TALKING BUSINESS
Rami Bachir, Sales Manager, Middle East at Kodak Alaris,
Information Management Division
C
ustomer onboarding or client onboarding (CoB), as we
call the process of ‘entering’ new customers into the
organisation, is an important moment of truth.
It’s when you really make the difference and deliver upon the
promises for why people became a customer to start with. It’s
the stage when the seeds of customer retention are planted.
In some industries onboarding takes more time and is more
complicated due to, among other things, the complex nature
of the service and the loads of information and data that are
involved. It’s why there is more focus on a strategic onboarding
approach in industries such as retail banking or insurance.
Customer onboarding is a critical first stage in customer
experience. After all, first impressions make lasting impacts.
Evidence suggests we form first impressions in about 1/10
of a second, and that they stick with us for the duration of a
relationship. Because of this, better, faster customer onboarding
translates into growth: most business leaders agree it is cheaper
to retain a customer than it is to acquire one. Also, 94% of
customers who have a ‘low-effort experience’ will buy from that
same company again. To get both sides of the equation correct,
you need to make the process as easy as possible. And that
starts by reducing complexity.
In the Era of Data Chaos, routine processes like customer
onboarding frequently become bogged down by the sheer
volume of data and documents. This leads to an onboarding
process that takes too many steps and zig-zags between
paper and digital touchpoints. This, of course, is not a good
start to a long-term customer relationship.
Streamline Customer Onboarding in Four Quick Steps
The good news is that improving the customer onboarding
process doesn’t have to be a massive undertaking. Making
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