June 23, 2011
NEW YORK – After looking at customer experience as an investment rather than a cost, American Express saw that its new attitude toward customers had significant effects on spending, according to an American Express executive at Forrester's Customer Experience Forum 2011.
Once well-known for its customer experience, American Express had to kick it up a few notches to regain its title. By implementing services that made customers feel more like individuals and not just one of the masses, the company saw increased spending and lower attrition companywide.
“Service is our foundation,” said Jim Bush, executive vice president of world service for American Express, New York. “We realized that our purpose was serving relationships, not transactions.”
Absolutely positive
Customer experience is one of the key aspects that attract and keep luxury consumers.
American Express realized this and decided that it needed to go back to its roots.
“We used to be so renowned for our customer service, but we noticed that our name never came up in conversations anymore,” Mr. Bush said.
American Express began training its professionals to ensure that they realized the importance of customer experience throughout all touch point channels.
Rather than hurrying to get off the phone or making transactions a top priority, American Express was intent on delivering customer experience by both making sure that the conflict was resolved the first time and allowing the customer to decide when the phone call ended, per Mr. Bush.
The company is working to seamlessly transition the customer experience across all channels, including digital, mobile and social media.
American Express also implemented the “Recommend a Friend” feature, where customers became part of the company’s experience.
The results were dramatic: American Express saw 20-25 percent increased cardmember spend, six times lower attrition value and 10 percent decreased service margin between 2006 and 2011.
“We proved that great service truly is great business,” Mr. Bush said.
The three E's
American Express developed a new philosophy that put the customer first and the transaction second by using an "enable, engage and empower" strategy.
The company created an integrated network, met customers’ unique needs and created a culture with a passion to serve.
American Express is now intent on educating its employees so that they realize how important conversations via phone and digital are for its customers, per Mr. Bush.
Indeed, the company found that providing callers with someone that they could relate to, with a personality and who actually wanted to help them, was far more attractive than just a robotic, uninterested voice that frustrated consumers.
“It’s amazing to see the parallel with engaging with consumers and how it resonates over the phone,” Mr. Bush said.
Moreover, American Express carefully selects its call-center representatives, rather than just hiring anybody, per Mr. Bush.
The company rewards its customer experience professionals with rewards from American Express so that employees are incentivized to give their best to customers.
These employees reportedly can earn up to 40 percent of their salary via these incentives and rewards.
“You have to think big to deliver big,” Mr. Bush said. “As a result, we more than doubled our earnings, which emphasizes the power of serving and changing the perception of the customer.
“It’s an incredibly powerful, profound impact that resonated throughout the organization,” he said.
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