Customer Orientation: The Key to Retention and Sustainable Growth

In the classic film "Pretty Woman", there‘s a scene where Julia Roberts‘ character Vivian attempts to shop at a high-end department store. Because of how she‘s dressed, the sales associates snub her, assuming she can‘t afford anything and urging her to leave. The next day, Vivian returns, laden with shopping bags, to scold them that they made a huge mistake.

This is a prime example of what happens when a business lacks customer orientation. By judging Vivian on her appearance and not her needs as a customer, the store lost out on significant sales. More than that, they lost the opportunity to gain a loyal customer and brand ambassador.

Customer orientation is, simply put, a business approach that focuses on solving for the customer first. It means that the customer‘s needs and wants are prioritized over the company‘s. For customer service teams, a customer-oriented approach translates to concentrating fully on understanding and meeting customer needs.

This may seem like an obvious strategy, but it‘s one many companies neglect in favor of a sales orientation – pushing for the sale above all else. However, a customer orientation approach has been proven to drive better business results. Consider these statistics:

• Acquiring a new customer can cost 5 times more than retaining an existing one
• Increasing customer retention by just 5% can increase profits anywhere from 25% to 95%
• Existing customers are 50% more likely to try a new product and spend 31% more than new customers

By focusing on helping and retaining the customers you already have, you pave the way for more sustainable growth. Happy customers become loyal ones who will spread positive word-of-mouth about your brand. And in our current age, when consumers are more knowledgeable and discerning than ever, showing them you prioritize their success is crucial to earning their business.

So how can you implement a customer orientation approach in your own organization, particularly within your customer support function? Here are 8 key steps:

1. Hire for attitude and empathy. While you can teach technical skills, you can‘t teach an employee to care. Screen for candidates who demonstrate friendliness, patience, empathy, and a genuine desire to help others. These traits are the foundation of excellent customer-oriented service.

2. Value your frontline employees. Support can be a thankless job. Show your appreciation for their hard work serving your customers day in and day out. When they feel fulfilled in their roles, it empowers them to extend that same care to your customers.

3. Train holistically. Of course, training should cover product knowledge and technical troubleshooting. But it‘s equally important to educate on delivering empathetic, personalized customer care. Every support interaction should be helpful and leave the customer feeling heard.

4. Exemplify customer orientation at every level. Managers and executives must fully embrace a customer-first philosophy for it to extend to the frontlines. Lead by example, demonstrating that the customer‘s perspective guides every decision. And ensure it‘s safe for employees to always do the right thing for the customer.

5. Seek to understand your customers. Empathy is found through listening. Tune in to your customers wants, needs, challenges and goals. Dig deeper to understand the "why" behind their requests. Actively engaging with your customers is key to grasping how to serve them best.

6. Continuously iterate and improve. Your customers‘ needs will constantly evolve – your approach to serving them must evolve in tandem. Always look for opportunities to finetune your support to better fulfill their current expectations and anticipate future ones.

7. Empower your support team. Give frontline staff the authority to resolve most issues without escalation. Trust their judgment to handle situations in the customer‘s best interest. Encourage them to suggest improvements that will enhance the customer experience. They‘re your eyes and ears on the front lines!

8. Regularly solicit feedback. You won‘t know how to improve your customer orientation unless you ask your customers! Deploy surveys, conduct interviews, and have one-to-one conversations to gather their honest thoughts on what you‘re doing well and where you could level up your support. Then use those insights to drive meaningful improvements.

Many companies have seen incredible success by dedicating themselves to a customer orientation approach. HubSpot weaves the mantra "solve for the customer" into every aspect of their culture, from their core values to their Customer Code to their hiring practices. Ecommerce giant Zappos built their entire brand on providing exceptional customer-focused service, with a team that will take as long as needed to resolve customer issues satisfactorily.

Then there‘s Apple, the gold standard for anticipating customer needs. Their innovative product design doesn‘t just fulfill current consumer desires – it predicts what they‘ll want next, before they even know it themselves. By always having their finger on the pulse of the customer, Apple has engendered almost fanatical brand loyalty.

Becoming a truly customer-oriented company requires commitment and alignment from all angles of the organization. It‘s not a one-and-done initiative – it‘s an ongoing mission and culture to champion at every level, every day. You must hire for it, train for it, reward employees for it, gather feedback on it, and continuously improve on it. Customer expectations will always rise – you have to be willing to rise alongside them.

When you embrace customer orientation and all that entails, you don‘t just boost your sales and retention rates. You create authentic, lasting connections with the people your company exists to serve. You turn transactions into relationships. You build a business that grows through prioritizing people over profits. And that‘s how you achieve success that‘s not just lucrative, but meaningful and sustainable over the long-term.