The quality of service you give to your most valuable asset – the customer – has an impact on the profitability of your brand.

To take your loyalty program to the next level, provide rewards that are personalised and tailored to the interests of each individual.

In the business context, customer experience is the perception a customer has about a company following their interaction. It is your customer who determines the quality of his engagement with your business – not you.

According to a recent survey conducted by Harris Interactive, nearly 90% of customers would choose to do business with a brand that guarantees quality customer service.

The truth is that people won’t always remember how great your product was, but rather how well you’ve treated them. Are you being respectful to your customers? Do you provide a personalised service?

This article will outline the ways you can ensure positive experiences to your customers.

1. Listen to your customers

Virgin founder Richard Branson believes that knowing what your customers want by listening to them contributes to your learning as an entrepreneur.

Since the launch of Virgin’s first hotel in Chicago, the group continues to improve their service by catering not only to the needs of men, but also to women.

>See also: How to put mobility at the heart of customer experience

Having encouraged hotel guests to share their views, the hotel has actually garnered positive reactions from people.

When tuning in to your customers’ needs and wants, try to figure out which improvements you need to implement based on their responses. Gather feedback by means of surveys, feedback forms, social media monitoring, and making observations.

2. Give your customers free stuff

A simple method to delight your customers and keep them wanting to do business with you is to give them something for free. Remember that generosity lets you win people’s affection.

One of the benefits of giving away free stuff is your brand going viral. You’ll definitely create buzz especially on social media.

Here are some more reasons why giving free offers work every time:

• This kind gesture sends out the message that you genuinely care about your customers.
• You’ll be able to create positive associations with your brand.
• People will feel compelled to buy from you in the future.
• Giving free stuff helps you gather feedback on your product.
• You create trust and encourage positive word of mouth.

3. Anticipate possible problems before they happen

Most of the time, customers will tell a business their needs and wants. This is where the skill of listening comes in. However, being able to anticipate unexpressed concerns creates a huge impact on customer experience.

Anticipation of problems before they arise by executing your next best move helps prevent bigger demands in the future that are difficult to meet.

>See also: Managing and optimising a digital customer experience

If you’ve been running your business for quite some time already, for certain you’ve made keen observations on your customers and have noticed similar patterns.

Once you’ve identified particular patterns, you’ll be able to act immediately to fix problems that are likely to happen.

4. Create a loyalty program

A lot of companies have been leveraging the power of loyalty programs to retain their customers. If you don’t have one in place for your business today, you’ll be losing a lot of sales more than you can imagine.

You’ll be able to manage customer payments at the same time create a loyalty rewards program by using a point of sale (POS) system. With this, you can engage your customers, increase people’s appreciation for your brand, and attract new prospects who might likely be interested in your product/service.

To take your loyalty program to the next level, provide rewards that are personalised and tailored to the interests of each individual. Other useful tips for running a loyalty program include offering exclusive discounts and consistent offers.

5. Hire the right employee for a customer-facing position

Frontline employees have a challenging role to play. Customer service personnel are the face of your company and therefore should possess the right qualities such as empathy, patience, flexibility, and knowledge. Most of all, customer-facing employees should be able to stay positive.

As a leader or manager, your responsibility is to keep your customer service representatives engaged. Make sure they’re well-compensated and comfortable with their working environment.

>See also: 3 ways the hospitality industry can personalise the customer experience

Diversifying your strategies to enhance your customer journey gives you a competitive advantage in business. These days, customer expectations are getting higher.

Companies are challenged to focus on the entire customer experience to strengthen trust, build loyalty, improve retention, and other benefits that lead to our success.