phoning a call center has become one of our main experiences when purchasing products such as insurance and travel. Adverts such as 'lucky from More Than' or 'Hastings Direct' all promise convenience and ease at the best possible price. Indeed, such has been the success of this channel that for companies such as Thomas Cook, it is the call center that has actually become the leading sales channel over the traditional retail store.
Too often, though, the desire to cut costs has led to the use of cheap staff, outsourcing overseas and a general lack of interest in how best to handle the communication between front-line staff and customers. The inevitable consequence is customer disgruntlement and frustration whether this is at the surly, uncaring attitude, the inability to understand an accent or the lack of knowledge on the other end of the line.
Music & Money
Many services marketing plans focus exclusively on some combination of the traditional "marketing mix": product/service, pricing, promotional activities and distribution. Some argue that when marketing services the traditional "four Ps" do not cover all the bases adequately and that services marketers must also consider the effects of personnel, customer service, and physical facilities on customer satisfaction (Magrath, 1988).
The impact of service providers' physical facilities (environments) on customer behavior and satisfaction has recently gained the attention of some services marketers (Bitner, 1992).
Benchmark your company in the use of loyalty emotions for profit
In this short extract we highlight a fourfold matrix of how companies lever loyalty emotions for profit.
"Don't forget to search through our archive of thought-leading articles." More...
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Top Tip from Beyond Philosophy Team
How can you evoke a certain emotional climate?
Have you considered the full impact of the sensory and emotional environment?
These are not just about the product or service you provide but how these are provided, whether it's the tone used in a call center or the sense evoked in a retail store. If you haven't thought about these before then you are missing a trick. From our work this equally applies in a B2B environment where personal relationships count.
Talk to an analyst
Interested in any up and coming analyst briefings on the Customer Experience? Then please send an email to Steven Walden
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If you feel you
have any major issues you would like to raise or you have a problem you
would like to discuss with us or even an issue to research, why not drop
us a line and let us know any thoughts or views you have on any Customer
Experience articles and topics covered.
Email the editor at: contact@beyondphilosophy.com
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