Jeweller - October 2022

BUSINESS
Strategy
Managing customer experience
in times of inflation
Concerns over inflation and recession can negatively impact consumer mindset.
STEVEN VAN BELLEGHEM shares advice on thriving as a retailer in a market populated by sensitive customers.
One of the topics I’ve been questioned
over most commonly in the past weeks
is dealing with customer experience in
times of high inflation.
It’s a very relevant issue today, of course,
and due to the state of the global economy
retailers everywhere are dealing with
customers that are very mindful and
careful of their spending habits.
So how can a business deal with this in
terms of customer experience? In my
experience, there’s a short-term answer
and a long-term answer.
Beginning with the immediate answer,
managing a trepid market as a retailer is
all about successful budget management.
Increase in price
In difficult times, many businesses are
looking for short-term measures to keep
their position stable.
These are often to their own advantage,
however, sadly also often come at the
disadvantage of the customer. A simple
example would be raising the price of a
product or service. For some retailers, a
price rise may not be a matter of choice,
but of survival.
How do you deal with a price increase
from a customer service standpoint?
There are three important points to take
into consideration.
• Be transparent: You have to tell the
real story about your situation to your
customers. Be open about why you need to
increase the prices.
• Be proactive and honest: Never surprise
customers with a price rise, but warn
them up front and, again, be open in your
communication about the factors behind
the rise.
• Brief your team: In my experience, this
one often gets overlooked. Staff on the
salesfloor will get a lot of complaints and
questions about the price increase. You
cannot have staff provide customers with
vague answers such as “it’s something the
boss decided.”
Keep your staff informed and updated
on the narrative so they can relay that
information with the same conviction
as someone else in the organisation
would do, as this can make a significant
difference in the way difficult news is
perceive by customers.
Remember, there is always the choice to
not raise your prices, particularly if your
competitors do.
In that case, it is important to
communicate that decision publicly.
Inform your staff of the decision to
maintain current prices and ensure
that the messaging is reaching your
customers.
Cost-cutting
Another popular short-term way of
tackling the pressures of inflation is by
If you are going
to cut costs
in customer
service, it’s
crucial to
rethink where
you will be
able to create
a positive
surprise to
counter
that loss.
reducing expenses.
Unfortunately, that often involves the area
of customer service and the relationship
your business has with customers may
suffer as a result.
Sometimes, businesses have no choice
but to make these kinds of cuts. However,
if you find yourself in this position, make
sure you make the most of the change
by creating ‘moments’ or offering selfservice
alternatives.
Lately, I’ve been discussing Dan and Chip
Heath’s book “The Power of Moments”.
The premise of the book is simple yet
brilliantly effective. If we were to measure
every single interaction of a business with
a customer, most would probably have an
average score of about 6.5 in 10. That’s
normal, because there are bound to be
highs and lows in the data.
However, if businesses manage to
compile a number of interactions
that are outstanding, surprising and
overwhelmingly positive, the overall
feeling will eventually climb to an 8-9.
It’s a simple lesson based around the
impact significant outlying factors can
have to an average within a data set.
For me, this is the perfect mindset to pair
with downsizing and cost-cutting.
If you are going to cut costs in customer
service, it’s crucial to rethink where you
will be able to create a positive surprise to
66 | October 2022