door Marcel Lepage 7 jaren geleden
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Apple is well known for having revolutionized the mobile world as well as the technology world for consumers. From mp3s to mobiles, tablets, computers and more, the company has been able to make every launch to the market in the past 10 years a great success, being clearly a crowd favorite.
I believe that apple it's a powerful example, as the company itself states than more than just products, they provide experiences, from the moment the design the product centered on how the customers are going to feel, to its famous modern boutique-style stores and the subsequent services it provides customers after a purchase. Apple has been able to use the customer experience to add more value to the customer and it return it has become the most profitable company, with 53.4 billion dollars in profit in 2015 (Fortune 500).
Technology, human touch and many WOW factors are some of the strategies we can see the company use, but above all a customer centric approach in everything they do, in the words of Steve Jobs "you gotta start with the customer experience and work backwards to the technology"
Service doesn't end at the purchase. Apple takes care of the customer experience after acquiring the product seeking to obtain a high level of loyalty
The company was the pioneer in offering free software updates on the all its products without the need of acquiring new hardware, showing a true disposition of always giving its customer the latest best service offering
Another of Apple's break-troughs in service was the presence of the Genius Bars in the stores, with whom customers can make a reservation at their store of preference to get technical support. Customers can also have their doubt resolved with an expert via phone, chat, email, or even Twitter.
Apple revolutionized the technology purchasing experience, by establishing its own retail stores allowing the company to have a more complete interaction with the customers.
The company doesn't remains still and its currently transforming its stores design and distribution, seeking to renovate and improve the customer experience by giving the stores the feeling of a town square.
The store space itself it's one of the main factors of the customers experience, establishing flagship stores in major metropolitan areas or renovating spaces in classical urban buildings the company makes sure that all its stores count with an edgy, modern minimalistic design the store are in line with Apple's value proposition of simple beautiful designed products
The company created stores that offer unique different experience, not just from other tech companies but from retail as well
The purpose of the store would be lost without a remarkable service align with the company customer-centricity, as such employees of the store are trained not to do more sales but to create value for the customer, focusing on the three F's of Empathy:
The operationalization of this philosophy is done trough the A-P-P-L-E Way:
One of the major service innovations Apple stores brought was the try out model, where customers can interact directly with all the products the company has. At the same time customers also receive advising from the store specialist, who help guiding the customer trough all the product features, how to use it and which one is the best fit, at style of service that no technology company used in their B2C strategy.
The model was so successful, that many competitors such as Microsoft opened stores with the same concept. Still, Apple remains as the main reference of this boutique style of shopping experience.
For the company to create it's remarkable customer experienced to count with the right people has been a paramount aspect for Apple's success. From the commitment to customers from top-management to a fully engaged body of store specialist who have a mission not to sale, but to make a real impact in their customer lives.
The financial success and brand recognition of Apple are two strong indicators of how powerful can a true customer-centric company be, from this case we can also point out the following takeways:
Today, Apple is widely acknowledge as a reference for customer experience across all industries
Jonathan Ive, Apple's Senior Vp of Design, explains how the company makes an ongoing effort in getting rid of unnecessary complexities
and give the most simple experience across all the company products
Steve Jobs, Apple's founder and iconic CEO, was a strong advocate of the customer experience from the very beginning.
It was this true commitment from top-management that enable the company to become a real customer-centric organization.
Business experts suggests that the company success it's due to its strong focus on customers and their relationship with the company and its products, instead of focusing on technology for the sake of it Apple it's always prioritizing bringing more value to the customer, which led the company not to offer technological products but a technological experience.
The company enable this vision by following its three main guidelines, empathy to te customer, focus on the important aspects and impute by making sure to present its products in a creative-professional way
