MSc Management Customer Experience Strategy Assignment Sample 2023
Introduction
In the globalised marketplace, customer experience has become crucial for strengthening their brand value, boosting revenue, reducing customer churn and improving customer loyalty. The growing concept of CX has made many businesses embrace the concept of managing the CX in their business missions. A customer-centric practice is effective to use analytics and customer offerings for an improved customer experience (Camilleri, 2019).
The data-driven marketing strategies help them identify their customer’s personas to target their potential customers. Dyson is one such brand in the UK which provides a wide range of vacuums to develop effective customer experiences (Camilleri, 2022). The effectiveness of Dyson’s CX strategies in the UK market will be discussed in this report.
The importance of customer experience
Concept of customer experience
The customer experience (CX) is a holistic concept with multiple touchpoints benefitting the business with increased revenue, customer satisfaction and employee satisfaction (McColl-Kennedy et al., 2019). It is critical to the sustainable growth of any business as positive CX will encourage the customers to spend more while the opposite will stop them from buying from them (International, 2022).
The CX concept involves the overall impression of the customer throughout the customer journey. An effective CX will encourage brand advocacy and retain the customers while promoting loyalty. The CX strategies thus need to incorporate the emotional sides to improve their CX and strategically manage it. However, the two primary touchpoints developing the CX are the people and the product.
Critical analysis of customer experience
According to Foroudi et al., (2018) CX is defined as the acknowledgement or perception following the customer’s stimulated motivation while participating or observing events enriching the value of the business’s services and products. On the other hand, Bolton et al., (2018) argue that CX develops from the interaction between the business and the customer.
CX is multidimensional and can be analysed from various perspectives, positively associated with the loyalty intention of the customers. It is a psychological construct incorporating a subjective and multidimensional response followed by the customer interaction with the company (Barbu et al., 2021). Keiningham et al., (2020) state that CX is the emotional, cognitive, sensorial, social and physical responses evoked by marketers, stemming from their interaction with the customers.
Importance of CX in Dyson
CX is significant for Dyson to recognise its key attributes that need to be modified to retain its customers and build a foundation of loyalty. CX acts as the key to exceeding its customer’s expectations. For Dyson, CX is a major contributor to its long-term goals while developing its brand recognition.
With the emerging technologies and digital revolution, customers’ choices are expanding. Thus Dyson is also embracing the customer-centric approach to consequently contribute to its higher productivity and revenues while developing competitive advantages.
Consumer persona creation
Consumer persona refers to a semi-fictional representation of the potential customers which is abstracted using customer data (Akre et al., 2019). This semi-fictional archetype represents the key traits of the larger segments of the customers using data analytics and market research to have a deep insight into the customers.
These representations based on the actual data help to have a better understanding of the requirements of the customers. These personas help businesses to empathise with their customers to improve their offerings (Wright, 2022). Developing these personas will help the businesses to guide their activities, focusing on the needs of the customers.
The following table is developed to create a consumer persona for Dyson Vacuum Cleaner for recognising the consumer needs in the UK:
| Demographics and story | Profile | Motivations for using Dyson Vacuum Cleaner | Goals for usage | Pain points |
| Gender: Female
Age: 35 years old Disposable income: $1500 Qualifications: MBA Status: Married Residing area: Urban |
ABC is a working woman in an MNC based in Ireland. | Dyson vacuum cleaners with their powerful suction and ball technology with improved manoeuvrability help to deep clean across hard floors and carpets (Upright Vacuum Cleaners – Our Corded Range | Upright vacuum cleaners, 2022). | This vacuum cleaner helps ABC to use the cleaner as it will make her cleaning easy and time-effective to contribute her energy to her work and family without wasting much on cleaning. | Dyson vacuum cleaners are more expensive compared to others. It also has a smaller capacity for holding the dirt. |
Table 1: Customer persona for Dyson Vacuum Cleaner
(Source: Self-created)
Mapping the customer journey
The consumer journey involves a detailed representation of the customer’s buying process till purchase involving all its interactions with the company. Mapping the customer journey helps the company to amplify its business growth developing it into a customer-centric business (Designing Customer Journeys for the Post-Pandemic World, 2022).
This strategic approach will also enable the company to have a better insight into the customer expectations while anticipating the customer experiences and also identifying the pain points.
The following table is developed to map the customer journey for Mercedes Benz Long Wheelbase E-class for recognising the consumer needs in the UK:
| Stages of journey | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |
| Activities | Aim to have an efficient vacuum cleaner which will make cleaning effortless | Dyson offers their heavy-duty performance vacuum cleaners | Research from online sites | Review from her peers and friends | Bought a Dyson vacuum cleaner |
| Feelings and needs | Needs: deep cleaning and versatile vacuum cleaners | Interaction: made on touchpoints | The focus of the customer: View of others | Vacuum bought on the selection made | The procedure of review is personal |
| Customer expectations | Expectations: Heavy-duty performance | Appropriate service quality | Expectations and needs are satisfied | Decent staff behaviour | Personally addressing feedback |
| Opportunities for improvements | The price can be regulated a little and the size of the dirt holding space can be increased | Modification of the cleaner | Qualities at the touchpoints to be improved | Extra benefits to be added | Interaction post-sales to be initiated |
Table 2: Mapping customer journey
(Source: Self-made)
Omnichannel marketing
Concept of omnichannel marketing
Omnichannel marketing is dominating modern trade and distribution. This approach uses a cross-channel strategy for integrating user experience with improved communication and is aimed at better cooperation (Hole et al., 2019). Omnichannel marketing involves the integration of sales experiences combining the advantages of the physical stores with the data and experiences of online shopping emphasising multiple interaction touchpoints for providing a seamless customer experience (HUANG, 2021).
This key marketing concept integrates the various channels for interacting with the customers for developing a consistent brand experience. Through this marketing strategy, the brands successfully promote their products and services across all channels, devices and platforms. With omnichannel marketing, the company can effectively increase its reach and profit while boosting its customer satisfaction. It creates a cohesive CX.
This strategy creates an improved CX regardless of the channel the customer is using or the purchasing phase (Alonso-Garcia et al., 2021). In the digital age, this marketing strategy has become more significant allowing marketers to adapt to the advertising campaigns without losing any purchase points or data. Besides providing a consistent customer journey, omnichannel marketing also benefits the business to increase its operational efficiency besides reaching new customer segments with personalised services and improving inventory turnover.
Figure 1: Omnichannel marketing
(Source: Gupta, 2022)
Role of interaction and customisation
Interaction and customisation have a significant role in omnichannel marketing for providing a competitive edge to businesses. With the integration of various channels, the customers are placed at the centre of the business interaction for a consistent CX. The customer interaction explores how the brand integrated its CX strategies with its digital or physical services.
However, merging both services is a challenge in this marketing strategy (Gerea et al., 2021). The integrated interactions develop personalisation at every stage of the customer lifecycle. In this customer-centric marketing approach, bringing all the touchpoints together, the interaction is collaborated and communicated across the channels.
Customisation in this marketing strategy is a data-driven approach for offering personalised experiences to the customers. This approach is focused on understanding customer behaviour across all channels for proactively targeting them. Thus it helps the businesses to approach the customers after analysing their data across all platforms.
Customisation enables businesses to develop consistent and seamless customer journeys while developing a long-term and loyal customer base for the brand. This approach in omnichannel marketing also helps to improve the interaction with the customers and yields an increase in their ROI.
Marketing channels for Dyson’s Vacuum Cleaner
The personalised omni channel campaigns of Dyson with valuable insights guided their selling experiences. Dyson has developed exceptional Word-of-Mouth and innovation in their marketing channel for developing into an effective brand. It uses online platforms like Facebook, Twitter and others to connect with its customers and develop brand awareness. Its conceptual stores offer hands-on shopping experiences to the customers bridging the gap between the digital and physical experiences.
They also offer customer-centric approaches in the shops where there are experts who demonstrate and explain the models with their science behind them to the customers. This one-to-one interaction also provides a deep insight into the customers and they can customise their approach.
Effectiveness of channels in Dyson’s customer journey
The omnichannel approach has enabled Dyson to have a global vision of all its interaction points while collaborating with all its channels. This has also provided a seamless customer journey by designing a coherent user experience for both online and offline interactions.
Their customer-centric approach has also developed a competitive edge by connecting over the online and offline channels. Their customisation approach has allowed Dyson to have a deep understanding of their customers through their effective interaction at every touch point.
CX performance metrics
The CX performance metrics help to track and measure the customer experiences with the products and services offered by the company.
Customer Health Score (CHS) – This metric helps to recognise the likeliness of customers which will identify whether the customer will stay consistent or churn. Monitoring CHS and responding to them will help the company to identify the risks associated with the clients.
The factors influencing the CHS are the product type, usage period, money spent on the brand, number of interactions with the support team along with their willingness to answer the surveys. This metric also provides valuable insight into the popularity of any product for boosting customer retention in the long run.
Customer Service Satisfaction (CSS) – This metric measures the customer satisfaction related to post-purchase. Interaction at this stage is very essential to receive feedback from the customers. A rating scale in this stage will help to identify the areas for improvement. CSS also helps to identify the trends and patterns in the contemporary market.
Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAS) – It helps to identify customer satisfaction with the product quality or customer interaction of the business. This score is marked on 1 to 5 based on customer experiences with the brand. This loyalty metric is necessary for providing effective customer experiences. CSAS acts as a strong indicator for product repurchase and customer retention.
This is the most widely used CX metric where an individual customer quantifies how they feel about their interaction with the company. Comparing the results from the CSAT scores will also help the company to find the pain points in the customer journey.
Net Promoter Score (NPS) – This popular metric helps to recognise how the customers are satisfied with the products and services. NPS helps to measure customer loyalty and the overall quality of customer experience (Lee, S., 2018). This score ranges from 1 to 10 where the respondents are grouped into passives, detractors and promoters based on their responses.
By providing insight into the chances of repeated purchases, NPS allows the company to predict its potential revenues, growth and health of the brand. Based on the NPS scores, the brand can compare and measure brand performance. This approach will help them to identify their loyal customers and use Word-of-Mouth to promote their products.
Figure 2: CSAT vs NPS
(Source: www.monkeylearn.com, 2022)
Recommendation of two metrics for Dyson’s Vacuum Cleaner
CHS will be recommended for Dyson where the leaders can use this metric to predict how the business relationship with its customers will change over time. This customer-centric metric will also improve the momentum of the business activities. Periodical CHS will help Dyson to identify the bottlenecks in the customer journey for their long-term success.
CSAS is the second recommendation for the company which will help it to improve its business based on customer feedback and sentiment. Gathering data from CSAS should help the company to improve its decision-making with quantitative and qualitative data collected through the various interaction points. Feedback from various customer touchpoints will also help Dyson effectively meet their customers’ needs in developing the vacuum cleaners while highlighting the pain points in the customer journeys.
Incorporating these metrics should also help Dyson to reduce its customer churn rates while inspiring loyalty and identifying its expansion opportunities.
CX processes in different industries using CX CSFs
The critical success factors (CFSs) in the CX help the organisation to identify the areas critical to its success. Five CSFs are:
Customers – Customers are crucial for the success of an organisation as they provide revenue from outside the company by buying products and services. Thus it is essential to identify the potential customers, their needs and expectations. Customer feedback provides an insight which helps the company to modify its CX strategies. Developing customer empathy is hence essential for its success.
CX leadership – This CFS is critical to the growth of a business. Establishing the vision of the CX strategies motivates the workforce to strategically work towards the goal. Thus effective CX leadership is required at every touch point to improve the interaction and customisation to influence others.
Empowerment – Empowering employees to ensure that the workforce has essential resources and information to improve their customer experiences. A motivated workforce is essential for customer retention developing the chances of a loyal and satisfied customer base.
Measurement of CX programs – Tracking the CX programs will help the company to identify whether their CX strategies are effective or need to be improved for a seamless customer journey. The CX leaders should initiate measurement processes to develop adequate customer experience strategies while highlighting the significant touchpoints.
Process of implementation of CSFs in a company
The Critical Success Factors are implemented in a company by developing a customer-centric team. This team should ensure that the tasks across all the departments are aligned with the mission and goals. Feedback from the employees is important.
The values and mission need to be researched adequately before developing the strategies. The CFSs need to be evaluated then and communicated with the stakeholders. Finally, the progress needs to be tracked and measured after its implementation.
Explanation and comparison of CX processes in Dyson and Apple
Both the CX leadership styles at Dyson and Apple follow an innovative and creative approach in their CX strategies. They focus on the customers’ needs although they are not customer-friendly will their higher prices. The companies being customer-centric aim to provide a seamless and convenient customer experience through their products and services at every touchpoint.
Dyson and Apple focus on their long-term goals through their effective interaction and customisation approaches on both online and offline platforms. Dyson empowers its employees by constantly reinventing its products (www.ctp.org.uk, 2022). They encourage development, empowerment and equality in their inclusive working environment. On the other hand, Apple also empowers its employees to do the right for effective customer experiences (Gallo, 2022). They provide training and educational courses to make them knowledgeable about an inclusive workforce (Inclusion & Diversity, 2022).
Conclusion
It can be concluded that CX or Dyson’s vacuum reflects upon the holistic perception of their customers’ experience and interaction with their brand. Using smart technologies provides great opportunities for businesses to optimise their CX and improve their sales. CX is a dynamic concept depending on the offerings of the companies and the evolution in consumption practices with its compelling touchpoints (Barbu et al., 2021).
The consumer personas are semi-fictional representations of potential customers based on actual data ensuring that all the business activities are tailored based on the buyers’ needs. The contemporary digital change in consumer shopping behaviour is impacted by the omnichannel marketing concept. Omnichannel marketing is a multichannel sales approach designed for a seamless purchasing experience for the customers.
This strategy is based on customer interaction and behaviour. In the emerging digital environment, omnichannel marketing helps customers to connect with their customers with customised experiences for long-term relationships (Quin, 2022). The various CX processes and Critical success factors are also discussed with respect to Dyson.
References
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Hole
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