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Creating a Customer Circle of Trust

by Scott Zimmerman, President, TeleVox Software, Inc. - March 25, 2013

Creating a Customer Circle of Trust
 By Scott Zimmerman, President, TeleVox Software, Inc.

Exemplary customer engagement comes down to knowing what kind of information your customer wants, as well as when and how they want to receive it. This concept may sound basic, but too many businesses still leave their customers wanting more, which can cause a drop in customer retention. Customers want an authentic and credible basis for shared values and relationship-building, which comes from engaging them on a consistent basis.

Now, more than ever, United States consumers have the opportunity to stay connected with businesses through new media. Our studies at TeleVox revealed that engaging customers by way of email, text, or voicemail is exactly the type of experience customers want and expect from the companies they do business with. Engagement Communications comprises the blending of advances in communication with a personalized, human touch. Together, they create a circle of trust and inclusion which goes well beyond a consultation, as consulting a customer might inform, but it doesn’t necessarily encourage action.

When creating a positive customer experience, companies should consider that it may be largely defined by a series of "moments of truths” that occur as customers interact with businesses. For instance, most customers at some point have met with a consultant who took that extra five minutes to ask about their job or discuss their child's recent school play. It's in these moments that a customer begins to build trust and a sense that the business cares about them, as interpersonal communication is crucial when developing a solid and trustworthy relationship. Taking this approach is meaningful, effective and creates a deeper connection.

It can be tricky in our demanding society, however, to find time to take these extra steps. So how can your company reach out and make this connection? At TeleVox, we work with healthcare organizations every day to help them engage their customers, or patients. For example, one of our health clinic clients is leveraging engagement communications to better connect with and support its clientele. Through patient feedback, the clinic was aware that waiting for lab results created anxiety among their patients. As a result, they implemented our technology to provide patients quicker access to their test results. During their office visit, each patient is given a card with unique login information that allows them to access their results at any time. Patients have two options for retrieval—calling a toll-free 800 number or visiting a website—which allows them to interact with the system through a method that is most comfortable and accessible to them.

The healthcare industry is a great example of how Engagement Communications can play an important role in developing customer trust and loyalty, in any industry. Our TeleVox Healthy World study, “Technology Beyond the Exam Room: How Digital Media is Helping Doctors Deliver the Highest Level of Care,” showed that three-in-ten U.S. consumers asserted that receiving text messages, voicemails or emails that provide patient care between visits would increase feelings of trust in their provider. Of the 66 percent of patients who have received a voicemail, text or email from a healthcare provider, many report a variety of positive outcomes. Fifty-one percent reported feeling more valued as a patient, 35 percent said digital communication improved their opinion of their provider, and 34 percent reported feeling more certain about visiting that healthcare provider again.

Engagement can also save lives. Behavioral researchers tell us that people don't always act in their best interests. Smoking, obesity, diabetes and other sometimes preventable conditions have a strong hold on U.S. health consumers—not to mention the number of people who don’t stick to their medication regimens. Here, engagement in the form of regular, tailored communications, that not only text reminders about smoking cessation or following medication regimens but also have an escalation alert that notifies health providers when a patient hasn’t responded, help create early-intervention care. The outcomes improve the health and well-being of people while reducing costs to healthcare—allowing funds to be directed to research and other patient needs.

Regardless of the industry, it all comes back to personalization.

Creating a circle of trust can be as simple as using a customer's first name when emailing them offers and updates to a more developed strategy of text message alerts. These approaches should, conclusively, give the customer a better experience and help them build trust in your company. By transcending a face-to-face consultation, business meeting or sales call through digital technology, companies may finally begin to achieve the appropriate amount of communication their customers desire. As new media continues to shape our culture in the U.S., there's no reason for businesses not to take advantage of the benefits it has to offer. By using engagement communications, such as text, email, voicemail, and social media, businesses can create and nurture that personal, human touch.

Scott Zimmerman is a regularly-published thought leader on engaging patients via ongoing communication between office visits. He is the President of TeleVox Software, Inc, a high-tech Engagement Communications company that provides automated voice, email, SMS and web solutions that activate positive patient behaviors by applying technology to deliver a human touch. Scott spearheads TeleVox’s Healthy World initiative, a program that leverages ethnographic research to uncover, understand and interpret both patient and provider points of view with the end goal of creating a healthier world–one person at a time. Zimmerman possesses 20 years of proven performance in the healthcare industry, with domain knowledge in the surgical, interventional and pharmaceutical arenas. Prior to joining TeleVox, Scott served for nine years at GE Healthcare in a variety of cross-functional and global leadership roles in sales, services, quality, marketing, pricing, finance and product development. Scott is a graduate of the John M. Olin School of Business at Washington University in St. Louis.

 
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