The Three Key Ingredients to a Happy Customer

The most important thing a business can do is meet customer needs. Happy customers create a virtuous circle of brand loyalty, and the rest is actually quite easy.

The concept of loyalty was tested during the past few years by the pandemic and supply chain constraints. Consumers – accustomed to getting what they wanted, when they wanted – were suddenly forced to rethink traditional brand relationships. After navigating the past few years, it’s clear there are three key ingredients to successfully engage customers: convenience, personalization and access.?

Convenience?

Consumers expect to derive optimal value while investing the least time and effort. Brands that provide many ways for customers to engage – in-store and online, for example – and offer flexibility, optionality and choice, have a clear advantage.?

Personalization?

Consumers seek personalization as a key differentiator—they want to feel like products are made for them and have the ability to personalize experiences at scale. In our world that means devices, plans and services that are right for you.?

Access???

Consumers are seeking access to more benefits at a better cost from the products and services they choose. In fact, consumers expect that brands, especially premium brands, showcase how these benefits will provide savings and efficiencies when choosing a brand? over its competitors.??

In the race for customer loyalty, those that consistently provide Convenience, Personalization and Access will take home the prize.?Here are some other companies I’ve noticed doing this well:?

• Starbucks has mastered the customer experience no matter where customers order their coffee. They can order ahead on the app and take away, or enjoy an in-store experience. The opportunities for drink customization are practically endless, and the chain’s ubiquity makes its products an affordable luxury. Today, nearly a quarter of all transactions occur through the app.
• Nike’s co-creation service offers consumers design tips and tricks to help them create personalized kicks from the convenience of their mobile device or laptop, all for not much more than a mass-produced standard sneaker.?
• L’Oreal’s Kerastase brand has developed a device powered by AI called K-Scan,? an in-salon device that allows stylists to make hyper-personalized decisions and product recommendations for their clients.?

At Verizon, we’re providing customers with more access, and benefits than available anywhere else, and?only we can do this based on our scale and the partnerships we have with the best brands in the industry. We negotiate on our customers’ behalves to get them efficiencies in their day-to-day lives and exclusive access to savings on the things they love, like NFL’s Sunday Ticket and NFL+, Disney+,? Apple One and more.? And?we tie that to?provide convenience?by utilizing AI to help?personalize their plans and benefits?through predictive and recommendation engines based on what they already love - and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. We call it myPlan - check it out .?

In the era of customer-centricity, which brands do you think do it best?