Hi Hiram, tell us about yourself and your background.
I graduated in Advertising and I’ve got MBA in Digital Marketing from FESSC – Brazil. In 2020 I was elected Top World 100 Customer Success Strategists by the American Success Coaching. Author of the book: “Customer Success: o sucesso das empresas focadas em clientes” – Customer Success: the success of companies focused on customers – free translate.
Acted as Customer Success for more than 250 companies throughout Brazil and abroad.
What is the biggest misunderstanding about customer experience, in your opinion?
I believe it is the alignment between the service promise versus what was actually presented. It seems to be something simple (and it really is), but the company’s discourse needs to be aligned with the product and its service delivery. A good service is not to make the customer happy, but to serve what they need to be adjusted with the resources you have to offer.
What are some of the newer CX companies/solutions you’re keeping your eyes on right now?
Everything related to data and behavior of use of the tool. Studying your customer base in depth is one of the best ways to gain new knowledge and insights. Tools that compile information such as NPS, Churn, Health Score and bring this formatted data give us the right path for quick and assertive decision making.
What can companies do to improve customer loyalty and retention?
First of all, they need to be clear from the moment of sale. Then, it is necessary to guide the client in an efficient onboarding and bring quick and effective responses whenever the client needs it. It does not mean having a 24/7 service, but rather, having a structure that leads the customer to get their answers as a FAQ or a database with a good UX design.
What do you think is most relevant and why: CSAT (customer satisfaction score), NPS (net promoter score), or CES (customer effort score)?
It is all are complementary, but if I had to choose only one of them I would be with the NPS. I believe that it is broader and can, in a second moment, give us more relevant information about our customers. However, it is necessary to be very careful with the three metrics, because not all answers are sincere, many users just “press a button” to get rid of that pop-up that appeared to them. That is why it is important to study the customer base and their behavior. Data is everything!
How can companies better use social media in the era of customer-centricity and personalization?
Regardless of your strategy, there is something very important: never let your customer talk to himself on social media. Even if you don’t have the solution or the final answer, it must be said that you are looking for an answer, not even if you send your client to another channel for a more complete service.
What is your opinion on AI-based chatbots to handle customer support?
Chatbots are an excellent tool as long as you can create a path that consistently leads your customer to what he wants. Nothing will help him write his name, email and phone if in the end what he wanted was just to clear a simple question of use. The user will not use the chatbot again.
What was the best movie you saw that has come out during this past year?
I confess that I’ve been watching few movies lately. I have followed more series like “Peaky Blinders”, “Vikings” and “The Queen’s Gambit”, I like themes that involve strategy and persuasion.
Last but not least, what is your favorite CX metric?
In my opinion, Churn is the final metric. It is the root of the problem, one of the indexes that most need attention and that shows the beginning of where we should follow and solve our customers’ retention problems. I always like to start with this metric and then move on to others.
