Blog

Using customer persona to reduce multi-channel frustration

April 7, 2011

Lately, clients have asked us "What's next for self-service?" Underneath it we know they are really asking, "In a world of smart phones and tablets, is there a place for the kiosk?"

The reality is that customers and their buying patterns are becoming more complex. To be successful in this multi-channel environment, companies must create a unified vision of the customer journey across all channels.

For instance, prospective buyers may use the web to educate themselves about a product and compare different products. They may go into the store to demo the products on their short list or talk to a sales person. Then, they may use their phones to price compare. Finally, they may use self-service to finalize their choices and purchase products.

A quick trip to the mall on Saturday afternoon will reinforce the fact that brick- and-mortar stores still have a distinct place in that user journey. As long as there is a physical outlet, there is a place for self-service. In many cases, self-service is found in the last three feet between the customer and the purchase—and that is valuable real estate.

The research
Our research has shown people tend to use the channel that is most convenient for them to do a particular task. Despite the proliferation of smart phones, Forrester found that 12 percent of adults in the U.S. and 6 percent of adults in Europe have made transactions from their phones.

What a myopic view of this channel might surmise is that the smart phone was not important in the buying process. However, in our earlier example we saw that the user journey involved the phone but it was not ultimately how the user purchased. Therefore, the phone heavily influenced the buying decision but was not the final channel.

In this multi-channel world, is imperative that people who are deploying self-service map how the customer may engage across multiple channels for a cohesive experience. Moreover, they need to understand how each ultimately influences the buying decision and moves the customer journey along.

In a HBR article entitled "Stop Trying to Delight Your Customers" 75000 consumers were surveyed. Self-service was the most preferred method for engaging with companies. However, the greatest source of frustration was being bounced across multiple channels.

One of the best ways to reduce this frustration and reap the cumulative benefits of an integrated multi-channel experience is by developing user persona. Many companies are familiar with thinking about these user profiles when architecting their website. However, in this world of mobile, tablets, web and self-service kiosks, those user profiles need to be considered in a different light.

When creating user persona for self-service to start mapping the customer journey some important things to consider are:

• The buyers' backgrounds.
• Their goals and aspirations.
• Their challenges and what frustrates them.
• Where they go to solve these problems.
• How long will they spend trying to solve problems.
• What ways in which their problems can be solved
• How they spend their time.
• Which channels they most likely to prefer at which time.
• What is important to them.
• What kind of language they use.
• What kind of images appeal to them.
• How they typically buy.
• What they are currently doing.
• What you want to change for them.
• What likely caused the sale loss – if you lost the sale.
• Where they're most likely to abort your multi-channel approach'
• And what might cause them to circumvent your entire strategy (competitors? Impulse purchase?)

Self-service is an important component of the user journey. However, it must be integrated into an overall solution to deliver the maximum return on investment and seamless brand experience.

Referenced

http://hbr.org/2010/07/stop-trying-to-delight-your-customers/ar/1