How to use user experience (UX) to ensure your customer relationships outlast the pandemic

It’s safe to say that 2020 hasn’t been the year anyone expected. With the uncertainty of this pandemic, the strain on organisations continues to be part of the foreseeable future. 

But one way to look at it is how much time you have to focus on improving your business, regardless of the circumstances. For instance, these challenging times have caused uncertainty among consumers; they may not necessarily be thinking about your products and services. But, with the correct customer experience, you can ensure that, through all of this, you can still strengthen your relationship with your loyal customers and potentially “woo” new ones. So, let’s get into how your business can use customer experience to ensure your relationships outlast this pandemic. 

Humanise your business 

Show your consumers that your business cares and that you aren’t solely concerned about making profits. As mentioned before, people are uncertain right now, which will change consumer behaviour, and can cause long term effects even after the pandemic has ended. 

According to Bizcommunity, only 66 percent of consumers expressed that they needed to be savvy when it came to their personal financial planning, yet only 2 percent felt like advertising should stop. Instead, most people felt that brands could advertise; however, they should be more tone-sensitive to their audience to ensure they offer security during these difficult times. 

This shows businesses now more than ever that they need to ensure empathy, and humanise your business as part of your user experience plan. To do that, make sure you:

• Narrow your focus; consider what your company has that your audience needs. 
• Soft selling is key in times like these. Focus less on making profit and product pushing and focus more on giving your customers what they need. 
• Lead nurturing should be a priority. Use email marketing to ensure you create lasting relationships with existing customers. 
• Ensure virtual customer service is easily accessible and that it exceeds customer expectations now more than ever. 

Keep your customers informed about the changes happening in your business 

Make sure your business works with a content marketing agency like Rogerwilco to help you become more transparent in your messaging. Our professionals will work tirelessly to ensure your consumers know what is happening, and how your business will operate during the lockdown. Make sure your website lets visitors know your new trading hours, the products you’re selling, what’s unavailable, facility closure, delivery options, and more. Now is also the time to subtly encourage online shopping and inform people on changing policies that might affect them. Be proactive and take this time to convert more of your customers to online customers, and show them how efficient your business is. 

Reassure your customers  

Now you need to reassure customers that although things have changed, your business is being proactive in ensuring they still get the best and their needs are met. When customers land on your site, they need to feel that they can trust your brand and feel at ease. This can be done by having a UX design that shows a real asymmetric understanding of user experience and excellent handling of customer information. To do this, you have to offer clear communication, honesty and protection.

Monitor customer behaviour 

An important digital marketing strategy is monitoring your customer behaviour. Take note of how your customers interact with your website now, and seek out ways you could make it better. Do you need to improve your user interface (UI), do you need to focus more on conversion rate optimisation (CRO)? Monitoring the behaviour of your customers is important as their money habits will change. This will help you to see how you can convince customers to spend more money on your business. 

Final thoughts 

We don’t know how long the pandemic will last or what the post-pandemic challenges will be; however, use this time to ensure your business has a customer experience strategy that will outlast this pandemic and any uncertainties in the future. Now, if you’re looking for a digital marketing consultant who understands customers, who know their way around web development and user experience (UX) to ensure seamless customer engagement, then Rogerwilco, one of the leading digital performance marketing companies in South Africa can help you! Contact us today.