Efficiency is everything in customer experience. It’s today’s biggest competitive advantage. An efficient experience makes a customer’s life easier and solves their problem. On the other hand, an experience that is inefficient adds difficulties and makes life harder. I was the recipient of a very inefficient experience recently. I was stuck in bed with the most excruciating sore throat days before I was scheduled for three speaking engagements and a work trip to Australia. I need to get better quickly! I called my healthcare provider on a Sunday and found they were closed, so I was referred to a hospital in another city to take a test for strep throat. I dragged myself to take the test—feeling miserable the entire time—and waited to get the results in the expected 8-10 hours. Days went by and I never got the test results. The massive health system had literally lost my test!
Luckily, I got better on my own in those days I was waiting and was able to make my speaking gigs and go on my trip. But the experience was incredibly inefficient and frustrating—especially from a healthcare system that makes billions of dollars a year. It was a memorable customer experience for all the wrong reasons.
This example shows the importance of efficient customer experiences. With our modern technology, companies need to think outside the typical assembly line-style processes and instead find real solutions to improve their customers’ lives. There’s no excuse for inefficiency, and customers won’t settle for companies that make their lives difficult. When given the choice between a bank, doctor, insurance provider or store that is efficient and thoughtful versus one that is frustrating and inefficient, customers will almost always choose the more efficient option.
Time and convenience matter to customers. Show them you care by creating proactive, efficient solutions.
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