Imagine the customer journey like an NFL playoff game. Each interaction is a critical play that affects your customer’s perception and influences the final score. Gaining yardage builds lasting loyalty while unforced errors erode customer trust. Your ultimate goal? Maximize customer lifetime value by strategically calling the right play and executing throughout the entire game.
Wins & losses on the field
Think of touchpoints as possessions: Each one is an opportunity to score a touchdown with a customer. Every interaction (or “play”) influences the outcome of the game, and some are of more consequence than others. A smooth customer service encounter that resolves an urgent issue might get you a Hail Mary completion while a clunky in-app checkout process could fumble the ball in your endzone. Let’s look at some game tape.
Upset alert
After an unsuccessful check-in experience using the store app, a curbside pickup customer had to call the home improvement store twice requesting they bring her purchases to her car. (They forgot she was waiting in the parking lot.) Is she as likely to buy from this store or use this service again, or recommend it to a friend? No. Conversely, a smaller home improvement store recently exceeded her expectations for order placement and curbside pickup.
Headed to overtime
A customer needed to replace two automotive batteries. For the first battery, the store could not install the battery for that specific model but allowed him to use their tools to save a trip home. He went to the same store in search of the second battery. When he arrived, their system was down, and he could not complete a purchase. He turned his vehicle off before knowing this, and it would not restart. They gave him a jump, and he returned home only to call another company the next day to deliver and install the battery at his house. My friend will keep both stores in his consideration set for auto parts, so both will compete to retain him as a customer.
Are you running the right plays?
In the game of customer loyalty, every customer interaction is an opportunity to put points on the board. Just like coaches adjust their strategies based on game situations, you must prioritize touchpoints based on their impact on the customer’s journey. Play-calling on the opening drive should look different than play-calling when you’re down by a point with two minutes on the clock.
Have you studied your opponent? How about your own team’s strengths and weaknesses? Should you punt or go for it on the fourth down? Are you moving the chains or turning it over at your own 10 yard line? If you need to make a halftime adjustment, a market research partner can help you understand critical plays and measure their impact on the scoreboard.
Bellomy for the win
To maximize customer lifetime value, you need a partner to analyze your game and help you optimize each play to avoid missed opportunities and costly turnovers. Like an effective offensive coordinator, the Bellomy research team, powered with our in-house, AI-driven suite of research tools, will write your playbook for a winning customer experience. Partner with Bellomy and be the team your customers always root for.
Andrew Wimmer is senior director of strategy with Bellomy.