It’s a well-known statistic that acquiring a new customer can cost five times as much as retaining one. Yet, many companies remain perplexingly self-focused and fail to offer much more than lip service when it comes to establishing relationships with their users. Building customer loyalty is an ongoing process that requires meeting needs in a responsible and proactive manner, and it’s the key to any business’s success.
“Loyalty is not an action, but a reaction,” says Cary Cusumano, Principal Client Partner – Customer Experience Design at a leading telecommunications firm. “It’s an emotional bond to a person or organization that develops over time in response to actions that demonstrate that person is genuinely empathetic, sincere, and trustworthy. To put it simply, loyalty is a reaction to loyalty.”
While many organizations have taken great strides over the past several years—some experts suggest that the term “customer experience” meant nothing to companies as recently as a decade ago—there is often an inherent sense of calculation in these efforts. Witness the burst of COVID-19-related promotional emails touting new comprehensive cleaning procedures and hand sanitizer but lacking any sense of authentic outreach.
The Katalyst Way
Katalyst was founded on the principles of creating real relationships with our clients, placing your needs above everything else. Our employees “all are connected [by] one common theme, which is to make our customers successful on a daily basis.”
“I’m a strong believer [that the] customer comes first,” says Nixon Xavier, Vice President of Innovation at Katalyst Software Services Limited. It’s vital to look at each customer’s unique needs and treat them with dedicated, individualized care. “We need to understand the customer and then provide the solution which best fits for them.”
“We have been very fortunate that the [people] that work for Katalyst truly care a lot about the customer and the client,” says Joe Gallant, Vice President of Global Engineering & Manufacturing, North America at Katalyst Technologies. “We go above and beyond for our client. Customer service is everything.” Even for our offshore work, Katalyst has earned trust with new clients by onboarding someone from our team with them for several weeks simply to build a rapport, at no extra expense to the client. This hands-on approach develops comfort and reliability for everyone involved.
Avoid the Norm
“A relationship where one person talks about himself all the time is not a relationship at all, but a monologue,” says Cusumano. “Unfortunately, that’s how many businesses operate.” That one-sided nature is perhaps the fastest way for companies to lose customers, and now that social media allows anyone to publicly voice their frustration, one unsatisfied customer could result in a chain of lost business.
“Good customer service [used to be], ‘Here’s a toll-free number. Good luck,’” says Gordon Littley, Managing Director, Global CX Practice at a leading telecommunications firm. “Now you have to put the customer in control of how they’re going to engage…it is a very customer–driven industry right now. If you’re not customer–centric, you’re going to lose customers.”
Katalyst is here not only to serve its clients but to help them provide optimum value to their customers as well. Reach out to our experts and be inspired to pass along a high level of commitment, authenticity, and connection.
