CustomerNeedsAssessment5.TheBreakthroughCustomerWorkshopCompaniesarefindingthatface-to-facecontactbetweencross-functionalcustomerandcompanyteamsresultsinbreakthroughunderstandingofcustomerneeds.Inthissectionwedescribeanapproachtoconductingajointcompany/customerworkshopthatbreaksdownbarrierstounderstandingonbothsidesaswellasacrosseachorganization’sfunctionalunits.5.1TheCustomerExperienceCycleRayKroc,founderofMcDonaldsoncesaid:"Themotherwiththreekidsdoesn'tcometoourrestaurantbecauseofhowgoodourhamburgerstaste,shecomesbecausetherestroomsareclean."Hispointwasthatcustomersmakepurchasedecisionsbasedonthetotalrelationshipwiththecompany,notjustitsproducts.Tobuildcustomerloyalty,companiesfinditisnotenoughtoconcentrateonsatisfactionatthepointofsale.Instead,theymustunderstandandmeetcustomerneedsthroughouttheentireexperiencewiththecompany-atpurchaseandinuse,fromfirst-timebuyertorepeatpurchaser.TheBreakthroughCustomerWorkshopemploysthecustomerexperiencecycleasaframeworkforexploringthisbroaderperspectiveoncustomerneeds.Weintroducetheframeworkheretoprovideabetterunderstandingofitsapplicationwithintheworkshop.Thecustomerexperiencecycleisdepictedasaloopwitheach“criticalevent”inthecustomerexperiencearrayedinsequencefromselectionoftheproduct,toactualpurchase,throughownershipanddisposal,andendingwithanevaluationoftheoverallexperience.Theseeventsarenotlimitedtowherethecustomerhasdirectcontactwiththecompany,butanywherethecustomerhasuniqueneedsthatthecompanymuststrivetofulfill.Angeneralexampleofacustomerexperiencecycleisdepictedbelow.TheCustomerExperienceCycleWhatdoIreallywant?1.Select2.Purchase3.Receive4.Use5.Dispose6.Evaluate©1995ArthurAndersen&Co.S.C.,Allrightsreserved.5-1CustomerNeedsAssessmentForeach“criticalevent”theworkshopparticipantsexploretheuniqueneedsofthecustomeratthatpointintheexperiencecycle.Thefollowingtableprovidesadescriptionofeacheventandexamplesofcustomerneedsthatmaybediscovered.CustomerNeedsAreExploredAtEachCriticalEventCriticalEventCustomerNeedsExamples1.Select:Activitiesrelatedtoselectionoftheproductorservice.Accurateproductdescriptions,operationalcompatibility,vendorstability,accuratepricing,productavailability,independentevaluations,knowledgeablesalesstaff.2.Purchase:Activitiesrelatedtotheactualpurchaseoftheproductorservice.Flexiblepaymentoptions,expeditedshipping,notificationofdelay,easeofadministration,moneybackguarantees,electronicdatainterchange(EDI).3.Receive:Activitiesrelatedtoreceivingandinstallingtheproductpriortouse.Environmentallyfriendlypacking,zerodamageordefects,deliverywindows,JITshipment,custompackaging/racking,"quickstart"manuals,turnkeypackage.4.Use:Actualuseandownershipoftheproductbythecustomer.Meantimetofailure/meantimetorepair,end-usermaintenance,availabilityoftraining,silentoperation,ergonomicdesign,lowcostexpendable,technicalassistanceandexpertdiagnosis,overnightloanerprograms.5.Dispose:Activitiesrelatedtothedisposaloftheproductorwasteafterusebythecustomer.Vendorrecyclingprograms,reductionofhazardouswaste,residualvalueofproduct,usedequipmentmarket,warrantycarryover,trade-in/trade-upprograms.6.Evaluate:Theassessmentbythecustomerofthetotalexperiencewithpossibledecisiontorepeatpurchase.Informationontotalcostofownership,historyofcomplaintsandresolution,up-gradepathways,knowledgethatthesupplierhasinvestedinlearningthecustomer’sbusiness.Actualcu...
