Tech tools can help you create great customer experiences. And a new platform from Nextiva, NextOS, aims to help businesses do just that.
NextOS is an all encompassing operating system for businesses. It includes a CRM system, chat function, survey platform, improved analytics and more. And it’s all accessible from one central dashboard, so businesses can make sure that all of their customer data and action items are consistent across the entire organization.
CEO Tomas Gorny announced the new operating system during a keynote presentation at the Talking Stick Resort in Scottsdale as part of NextCon 17. During the presentation, Gorny discussed how the various features of NextOS can help businesses exceed customer expectations. And other members of the Nextiva team joined him on stage to share how the platform can solve problems for various departments and business functions. And of course, all of those features are ultimately aimed at helping those team members create better experiences.
Here are some tips from Gorny’s presentation that might help your business create great experiences that exceed the expectations of your customers.
Capture Relevant Information
You can’t hope to exceed customer expectations if you aren’t sure what those expectations are. For that reason, you have to collect relevant information about your customers. That doesn’t just mean getting their name and email address. It means capturing their actual preferences through buying habits and surveys. NextOS includes a CRM and survey platform to let you collect this information and then access it all in one place so you can make better decisions that actually reflect what your customers want.
Predict Behavior Based on Trends
Once you have that information, you have to use it to predict what your customers will want in the future. You can attempt to do this on your own if you work with limited clients. But it’s an inexact science. Instead, automation can help your business take the next step toward predicting customer expectations. More specifically, NextOS has a machine learning component that can help you make sense of the trends and information you collect. Then its automation feature can give you action steps to make the most of that information.
Let Customers Choose How to Interact with You
“Customers want an effortless experience,” said Gorny during his keynote presentation.
This means letting them set the parameters of how they communicate and interact with you. No matter how targeted your customers are, you’ll have some who prefer to call you, some who prefer email or live chat, and others that opt for social media communications. So offering all of those methods is paramount.
Simplify Processes for Employees
Additionally, you’ll probably have multiple team members that interact with customers at different points in the buying process. So you need to make sure those employees all have access to the same information. And the top decision makers at your company should have access to that information as well.
Gorny said, “We need to have a complete view of our customers so we can provide that information to our entire organization.”
This means limiting the amount of apps you use for different functions. You shouldn’t have information from your customers in one spot with survey data in another and prospect data in yet another. Making all of this data easy to access and digest for everyone on your team can make it easier for all parties to provide great customer experiences.
Update Your Technology
And of course, the tech tools you use can make a big difference in the customer experience as well. If you’re using outdated systems that get bogged down with lots of data or don’t have access to all the latest features, your customers could opt to do business with other companies that can better anticipate their needs and provide a more cohesive experience.
Images: Anita Campbell/Small Business Trends