Yet, many companies focus too heavily on attracting new users, often failing to recognise the subtle friction that gradually drives these customers away. This is where good user experience (UX) comes into play—not only as a design practice but also as a powerful retention tool.

Small UX decisions, like how you onboard users, how you guide them to value, and how you respond to confusion, often determine whether someone becomes a long-term customer or silently churns. The good news is that you don’t need a complete product overhaul to start seeing results.

Let’s explore a few simple, high-leverage UX fixes that can help products not just survive, but thrive.

Keep Customer Satisfaction First

Customer satisfaction is key, so why wait for feedback? You can survey your customers to measure their satisfaction, and there are two main ways to do this: Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT) and Net Promoter Score (NPS).

CSAT: This is customer feedback received during a purchase or at any point of interaction. It’s the easiest survey, requiring only a couple of straightforward questions like, “How satisfied are you with our service?” or “What is your reaction to our posts?” Keep the score scale consistent, and if a customer leaves negative feedback, investigate it immediately to address it, aiming to maintain a CSAT score of 75%-85%.

NPS: This index measures overall customer satisfaction and brand loyalty, based on a 0 to 11 scale. Customers scoring below six are considered “Detractors,” those scoring above nine are “Promoters,” and the rest are “Passives.” Detractors are least likely to buy from your brand again, while Promoters are loyal. Therefore, your goal should be to deliver services that turn users into Promoters.

Newsletters

Newsletters are an effective strategy for adding value to your customers and reminding them of your brand regularly. They are a cost-effective, efficient, and convenient way to communicate with existing users. Use this clever technique to stay connected with your loyal customers.

First Impressions Matter

First impressions often last the longest, so it’s crucial to anchor the initial excitement of the user with a sophisticated design. To do this, you need to think from the customer’s perspective and make their first experience memorable.

Spotlight On Social Proof

Customers are more likely to trust the experiences of previous customers over a brand’s own advertisement. Leverage this fact by using testimonials from your most satisfied customers. Share these testimonials to highlight your brand’s value, demonstrate the success of your clients, and retain your current customers. The trust and reliability these testimonials lend to your brand are limitless.

The post Simple UX fixes to boost customer retention appeared first on International Finance.

Invest In The Entire Customer Journey

To deliver outstanding customer service, you must concentrate on the entire customer journey, from the initial point of contact to the follow-up after a purchase. A common mistake businesses make is solely investing in support staff, but the customer experience begins long before a customer calls for assistance. From marketing and onboarding to product usage, each phase of the journey should be carefully planned to satisfy the needs of your clients.

To determine the most important moments, begin by outlining the complete customer journey. Are there any pain points or opportunities to improve experiences along the way? For instance, providing a smooth online experience, clear product details, and simple purchasing options can create a positive impression. Ensuring that every touchpoint is consistent and aligns with your brand values will give your clients a seamless, engaging experience that goes far beyond basic assistance.

Empower Your Customer Teams With Data

Teams that interact directly with customers, whether in sales, support, or service, need to be armed with the appropriate data to deliver personalised and effective service. Customer information such as previous interactions, preferences, and purchases can help your team better anticipate customer needs and resolve issues. With this data-driven approach, your team can provide customised solutions and offer the customer a more seamless experience.

Invest in tools that allow your teams to see each customer’s interaction with your brand from all angles by integrating customer data from multiple platforms. By utilising chat history, CRM system insights, and previous feedback, your team can proactively provide support, resolve issues more quickly, and even make recommendations for new products or services that the client might find interesting.

Drive Deeper Connections With Customers

A great customer experience involves more than just promptly responding to enquiries or resolving issues; it involves developing a closer bond with your clients. To stand out, aim to establish emotional connections with your audience. Making clients feel valued through personalised service is one of the best ways to achieve this. Spend time learning about the things that matter to your customers and how they use your offerings. This could involve asking for feedback through surveys, social media interactions, or even in-person meetings.

By demonstrating a sincere interest in their needs, you can go beyond transactional interactions and build lasting relationships with your clients. Offering special discounts, personalised communications, or loyalty programmes can also make clients feel valued and appreciated.

Embed Empathy

Great customer service is built on empathy. When clients contact you with queries, problems, or concerns, they want to feel valued, heard, and understood. Even in challenging circumstances, empathetic interactions strengthen relationships and increase trust. To incorporate empathy into your customer experience, encourage your staff to actively listen and respond with compassion and understanding.

It’s crucial to teach your team how to show empathy. Ensure that your agents have the resources necessary to manage emotional exchanges and respond in ways that prioritise the client’s needs. Additionally, empathy involves patience and openness. In the event of an error, admitting fault and taking responsibility shows clients that you care about their experience and are committed to resolving the issue.

The post Four approaches to deliver an exceptional customer experience appeared first on International Finance.

How Your Price Determines The Type Of Customers You Attract

The type of customers your business attracts will be greatly influenced by the price you set. Customers searching for high-end, superior products might be drawn to your offering if it is priced higher. For high-end features, exceptional service, or exclusivity, these clients are usually willing to pay more.

However, if your price point is lower, you might attract clients who are more cost-conscious and seeking less expensive options. Setting your price requires careful consideration of the kind of customer you wish to serve and what matters most to them. Price high if you want to appeal to a luxury market; if you want to attract budget-conscious customers, think about offering competitive prices.

Pricing Strategy Should Be Flexible

When determining the price of your product or service, it’s critical to keep in mind that your approach should be adaptable. Pricing may need to change to reflect shifting consumer expectations, business environments, and cost structures.

If you want to adjust your prices in response to demand, competition, or seasonal variations, consider implementing a dynamic pricing model. For example, implementing tiered pricing, executing limited-time promotions, or offering discounts can all be successful tactics to increase sales. Being adaptable enables you to satisfy the needs of your clients while maintaining your competitive edge.

Is Your Product’s Price Right?

Examine your expenses and your competitors’ prices to determine if the price of your product is appropriate. First, look for a price that allows for profit while covering production, marketing, and other overhead expenses. Next, find out what comparable goods or services are selling for on the market.

If you charge much more than your competitors, consider whether your product is worth the difference. If your price is much lower, on the other hand, you might be undervaluing your product or losing money. Additionally, pay attention to consumer feedback.

Are customers happy with the price they pay for the value they receive? To ensure you’re on the right track, regularly review your pricing based on these factors.

It takes a balance of strategy, market knowledge, and customer insight to determine the ideal price. By taking into account your target market, staying flexible, and comparing your pricing to the competition, you can position your product or service for success.

The post How to price your product: Here is the guidance appeared first on International Finance.

So why is customer retention so important? Andrew Gibson, Director of Content Marketing at Skipio (a small-business software solution that is transforming customer communication forever), cites an old business rule that says it’s six times more expensive to acquire a new customer than it is to keep an existing one.

“In other words, it’s a heck of a lot harder to convince a new potential buyer that you’re worth their money than returning customers who already like your product or service. The key is making sure your current customers continue to like you. How do you do that? Well, let’s look at the top three reasons that customers leave businesses,” the marketing strategist states further.

Going Through The Stats

Emplifi, the leading unified customer experience platform, 2022 released “11 key things consumers expect from their brand experiences today,” a report that offered deep insights into customer expectations for B2C brand experiences.

The report talked about everything from expected customer service response times and preferred communication channels to just how integral CX is to brand loyalty. Surveying more than 2,000 consumers from the United States and the United Kingdom, Emplifi found that 86% of consumers would leave a brand they were once loyal to after only two to three bad customer service experiences. Some 63% of the survey participants confirmed they would leave a brand because of poor customer experience, and 49% admitted they had left a company they were loyal to in the past 12 months for that reason.

The survey only went on to prove how important customer experience (CX) is for a business’ growth. The report revealed slow response time as the leading contributor to a negative experience, followed by a lack of 24/7 customer service support. Some 52% of respondents expected brands to respond to customer service enquiries via digital channels within an hour, while 22% expressed a preference for social media, 19% for email and 16% for website chat.

In this article, we will discuss why companies face higher customer attrition rates at times and how they can solve the problem.

Be Mindful About ‘Bad Experience’

Citing a May 2024 study by HelpScout, Andrew Gibson stated that 78% of customers backed out of a purchase because of a bad service experience.

In the late 1970s, a study was commissioned by the White House Office of Consumer Affairs, and the top reason for customers leaving (over 70%) was the “rudeness or apathy from a company or brand employee”. Forty years down the line, this still has remained the primary reason behind customers not rallying behind a brand.

The remedy here is to train the employees about the “Customer First” and “Customer is God” approaches and they should not be let out of the shop’s door unless they are happy.

“Despite your best training efforts, though, there may still be times when a customer has a bad experience. In this case, it’s best to immediately remedy the situation and promise the customer that it won’t happen again. Throwing in a discount on their next purchase goes a long way in these situations. The quicker you do this, the more likely the customer will be to give you another chance,” Gibson remarked.

Customers Want Consistency

Consumers hate inconsistent information. If you are dialling a company’s customer support number with a question and don’t like the answer, what will you do? You will try to call back and ask some other customer service executive the same question, hoping for a different answer.

Self-service or digital support is becoming more popular. Customers are finding it quicker and easier to visit a website, read the frequently asked questions or interact with an AI-fuelled chatbot. However, there are times when they feel it necessary to talk to a human voice.

“It should be an easy, seamless transition, but some companies hide behind a wall of digital support and make it difficult for a customer to connect to a live agent. Furthermore, some companies bury their customer support number on their website, making it difficult, if not impossible, to find,” says world-renowned customer service and CX expert Shep Hyken, while citing a 2022 study, which found around 71% of customers ditching a company for the same reason.

“You can’t be great one day, not so great the next day, average another day, etc. Inconsistency erodes confidence. 59% of the customers we surveyed would walk if they didn’t know what to expect. Customers want a consistent and predictable experience. That gives them confidence that they know what to expect every time they do business with you,” Hyken added further.

Make The Rewards Tempting

Having a loyalty programme is a must for any 21st century business to ensure repeat visits and product buys from existing customers.

“It’s worth noting that the average American household is involved in 29 of these programmes, but did you know that they only actively use (earning or redeeming just one point per year) 12 of them? What does that tell you? That the loyalty programme itself isn’t enough to keep your customers coming back for more,” Andrew Gibson continued.

“For example, let’s say that there are two restaurants right down the block from your customer’s office. The food and service are fantastic at both, but one has a loyalty programme that gives them a free side for every USD 100 spent, and the other has a loyalty programme that gives them a free entree for every USD 100 spent. Now, where do you think your hungry customer is headed for lunch every day?” he added.

While the companies often get enticed by the proven “recipe” of rewarding customers for their loyalty like offering occasional discounts, letting them try out new products before release, and throwing in an extra service for free every now, customers sometimes want to be more than just another number.

Developing a personal relationship with their customers will not only increase a company’s loyalty game, but will give the customers a reason to brag to their friends about their favourite brand, serving two purposes at once: Customer Retention and Free Word of Mouth Advertising.

Honest Communication: Another Key

Long wait times and poor response times, or just failing to fix the problem are the major catalysts behind people ditching your products, as they believe that you gave them “Broken Promises.” Another phenomenon most companies fail to take note of is “Buyer’s Remorse,” a sense of regret customers experience after making a purchase, knowing that the investment from their end was big and they could have gone for a better alternative than your product. In some cases, buyer’s remorse can influence the customer leaving if they aren’t made to feel sufficiently comfortable in their purchase, and if negative consequences emerge early in the customer experience/relationship.

Here, the ability to communicate with customers (also giving honest replies to their queries becomes critical starting a strong customer relationship. Don’t keep your customers in the dark on important events.

You have to master the art of communicating consistently across channels like email, chat, phone etc. While it may sound like “too much hard work,” customers want an effortless experience and always seek businesses that will deal effectively with their queries.

Better Deals Always Await Customers

A customer can ditch you if he/she finds a considerably cheaper or more convenient deal for a comparable product or service elsewhere. In a competitive business environment, entrepreneurs always need to look out what their rivals are doing, in terms of quality, availability and price.

As a business leader, aim to be disruptive. At the same time, focus on developing loyalty programmes and customer retention strategies to ensure they are future-proof. In this age of AI and data science, market research tools are your best allies for understanding rapidly changing consumer behaviour.

Ensure that your deals are at the forefront of the customers’ minds. Business text messaging is a fantastic way to do this, as customers are always on their phones and getting updated on what’s new. As per a report from SimpleTexting, more than 90% of business owners see higher conversion rates via text messaging.

The post Why do customers leave a company? Finding reasons & solutions appeared first on International Finance.

A company can differentiate itself from the competition, establish a solid reputation, and add value by using branding to give their business a distinct personality. Here is how a strong brand will impact your business:

Helps In Getting Recognition

Acquiring recognition is largely dependent on branding. Your brand defines every element, including e-promos, corporate design, photography, and websites. Every interaction offers a chance to strengthen customer loyalty and raise brand awareness.

Builds Trust

Building trust is achieved through branding. Since it offers a company significant competitive and financial advantages, developing a strong brand with devoted customers is vital. Businesses that present themselves well have a far higher chance of doing business with others.

Builds Financial Value

Branding is a valuable asset. Branding increases the monetary value and brings in new business. Brands increase market share growth, drive demand and sales, and increase differentiation from competitors while increasing shareholder value.

Generates Referral Business

A strong brand generates referral business, bringing you new clients. People enjoy recommending companies to others when they have a good experience with them.

Motivate Staff

Strong brands attract talent and motivate staff, giving them something to believe in and to stand behind.

“The foundation of any business is its brand. Establishing your brand’s values is essential. What your clients and future clients think of you is your brand. A brand’s experience is something you would want to have, so it is important to be conscious of it. Customers will choose you over your competitors when you have a strong brand because it highlights and sets apart your goods and services. Strong brands are the result of careful planning, patience, and effort. Being experts in a particular area of the business, we are in a unique position to offer advice on how to help clients stand out,” Ella Yuen, freelance brand manager, said, Best&CO reported.

The post The importance of branding in financial services appeared first on International Finance.

You need to know where your business idea will begin, how it should evolve, and how you will measure success. Additionally, you must determine how you will create value for your customers. By following these straightforward steps, you can establish a robust business model.

Understanding Your Target Audience

When it comes to your business, targeting a wide audience won’t allow you to focus on customers who truly need or want your product or service. Instead, it’s better to narrow down your audience to two or three specific buyer personas. For each persona, outline their demographics, common challenges, and how your company can offer solutions. For example, Home Depot may appeal to everyone or carry a product that the average person needs, but the company’s primary target market is homeowners and builders.

Optimise Operational Frameworks

In order for your business to start operating, it is important to have a thorough understanding of the activities that need to be carried out to make your business model work. You can determine the key business activities by first identifying the core aspect of your business’s offering. For instance, if you are responsible for providing a service, shipping a product or offering consulting, you need to identify the activities that are crucial for delivering these offerings. As an example, in the case of Ticketbis, an online ticket exchange marketplace, the key business processes include marketing and product delivery management.

Document Essential Business Assets

It is important for businesses to identify the essential resources required to carry out their daily operations, acquire new customers, and achieve their business goals. These resources may include a website, capital, warehouses, intellectual property, and customer lists. Proper documentation of these resources helps to ensure that the business model is well-prepared to meet the needs of the business and sustain its growth over time.

Craft Compelling Value Proposition

How do you plan to differentiate your company from the competition? Is it by providing an innovative service, a revolutionary product, or a new take on an old favourite? Clearly defining what your business has to offer and why it is superior to your competitors is the foundation of a compelling value proposition. Once you have identified a few value propositions, connect each one to a product or service delivery system to determine how you can continue to provide value to your customers over time.

Identify Strategic Business Collaborators

Every business needs key partners who play an important role in contributing to the success of the business. These partners are crucial to a company’s ability to serve its customers and achieve its goals. When building a business model, it is essential to choose key partners such as suppliers, strategic alliances, or advertising partners. For instance, in the case of Home Depot, some of their key partners may include lumber suppliers, parts wholesalers, and logistics companies.

Formulate Effective Demand Generation Tactics

If you want to launch your company successfully, you need a strategy that generates interest in your business, attracts potential customers, and leads to sales. It’s important to ask yourself how customers will discover your brand and what actions they should take once they become aware of it. Developing a demand generation strategy can help you create a plan that outlines the customer’s journey and identifies the key reasons for taking action.

Leave Room For Innovation

When starting a business and creating a business strategy, there are many assumptions that are made. Until your business begins to attract paying customers, you won’t know if your business model will meet the customers’ ongoing needs. Therefore, it is crucial to make room for future innovations. You should never consider your initial plan to be a static document. Instead, you should review it frequently and make changes as necessary to ensure its effectiveness.

The post The seven pillars of a robust business model appeared first on International Finance.

Jess Turner, executive vice president, products and innovation, North America at Mastercard, said in a statement, “Today, storefronts are at your fingertips, browsing shopping aisles is as easy as swiping left or right and getting what you want and going where you want is as simple as a click or tap. With the Digital First Card Programme, we have designed a financial experience that mirrors the lifestyle of today’s generation with simplicity and security as our guiding principle.”

The company’s efforts in expanding its Digital First Card Programme is expected to ease payments facilities for clients. Last year, Mastercard launched the programme for digital-native customers who are seeking secure payments solutions. 

Krista Tedder, Head of Payments, Javelin Strategy & Research, said in a statement, “The future of banking is digitally motivated. Consumers are increasingly considering how they can use the branch as an extension of digital, rather than digital as an extension of the branch.” The programme’s expansion also points to an industry transformation with end-to-end payments options.

The post Mastercard expands Digital First Card for end-to-end payments appeared first on International Finance.

It is reported that customers who register for the self-read option will receive a prompt to submit their readings within the following three days. Managing Director and CEO, Bernard Ngugi, said in a statement, “The use of technology is one of the measures that the company is taking to enhance its responsiveness to existing and emerging customer needs. The company is also rolling out a county structure which is premised on devolving its key functions such as operations and maintenance, customer service.” 

The company’s USSD code is part of its innovative solutions to improve service delivery and customer experience. Ngugi said “We are keen on forging a proactive engagement with our customers in order to address the challenges they are facing.” In addition to the new service, customers can also access Kenya Power’s services through MyPower App which is available for download on android and iOS.

The post Kenya Power introduces new platform for bills management appeared first on International Finance.

Under the new partnership, Ooredoo and Visa together will offer virtual prepaid cards. It is reported that these cards will be accepted at Visa’s more than 53 million merchant locations worldwide. The proposed virtual prepaid cards are reloadable cards that will be safe and reliable for customers.

Fatima Sultan Al Kuwari, chief consumer officer at Ooredoo Qatar, told the media, “This agreement opens new avenues for Ooredoo to collaborate with Visa, with financial institutions and with others in the payments ecosystem to deliver greater value, more choices and new experiences for our joint customers, and supports Qatar as it progresses towards the 2030 vision of a digital economy. Giving consumers choice in how and where they pay is essential to our vision of enriching our customers’ digital lives, and we welcome the opportunity to work with more partners like Visa who share this vision.”

In fact, customers and merchants will get access to VisaDirect which aims to push cross-border disbursements and remittances to cards faster, media reports said. Ooredoo and Visa have agreed to further collaborate on awareness initiatives and marketing campaigns to boost cross-border payment solutions in Qatar.

Visa MENA general manager Marcello Baricordi, told the media, “This is a significant step forward in our efforts to collaborate with our local partners in digitising commerce especially at a time when we are seeing an even greater appetite for fast and secure digital payment systems.”

The post Visa, Ooredoo seek to enhance digital payments experience in Qatar appeared first on International Finance.

Last year US-based Electronic Realty Associates (ERA) started operating in Vietnam through its franchise in Singapore. Together with property brokerage EuroCapital, it has incorporated ERA Real Estate Vietnam, whose major market is HCMC. ERA Vietnam has 800 employees and 600 potential staff and collaborators undergoing training. It is also focused on the high-end segment.

It now aims to be one of the top real estate firms in Vietnam within five years with over 50 offices and 5,000 employees. Another Singapore firm, Huttons Real Estate Group, came to the country in 2016. For this third largest property company in Singapore, Vietnam is the third overseas market—after Malaysia and Philippines.

Huttons has also stated that its aim is to be the number one real estate agency in the country with multiple services including project sale, marketing, leasing, and assets management.

In 2015, U.S.-based Keller Williams tied up with VinGroup and stated that it would focus on leasing properties and consulting. Industry insiders believe the entry of international players will have a positive impact on the real estate market.

Nguyen Anh Dao, CEO of real estate firm Viethome Investment stated: “Since 2015 foreign brokerages have been entering the Vietnamese real estate market, which has been booming.”

He said that their arrival would push local ones to improve their standards, which would benefit customers. He also added that since foreigners can own up to 30% of the apartments in a project under Vietnam’s housing laws, foreign firms need to have local sales teams to approach Vietnamese customers.

He added that employing and training locals is how foreign firms can compete with local businesses—which are getting larger and more professional. The high-end segment accounted for the highest proportion of new launches in HCMC in the second quarter of this year — 54 % — according to real estate consultancy CBRE Vietnam.

It also added that in the last three years 35,000 luxury apartments have come into the market.

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