CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE


plethora of solutions on the market than can be used to increase your productivity and efficiency; thus, giving you more time to work on the business (instead of ‘in’ the business). For example, make the most


of your transaction data to provide insight into your sales performance and join up all of your commerce channels for a consistent, seamless customer experience. Speak to your payment provider to see how they can support you to achieve this.


Innovate to accumulate Innovation is vital in today’s marketplace and this doesn’t stop at your product – your website, payment technology, events, store layout – the opportunities to innovate are boundless. If you don’t have some of these things in place yet, then this is your opportunity to approach them with a creative eye. Think about how you can keep ahead of the trends by speaking to the right people, networking at business conferences and looking for gaps in the market.


There’s no ‘I’ in team Employees and your wider team are your number one asset, but don’t just think about


the people on the office or shop floor. There are other stakeholders who are instrumental in your long-term success; think of your suppliers and the wider network of people and experts who can help you to grow successfully. Maria Shaw, Director of


Small Business at Barclaycard, agrees with me on this point: “Businesses should take advantage of the advice and support available to them as they look to grow – our research shows that the vast majority of companies that have reached the scale up phase have looked to external partners for help. Making the most of


existing networks and relationships can really help companies overcome some of their concerns associated with growth.”


THINK OF YOUR SUPPLIERS AND THE WIDER NETWORK OF PEOPLE AND EXPERTS WHO CAN HELP YOU TO GROW SUCCESSFULLY


Create unique customer experiences We know the experience economy is here to stay – consumers want experiences that go above and beyond the products you sell or services you provide. Think about how you can do this efficiently and profitably. It doesn’t have to be installing a coffee


counter in your boutique or a gym class in your office space. Instead, it might be changing how you deliver a product, trialling a pop-up or partnering with another experience to reward your customers. When thinking about how to garner loyalty from your customers, positive experiences are key. In summary, scaling may be scary,


but it is a very necessary process – do so effectively and you might be surprised by what you can achieve. ■


* The term ‘scale- up businesses’ has been defined in accordance with the OECD definition as a company which has seen average annualised growth of at least 20 per cent in last three years with 10 or more employees at the start of the period.


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