This article was inspired by a conversation we had with one of our Account Directors, Yaz Mistry, about understanding some of the biggest issues our customers are facing. It may come as no surprise that a breakdown in internal communication is becoming a major roadblock to productivity, which in turn affects customer experience (CX).
Siloed communication has become a major roadblock to delivering CX that works; how you communicate internally will affect how you communicate externally. So, when there is little to no correspondence between departments due to delayed responses and information gaps, customers are bound to be frustrated. Customers aside, communication – both effective and ineffective – also has an impact on employee morale and productivity. The bottom line is simple: you need to optimise internal communication to enhance CX.
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SuperOffice surveyed 1,920 business professionals, asking them what the top business priority is for the next 5 years – CX came out on top.
Put simply, siloed communication occurs when departments solely operate within themselves, causing massive misalignment across the organisation and severely damaging CX. Let’s paint a picture of how this unfolds:
From this, it becomes clear that establishing effective communication throughout the organisation and prioritising collaboration across departments, drastically improves CX, and boosts customer satisfaction and brand loyalty.
Before we unpack the power of seamless communication, let’s understand communication: most of it lies outside of what is said. Beyond sending emails and scheduling meetings, nonverbal cues are essential when it comes to human connection. With remote work being globally mainstreamed, forming connections with your colleagues may prove to be a challenge. However, virtual events and having a ‘camera on’ policy, as we have here at Babble, are easy solutions to this.
Active listening is the epicentre of effective communication: it marks the difference between hearing and listening. The latter illustrates that the message and its intention were received correctly, allowing mutual understanding. Remember, great communicators are attentive and curious. They take the time to know the people they’re engaging with, ask questions and most importantly, listen.
How does this tie into CX? Well, if you aren’t taking the time to show your customers that you care about them and their business – by smiling, having open body language and taking the time to listen to them – they are less likely to trust you.
The key to customer happiness is building genuine relationships. This means actively listening to and understanding their needs, taking ownership of challenges, and fostering trust through open communication. By becoming a supportive partner, not just a supplier, you make them feel valued throughout their journey.
– Yaz Mistry, Enterprise Account Director at Babble
Establishing trust requires your organisation to adopt a culture of communication. When building bridges that unlock seamless communication, the destruction of all silos is required. This means acknowledging that conversation is a two-way street and encouraging cross-departmental dialogue.
Effective communication in the workplace is a key component of employee engagement, efficiency, and productivity, and empowers teams in the following ways:
Fostering collaboration across your business puts you on the fast track to improve service delivery and reduce IT support tickets. Breaking down walls of communication will allow you to work together as a team to swiftly resolve issues, by sharing information in real-time to help you get to a solution faster.
Improving internal communication and fostering a cross-departmental information-sharing environment does not happen overnight. However, there are well-established strategies that you can implement today that will firmly put you on the path to fostering a more collaborative and productive company culture.
Here’s how to break down the barriers and build bridges across departments:
Bonus Tip: Check out Viva Engage, it’s free with Microsoft 365. This internal social networking platform is a game-changer for fostering connections and keeping everyone in the loop.
There is always room for improvement, especially when it comes to CX. Copilot for Microsoft 365 is here to take your comms game to the next level. This NextGen AI tool seamlessly breaks down silos by creating a central hub for team correspondence, calendar synchronisation, and shared documents. Sharing information in real time will close information gaps, eliminate confusion, and empower collaboration. While the reality of working in isolation, will become a thing of the past.
Looking for the perfect partner to boost your communication strategy? Look no further: At Babble, we are here to help you do just that. With a host of communication and connectivity products tailor-made for your SMB, our solutions will help you streamline workflows and collaboration, unify your workforce and empower your team to deliver exceptional CX.
Moreover, our Contact Centre and CX products are designed to ensure that your internal communication strategy is not just improved but enhanced to perfection. Improved CX is not your only goal, explore our product pillars which house globally sourced best-in-class products that will form the foundation of your organisation’s successful products.
Living in a hyper-competitive world, businesses cannot afford to let CX fall to the wayside. It has become a prominent defining attribute that has the power to take your organisation to new heights. But this can only be achieved once the fine art of effective communication has been mastered across your organisation.