How to Manage The Customer Experience

This report explores the importance of managing the customer experience and provides strategies and techniques for enhancing satisfaction and loyalty. It also discusses the use of digital technology in customer relationship management.

How to Manage The
Customer Experience

PROJECT 1
Introduction
Customer experience can be defined as the responses of individuals which are felt by
them while consuming a good or using a service. For all the companies it is very important to
make sure that they are satisfying all the needs of them so that the level of their experience could
be enhanced (Ali, Hussain and Ragavan, 2014). This report is based upon Duck and Waffle
restaurant of London which was founded in year 2012. This project covers various topics such as
market segmentation, importance of understanding needs of patronages, ways of using customer
behaviour and attitudes to build brand loyalty and trust, factors driving and influencing
engagement of clients. Additionally, evaluation of broad rage of targeted group's needs and
expectation, customer experience map and optimising all the touch points of customers are also
covered in this report.
Definitions of market segmentation and use of individual characteristics for the purpose of
market segmentation
Market segmentation: It is a procedure which is used by mangers of companies for the
purpose of segregating marketplace on the basis characteristics and needs of customers so that all
the expectations of clients can be fulfilled.
In other words, it could be described as the procedure that guides marketers to segregate
all the consumers of goods that are having similar interests and needs.
In Duck and Waffle marketers formulate strategies for the segment by consider different
characteristics of individuals. These are race, age, income level, education, occupation, marital
status, gender etc. There are different ranges of food items which are prepared by organisation
according to these factors (Blázquez, 2014). All of them are used by management of restaurant
for the purpose of market segmentation as the dishes which are sold by it are for different range
of age and race. It also segregate the group of people on the basis of marital status as it offers
breakfast, brunch, late night etc.
Explanation of importance of understanding needs, wants and preferences of target customers
groups of the organisation
For each and every company it is vital to interpret inevitably, wants and likings of
targeted clients in order to make sure that all the requirements get fulfilled. For Duck and Waffle
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it is also essential to analyse these three factors as there are various benefits of them.
Significance of it could be understood with the help of following points:
 By understanding need, want and expectation the restaurant will be able to provide high
level of satisfaction to customers.
 It can help to reach the organisational goals such as customer satisfaction, profit
maximisation etc.
 In order to retain clients for long term it is essential for restaurant to identify wants,
preferences and needs of all its clients (Brochado, Troilo and Aditya, 2017).
 If the restaurant is willing to be the top of the industry then it is vital to understand these
elements that are related to customers because it can help to establish a good market
image and be the first choice of individuals. It can facilitate the entity to be on the top of
sector.
The way in which customers behaviour and attitudes of different market segments could be used
to build brand loyalty and trust
Customer behaviour and attitude: These are two main elements which may take place
due to personal experience of clients that results when they use a product or service. These could
be adverse or favourable. It varies according to market segments and for all the organisations
such as Duck and Waffle it is very important to analyse them and use for the purpose of building
loyalty and trust. Marketers of the restaurant are paying attention towards all the segments which
are demographic, geographic and psycho-graphic by analysing choices and preferences of all the
customers in it. In Duck and Waffle customer behaviours and attitude of market segments could
be used by marketers to build brand loyalty and trust by formulating all the policies according to
their choices. The organisation is focusing on the requirements of all the clients for the purpose
of preparing food items so that their satisfaction level could be enhanced. It can help to increase
the level of brand loyalty and trust.
Various elements which may influence and drive engagement of customers
Customer engagement is the communication or emotional connection between an
organisation such as Duck and Waffle and clients. It is very important for all the enterprises
because it results in increased sales and profits because highly engaged patronages buy more and
suggest others to buy more and more. Targeted customer groups of restaurant are people who
love sweet, old aged individuals as it offer special waffle to them, diabetes patients as sugar free
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items are also sold by it. Different elements are there which are driving and influencing customer
engagement of the organisation. All of them are as follows:
 Duck and Waffle have good market image that helps it to increase the customer
engagement (Homburg, Jozić and Kuehnl, 2017).
 The quality of all the items which are sold by the restaurant is very good that fulfil
requirements of all the customers therefore it helps to enhance customer engagement.
 High level of competition in the London market may influence the customer engagement
of Duck and Waffle because they will have various options to buy good quality food.
 Miscommunication is also one of the main factors which may influence customer
engagement of the restaurant because if the marketers are not able to provide details to
the clients then it will affect the sales and profits with lower market share.
Evaluation of a broad range of different target customer groups and expectations in terms of
customer engagement for the organisation
In order to enhance customer engagement it is very important for the restaurants such as
Duck and Waffle to understand all the needs and expectations of different targeted groups. By
paying attention towards all of them an organisation can achieve a higher level of customer
engagement. All the expectations and needs of clients of the enterprise are as follows:
 Customers want that they should get best quality food items from the restaurant or hotel
from which they are getting services and where they are willing to spend quality time.
 One of the main expectation which is important for customer engagement is location of
restaurant because if it is not easy to reach then foodies may find another place to enjoy
meals.
 Their needs also includes environment of restaurant which should also be good and calm
so that it can provide comfort to customers (Lemon and Verhoef, 2016).
Definition of customer experience map
Customer experience map can be defined as a tool which is used by businesses to
represent the complex interactions in visual form. It helps organisations to highlight possible
pain points and enable business to analyse best suitable opportunities so that it can help to
provide best experience to the clients.
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In other words it can be defined as the process of discovering the way in which potential
buyers of products feel that they are being engaged with the organisation or the item which is
bought by them.
Creation of customer experience map that charts the customer journey model and examination of
the activities and actions taken at each customer touch point
Customer experience map:
Illustration 1: Customer journey map, 2019
(Source: Customer journey map, 2019)
The above chart is related to the customer journey model that shows the four main steps
in the whole journey (Customer journey map, 2019). All of them are also showing some of the
main touch points that are required to be focused by Duck and Waffle while planning to sold
different food items to the customers. All the stages in the customer experience map are as
follows:
Awareness: It is the first stage where customer are not aware of the restaurant. For
example, if a group of friends is planning to go out together and eat lunch together at a great
place then they will search online and watch the ads. Therefore, the touch points at this stage are
the advertisements that are shown online and searching on search engine. With the help of them
they get aware of the restaurant.
Consideration: By focusing on all the touchpoints they get in to touch with the
restaurant and they search on social media, read blogs and land on the selected restaurant's
websites in order to select one of them. These are focused by them in order to form best decision
for having a lunch together.
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Decision: It is the third stage of customer experience map where the decision of best
place to eat lunch together is formulated according to the online presence. The touchpoints at this
stage are call to action, form etc.
Delight: It is last stage of customer experience map where clients share their personal
feeling about the place with others and refer them to visit it. The touchpoints at this stage are
website where patronages can share their personal views. In order to be in touch with clients
organisations use monthly newsletters so that they can share appropriate information of business
with them (Martin, Mortimer and Andrews, 2015).
The touchpoint which is focused by organisations after all the above mentioned steps in
self service in which restaurants may send birthday or anniversary wishes to the customers.
Analysis and discussion of the way in which the organisation can optimise all the customer touch
points
There are various touch points which could be optimised by Duck and Waffle for the
purpose of influencing the behaviour, responses and actions of all the customers so that their
experience could be increased. All of them are as follows:
 Online ads: It is one of the key touch point that can influence customer attitude. With the
help of it Duck and Waffle can spread awareness about its food that will helps to attract
large number of customers and influence their behaviour.
 Search: Most of the people search online before going out for lunch, dinner or other
meals. Therefore, Duck and Waffle can use SEO to enhance online visibility of it so that
attitude of clients could be influences by setting a good image of restaurant.
 Social media: In order to increase customer engagement it is the best way to use social
media to be connected with clients. By making a page or account on Facebook, twitter
and Instagram Duck and Waffle can develop positive behaviour of customers by staying
in touch with them.
 Blogs: It is one of the common touch point in current era which is focused by restaurants
such as Duck and Waffle by writing details about the best food of them. It cn help to
influence customer behaviour because they will have appropriate information of the items
which will be eaten by them.
 Call to action: Some times people visit restaurants for some bookings but they do not
confirm it as they want the best place. In order to take confirmation from them restaurant
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can stay connected with them by making phone call. It is the best touch point to enhance
customer experience.
 Website: Before visiting a place most of the individuals want to look at the website of
the place which will be visited by them. In order to attract them to have food in Duck and
Waffle it is vital for the marketers to make their website attractive (Wu, Yeh and
Woodside, 2014).
 Email and newsletter: With the help of this touch point organisations try to be
connected with the customers who have used their services by providing them
information about different deals which are provided by them.
 Self service: With the help of this touch point restaurants try to be connected with their
clients by wishing them birthdays and anniversary in order to remind the best services
which were rendered by them to the patronages.
Conclusion
This report concludes that customer experience is the most common element which
should be focused by all the organisations in order to make sure that they are fulfilling all the
requirements of customers or not. Market segment is required to be considered while formulating
strategies for development of the company. There are various elements which should be focused
by organisations are needs, expectations and wants of clients along with them some specific
touch points such as website, email, social media etc. are also required to be analysed.
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PROJECT 2
Introduction
Customer relationship management can be defined as the set of different steps which are
taken by organisation for the purpose of retaining its clients for long term in future. Currently
companies are use digital technology for the same purpose (Adhikari and Bhattacharya, 2016).
The enterprise which is taken in this project is Duck and Waffle which is one of the biggest
restaurants of London, United Kingdom. This report covers various topics such as customer
relationship management, the way in which digital technology could be employed in managing
experience of clients, advantages and disadvantages of CRM systems, illustration of different
strategies for customer service etc. Along with this, evaluation of delivery of them and
communication in the organisation is also covered under this report.
Definitions of customer relationships management
Customer relationship management can be defined as an approach which is focused by
companies for the purpose of maintaining interaction with existing and potential clients. It is
highly focused with retention of them so that organisation's sales could be enhanced.
It is a technique which is used by business entities to reach business goals such as profit
and sales maximisation through high level of satisfaction of customers (Fatma, 2014).
Examination of the way in which digital technology is employed in managing the customer
experience
Currently most of the companies are utilising different types of systems by using
extremity engineering for the purpose of managing the customer experience. Some of them
which are used by Duck and Waffle are as follows:
 Fresh sales: It is one of the common CRM system which is famous among companies
for its uniqueness and in built communication options. It is used in Duck and Waffle by
managers for the purpose of managing all the leads which are generated by reserachers.
With the help of it better customer experience is provided to the clients as it keeps 360
degree view on the details of customers which helps to stay connected with them and
wish them on special occasions. It results in good experience of them (Fernandes and
Neves, 2014).
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 ZOHO CRM: It is also a digital platform which helps organisations such as Duck and
Waffle to enhance customer experience. It facilitate marketers to maximise the potential
of social media presence by capturing leads on social networks. With the help of it
customer experience can be enhanced because it helps to increase visibility on different
sites such as Facebook, Twitter etc.
Critical evaluation of advantages and disadvantages of CRM systems used in the organisation to
acquire and retain customers
Currently Duck and Waffle is using two main CRM systems in order to retain and
acquire large number of customers. These are Freshsales and ZOHO CRM. With the help of both
of them the staff members of the organisation try to meet expectations of clients and stay
connected with them for long period in future (Kim and Choi, 2016). Advantages and
disadvantages of both of them are analysed below:
Freshsales: It is one of the common customer relationship management system which
has attained pride in providing intelligent workflows and robust territory management to Duck
and Waffle restaurant. All the advantages and disadvantages of using it are as follows:
 Advantages: It provides better lead management services to the organisation as with the
help of it managers can keep 360 degree view on the details of customers. It also
manages the streamlined sales within the system which helps to keep the data in more
organised manner (Freshsales, 2019).
 Disadvantages: There are lack of options for exporting of information in this system.
Along with this it also needs improvement in the accessibility options for collaborators.
ZOHO CRM: It is a type of customer management solution which helps Duck and
Waffle to meet all its needs. It also guides managers to complete all the operations whether they
are specific or not. All the advantages and disadvantages of it are described below:
 Advantages: With the help of it marketers of the organisation can identify and target the
inactive leads easily. Along with this, it also help in end to end lead and contact
management (Lin and Bennett, 2014).
 Disadvantage: It do not provide the option of customisation to the companies which are
using it. The customer service in this system is paid and there is lack of flexibility in this
CRM system.
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Illustration of customer service strategies in the organisation
Managers of Duck and Waffle are using different types of strategies for the purpose of
managing customer experience. By using all of them organisation try to develop satisfaction
level of all clients. Description of strategies is as follows:
Creating clear staff expectation: for the purpose of increasing client's service Duck and
Waffle implement the strategy of creating clear staff expectation. While implementing it they
make it clear to all the employees that they should follow the culture of customer first. This
expectation is communicated by top management with its workforce that helps to provide best
services (Peppers and Rogers, 2016).
Streamlining the waiting time: When the customers have to wait for a long time to get
their food delivered as their table then it affects their experience. In Duck and Waffle managers
make sure that the waiting time in the organisation is low so that possibility of negative image of
restaurant in the mind of visitors could be reduced.
Responding to the concerns: It is the last strategy which is used in the Duck and Waffle
restaurant for the purpose of customer service. All the employees of the organisation are being
asked by management to listen the concerns of customers and respond to them properly so that
they get satisfied with the facilities of restaurant.
Explanation of the way in which customer service strategies in the organisation can create and
develop required business standards
Currently Duck and Waffle is using three main customer experience strategies in order to
generate and evaluate experience of its clients in such a manner that can help to it to meet all the
standards which were set by it previously. Most of the visitors of restaurant want that they should
get best services and this need is fulfilled by the organisation with the help of its strategies. It can
also help to provide best experience to them with the help of best facilities of the enterprise and
meet the business standards which are related to higher customer experience.
Another need of clients is to get listened at the restaurant so that they can specify the
things which are required by them in their food. It is also fulfilled by Duck and Waffle with the
help of its customer service strategy of responding to the concerns as it allows staff members to
interact with visitors and make them comfortable. It results in higher customer experience
because it enhances their satisfaction level with the services of restaurant.
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Evaluation of the delivery of customer service strategies and communication
All the customer services are delivered by employees of Duck and Waffle properly but
some aspects are missed by them. One of them is paying attention toward the internal and
external environment of restaurant. It plays a vital role in customer experience hence it should be
focused by the marketers. All the recommendations for the improvements are as follows:
 In order to enhance the customer experience the management of Duck and Waffle can
implement the strategy of providing best ambience for sitting to the customers. It is
required because clients want that they should visit a place where they can get good
environment to spend quality time (Schmitt, Joško Brakus and Zarantonello, 2015).
 Another recommendation which is made to Duck and Waffle is analysing its external
environment and making changes to it if required. This suggestion is provided because
firstly customers analyse exterior of restaurant and then decide to visit it. If it is not
attractive from outside then it will not attract clients.
Conclusion
This report concludes that customer relationship management is the process of
implementing different strategies for providing higher level of satisfaction to the clients. Now a
days different types of digital systems are used for this purpose which are Freshsales and ZOHO
CRM. In order to provide best customer experience it is very important for the companies to
formulate customer service strategies such as creating clear staff expectation, streamlining the
waiting time, responding to the concerns etc.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals:
Adhikari, A. and Bhattacharya, S., 2016. Appraisal of literature on customer experience in
tourism sector: review and framework. Current Issues in Tourism. 19(4). pp.296-321.
Fatma, S., 2014. Antecedents and consequences of customer experience management-a literature
review and research agenda. International Journal of Business and Commerce. 3(6).
Fernandes, T. and Neves, S., 2014. The role of servicescape as a driver of customer value in
experience-centric service organizations: the Dragon Football SAdhikari and
Bhattacharya, 2016Fatma, 2014Fernandes and Neves, 2014Kim and Choi, 2016Lin and
Bennett, 2014Peppers and Rogers, 2016Schmitt, Joško Brakus and Zarantonello,
2015tadium case. Journal of Strategic Marketing. 22(6). pp.548-560.
Kim, H. S. and Choi, B., 2016. The effects of three customer-to-customer interaction quality
types on customer experience quality and citizenship behavior in mass service
settings. Journal of Services Marketing. 30(4). pp.384-397.
Lin, Z. and Bennett, D., 2014. Examining retail customer experience and the moderation effect
of loyalty programmes. International Journal of Retail & Distribution Management.
42(10). pp.929-947.
Peppers, D. and Rogers, M., 2016. Managing customer experience and relationships: A strategic
framework. John Wiley & Sons.
Schmitt, B., Joško Brakus, J. and Zarantonello, L., 2015. From experiential psychology to
consumer experience. Journal of Consumer Psychology. 25(1). pp.166-171.
Online
Freshsales. 2019. [Online]. Available through:
<https://financesonline.com/freshsales-pros-cons-leading-crm-software-solution/>
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