People who know me well would agree I’m mostly right-brained. Though I do like to dig into statistical analysis or metrics, I enjoy right-brained, creative and emotional activities much more. This happens to be an essential trait for reviewing, analyzing and improving customer experiences.
A statistical analysis, properly conducted, is a delicate dissection of uncertainties, a surgery of suppositions. ~M.J. Moroney
As wonderful and useful as statistics are, some of my notes from reviewing them end up looking like this:
Why?
People like people.
And no matter how many processes, systems or auto-responders you have in place, customers always respond better to actual people. We not only like people, we forgive them. Sure, we don’t always understand them, but they are more likely to be forgiven than processes.
Statistics can only get you so far. They lose a tremendous amount of meaning if you don’t connect the dots within the numbers. It’s vital to use real-life situations and analysis to determine what ACTIONS to take on those data insights if you want to work through your toughest customer experience issues.
For example, statistics can tell you 89% of your customers say they’re loyal, but they don’t tell you it’s because they CURRENTLY can’t find a better option in the marketplace. A new and innovative competitor may steal your loyalists if you haven’t been paying attention to nuance.
Don’t just rely on your head.
Make it a habit to use your heart when dealing with customers. While some of the decisions they make are based on logic, most of them are based on emotions. Don’t get so caught up in the linear and objective you forget about the often irrational and emotional side of things.
I abhor averages. I like the individual case. A man may have six meals one day and none the next, making an average of three meals per day, but that is not a good way to live. ~Louis D. Brandeis
Image credit: justgrimes via Creative Commons license
A version of this post appeared on iMedia Connection.
