Crafting the Customer Experience For People Not Like You: How to Delight and Engage the Customers Your Competitors Don't Understand

Chapter 7

Your Employees May Kill Your Business, Unless They Know How to Serve Customers Who Aren’t Like Them

We’ve all heard the claim, “Your employees are your greatest asset.” And although that’s true in a general sense, it’s critical when it comes to doing business with people not like you.

Why? Because the customer experience itself is different for different types of people. People who are older want very different things than those who are younger. Older customers generally desire more “human touch”—personal interaction and conversation—than younger customers, who crave speed and efficiency, as well as digital information at the touch of a button. The same is true for various cultures; Hispanics often have a more social and personal approach to the purchase process and will engage a sales associate in a discussion unrelated to the product or service being sold. Many immigrants, especially those who’ve recently arrived in the United States, may have more questions about a product. They appreciate it when a salesperson gives them all the time that they need to talk and ask questions. Even men tend to want different things than women do: whereas males prefer to have choices narrowed and simplified, women generally like to look at numerous options.

All of these different types of customer needs, wants, and expectations put additional pressure on your employees. They not only need to be good employees in all the basic ways—polite, responsive, helpful, and knowledgeable—but also ...