Deliver an Exceptional Experience

An exceptional customer experience evokes a positive emotional response. Win your customer’s hearts and loyalty by taking the time and effort to deliver an exceptional experience.

Provide Consistently Great Service

Define what an exceptional customer experience means, and customize for each customer segment. Strive for excellent service delivery across your entire organization

• Document your agency's customer service standards, and ensure all your employees know and follow them
• Be polite, and use people's names during interactions
• Repeat questions and requests, to confirm exactly what customers are asking for
  • If customer expectations are unrealistic, explain why, and what you can do instead
• If you have a customer database, keep it up-to-date
• Train employees to identify opportunities to “wow “the customer

Identify Opportunities to “Wow”

Find ways to deliver better service

• Figure out what problem/need the customer is trying to solve, and determine a positive resolution
• Empathize with your customer, put yourself in their shoes
• Understand your products/services, so you know what is available to solve the problem
• Turn “bad” experiences into positive ones
  • Be honest and upfront when issues arise
  • Do everything you can to improve the situation
• Ask how you can follow-up, what else can you do to “wow“ them?

Meet Audience Needs

• Develop customer satisfaction metrics
• Tailor communications and services to specific customer group
  • Write web content and publications in different ways for different audiences
  • Provide online information for web users, and use mail or phone to reach those who don't use the web
• Coordinate information across channels to help customers move seamlessly from one channel to another
  • Provide multiple ways for customers to receive services and provide feedback
  • Consider using a central phone number and/or email address for customer questions
• Review different customer contact channels to find those that best support your customers
  • Cost-effective web-based tools include user-friendly websites or frequently asked questions databases
  • Person-to-person interactions include phone, in-person, online chat, or email. They cost more, but are essential to connect with customers
  • Solicit feedback via the same channel through which your customer contacted you
  • Follow-up with customers who give specific feedback
• Listen, interpret and promptly address concerns
• Identify and remove roadblocks to providing a "wow" experience

Deliver a Satisfactory Solution

Evaluate options and select the one with the best return. Spend taxpayer dollars wisely

• Give employees authority to solve problems
  • How creative can you be to provide exceptional service at a low cost?
• Evaluate the costs and benefits of possible solutions
  • What will customers think is a reasonable solution?
  • Select the best option for both the customer and the organization
• Go beyond expectations to solve the problems
• Follow up to ensure complete satisfaction and find out how you can improve

Give Your Best

If someone needs government info or services, you have an obligation to always do your best, since your customers can't "shop around" for a better deal - the DMV is still the only place to get a driver's license!

Next Steps

• Once the transaction is complete, measure how well you met expectations, and make adjustments to enhance the next experience
• Learn how to Exceed Expectations

Content Lead: Alycia Piazza
Page Reviewed/Updated: February 19, 2013