How To Improve Customer Focus: 6 Tips and Strategies

In 2007, after delivering close to 1 billion DVDs into customers’ mailboxes, Netflix realised its customers would prefer something different — inexpensive, simple-to-access entertainment they could watch on demand. Netflix recognised it needed to be more customer focused, even when it meant disrupting its own business model. What is customer focus? Obsessive knowledge of both what your customers need, and how to deliver it. 

For Netflix, it was a smart move. The company’s video streaming service not only proved to be hugely popular, it also changed how we consume television and movies altogether. Rival DVD rental business Blockbuster failed to adapt to meet the changing market. The rest is history. 

In an era of changing customer expectations and increased market competition, it’s more important than ever for businesses to have razor-sharp customer focus.

What is customer focus?

Customer-focused businesses are built around customers’ needs. Becoming one involves concentrating on how every interaction helps the customer, rather than how it helps your business.

Putting customers at the heart of everything you do as a business places you in a better position to build relationships, help customers to achieve their goals, and increase customer satisfaction (all key benefits of a robust CRM).

Yet many companies are falling at the first hurdle, as they fail to understand customers’ needs and expectations, or to adapt to their actions and behaviours.

According to Salesforce’s “State of the Connected Customer” report, 73% of customers expect companies to understand their needs and expectations, but only 51% believe companies generally do. Similarly, 62% of customers expect companies to adapt based on their actions and behaviours, but just 47% believe companies generally do.

What are some examples of a customer-focused organisation?

Fast food giant McDonald’s is known for listening to what customers want and responding accordingly. The restaurant chain introduced an all-day breakfast after feedback on social media and through online surveys suggested widespread interest in breakfast items all day. The company has continued to let a customer-focused mindset guide in-store innovation, rolling out easy-order kiosks to reduce waiting time, and partnering with delivery service Uber Eats.

Dollar Shave Club is another company that turned a simple insight — consumers found buying razors expensive and a hassle — into a clever business idea. Subscribers of the service receive razors on a regular basis for a set monthly fee. The company launched in 2011, receiving a major boost in 2012 when a YouTube video starring co-founder Michael Dubin went viral. Unilever has since acquired it in a deal reported to be worth $1 billion.

Even small ideas can make a big difference. When designers at GE Healthcare realised that children were terrified of the company’s magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) systems — with as many as 80% needing sedation before a scan — they set out to make them less frightening.

Unable to redesign the multimillion-dollar machines, they focused on the experience, transforming the MRI suite into a kids’ adventure story. They applied colourful decals to the surfaces of the machine, and machine operators were given a script to lead their patients through the adventure. In one version, the MRI is a pirate ship. In another, the MRI is a spaceship transporting the patient into space. Since the redesign, the number of children needing sedation has fallen dramatically and patient satisfaction scores have increased to 90%.

How do you build a customer-focused culture?

To build a truly customer-focused culture, you first need to ensure you understand your customers and their needs. This involves collecting disconnected sources of customer data into a single, 360-degree view of your customer and, of course, being able to put that data into action to deliver better experiences. 

These six tips will get you started:

1. Listen to your customers

To really get to know your customers, put yourself in their shoes and ask:

• What are their needs?
• What’s driving their decision-making?’
• What are their goals?
• What are they feeling?

For example, knowing that a customer’s primary goal is to save time at work and spend more time with family can help you find them the right solution.

Enabling a sense of customer empathy. Take a walk in your customers’ shoes to help you gain a new perspective on aspects of your business you’re not close to. For example, you may believe focusing on a product’s high-tech specifications is the best way for a sales representative to seal a deal. But customers may be more interested in hearing how it will help make their life easier.

Although sales and customer service staff are on the front line dealing with customers, improved customer focus should be a company-wide priority.

Create opportunities for non-customer-facing staff across the business – from the CEO down – to spend time with customers or handle service calls to learn from customers firsthand. Gather and analyse data — such as web analytics, attrition rates, and product use patterns — to gain insight, and invite customers to provide feedback.

Surveys are a great way to find out what your customers really think about your business. Or set up a customer advisory board to meet several times a year and discuss industry trends, business priorities, and strategy. Share results of customer feedback throughout your business.

Social listening — monitoring what’s said about your brand online — can also be a useful tool for building a customer-focused mindset. Look for direct mentions of your company or products on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and other social media, and try these strategies for social listening.

• Check for direct mentions and hashtags featuring your brand and products. Don’t forget common misspellings. You know how to spell your company or product name, but customers may not.
• Monitor the hashtags your customers use. The terms you use may not reflect how your customers discuss your company or industry. Follow thought leaders, industry influencers, or companies who represent your ideal customer. Track the hashtags they use.
• Track competitors’ activity. Do you know what customers are asking your rivals? If the same questions keep coming up, consider whether you should address them in your own blog or marketing content.
• Ask your audience for feedback. Want to know something specific? Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram all have polling tools. Or, simply ask your followers open-ended questions.

2. Make space for ideas

According to the “State of the Connected Customer” research, 62% of customers now expect companies to adapt based on their actions and behaviours. This increases to 67% among Millennials and Generation Z.

Many businesses have traditionally left new ideas to a select group, but great ideas can come from anywhere. In fact, organisations including Unilever, Ikea, and Lego now actively involve customers in problem-solving and new product development through co-creation platforms and initiatives. 

As organisational consultant Simon Sinek said, “The role of a leader is not to come up with all the great ideas. The role of a leader is to create an environment in which great ideas can happen.”

3. Break down internal barriers

Silos, swim lanes, bubbles. Organisational experts may use different terms, but the core problem is the same: Customer data lives in multiple systems owned by different departments, which leads customers to have a disconnected experience when dealing with your business.

While 78% of customers say they expect consistent interactions across departments, their expectations are falling short: 59% said it typically feels as though they’re communicating with separate departments, not one unified organisation. About two-thirds (66%) of customers said they often have to repeat or re-explain information to different representatives.

Disjointed data is a significant barrier to creating the more valuable, personalised experiences customers are looking for from businesses these days. 

Breaking down silos is easier said than done. But to be truly customer-focused, businesses need to work toward building a complete 360-degree customer view. In doing so, they will be able to deliver unified cross-channel customer engagement.

4. Unlock your data

Technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT) raise the bar for business. Many consumers and business buyers are prepared to pay a premium for differentiated, first-to-market products and services, putting businesses under pressure to get ahead.

Seventy-five percent of customers expect companies to use new technologies to create better experiences. A similar proportion (74%) expect companies to use existing technologies in new ways to create better experiences.

This might mean using a customer’s browsing and purchasing history to make personalised recommendations. Or sending push notifications to a customer’s phone offering a discount on products they’ve browsed. It could also  mean using chatbots to collect and qualify information so agents have more time to spend solving customers’ problems.

5. Appoint a customer-focused advocate

Customer focus can get lost in the day-to-day business of, well, running a business. That’s why appointing a chief customer officer (CCO) is a great idea.

The CCO’s role is to be the voice of the customer and ensure that customer focus is maintained throughout your organisation. They use data and research to champion customers’ needs, help guide the design of products and processes, and identify where teams need to improve their customer focus skills.

They also ensure that having a strong customer focus results in tangible benefits to your business, including increased customer satisfaction, less customer churn, and greater revenue.

6. Create opportunities for learning

Although building a customer-focused culture isn’t something you do overnight, implementing these strategies will set you on the path for success. 

Keep employees updated on progress, invite their ideas and feedback, and provide access to resources such as Salesforce Trailhead training modules to help them develop customer-focus skills. Options are many, including the basics of customer journeys and improving customer service agents’ communication skills.

Ultimately, by creating a culture where customers’ needs are at the heart of every interaction, businesses create a compelling offer for customers and a significant competitive advantage. But there is another reason businesses should make customer focus a priority.

Technologies are disrupting whole industries at an unprecedented pace. Understand what your customer needs to anticipate disruption, or even drive it. As history has repeatedly shown, it’s better to disrupt yourself than drag your heels while someone does it to you. Just ask Blockbuster.