Customer experience testing means looking through new eyes

There’s an old joke. A customer in a restaurant waves the waiter over to his table. “Excuse me,” he says, “Would you please taste this soup?” The waiter responds, “Why, sir, is there something wrong with the soup?”

“Just taste it,” replies the customer. The waiter looks at the table. “I can’t, there’s no spoon.”

“Exactly!” says the customer.

I’ve had a number of recent experiences as a customer that demonstrate the same lack of awareness on the part of a business.

I recently attended a professional convention at a fancy hotel. My room was very elegant, BUT there was no desk for me to use, no easily accessible way to plug in my computer, no empty drawers into which I could unpack my clothes, and nowhere to hang up a wet towel in the bathroom! Clearly, the designers of this hotel had never looked at the room through a traveler’s eyes.

The impact of a bad customer experience

Now in a hotel, you’re somewhat captive. Few people will go through the hassle of relocating to another hotel mid-trip. For most businesses, though, a flaw in the initial customer experience may mean you’ll never engage that customer. 

Think about the websites you’ve visited that were impossible to navigate. Chances are, you’re not going to decide to pick up the phone or visit the office to get the answers you need. You’ll simply find another option that more easily gets you to your goal. 

And who hasn’t experienced the phone answering services that keep you on hold for an hour and then cut you off? Or doctors’ offices where you talk to a machine and book your own appointment without ever connecting with a human being? And then when you do get to the office the doctor keeps you waiting for 45 minutes without a word of apology.

These business owners are all making the same mistake. As they design their customer interface, they focus on what they need from the customer, not what the customer needs or wants from them. 

If you’re trying to grow a business and establish your brand as top quality, I highly recommend that you engage with your business as a customer would. This is just as true for consumer businesses as it is for B2B and professional services firms. Try staying in one of the rooms in your hotel. Attempt to transact business on your own website. Call your help desk and see what happens. Try to make an appointment to see yourself.

If you have a superb experience, great! And if not, fix it. Your customers will thank you, and your business will thrive.

For more ideas about how to create a great customer experience, contact us.