Do you ever feel your employees don't understand customers and keep dropping the ball regarding customer service and customer experience?
If so, then you're not alone.
Many businesses struggle to get employees to understand customers and their challenges.
And that is because most companies have failed to help their employees to see things from the customer's perspective.
They cannot put their employees in the shoes of the customer.
To make that possible, employees must have more compassion and empathy.
In this blog post, we'll discuss how to get employees to understand customers with compassion and empathy, sharing the best strategies so your business builds better customer relationships and improve customer satisfaction.
Define Compassion & Empathy.
If you show them, employees will know what compassion and empathy look like.
Because they don't understand customers' challenges, struggles, and plight, it is hard for them to have compassion and empathy.
They need to be empathetic to put themselves in their shoes.
The biggest challenge is training them to understand that customers are human beings who feel just as much pain and anger as employees.
Give Opportunities to Practice.
You need to allow employees to practice compassion and empathy.
It takes a lot of work, but it's worth it because your company will benefit from it in many ways.
Here are some ways you can do this:
I. First, you must get the right people on the bus. Creating more compassion and empathy starts with hiring the right people on your team.
Hire people with empathy and compassion. Look for people who enjoy and love to serve.
II. Cross-train your team. Let employees serve in various departments of the company.
This way, they will better understand the customer's challenges and, most importantly, each other as team members.
III. Share your customer's stories by sharing customer reviews, good and bad.
It helps to give them a better understanding of what the customers think, increasing compassion and empathy.
Help Employees Understand Customer Needs.
It can be challenging for employees to have compassion and empathy when they don't understand the customer's needs, wants, and desires.
Start by teaching employees what customers think and expect from your business and why meeting their expectations is essential.
Next, provide employee training on customer experience in that area.
Regularly coach team members to discuss what is working well and areas of concern based on customer feedback.
Reward & Repeat
To create awareness of compassion and empathy across any organization, you must reward those who show it, encouraging employees to step out of their comfort zones and bringing the voice of the customer alive.
When people face discomfort, they reflect on how they can better empathize with customers.
It is the main reason you must reward those who show this vulnerability and encourage others.
Practicing these strategies will significantly help your team have more compassion and empathy to increase customer satisfaction and, ultimately, trust and loyalty to increase profits.
Are there any that you would add? Let me know in the comment below.