Guest Post

Business Growth: Impact of Employee Engagement on Customer Satisfaction

Aug 25, 2023

11 mins read

Manisha Khandelwal

What came first: the engaged employee, or the happy customer?

It’s the chicken-and-the-egg mystery of modern-day marketing. But it’s not so much of a puzzle anymore if you really think about it: humans affect each other in more ways than we often realize. 

We act, we react, often in response to how others behave. Strangely, it’s often overlooked in businesses where employees interact a lot with customers. This dynamic relationship, often influenced by a CSAT platform, can significantly shape the outcome

So today, let’s look at the human side of strategy: How does employee engagement impact customer satisfaction, and how can you benefit from this interaction?

Making Employee Engagement a Strategic Priority

According to a study in the Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, it’s not just about growing companies or fat bonuses. Researchers followed 755 retail bank employees over three years and found something interesting, ‘Employee engagement isn’t just riding along with success – it’s driving it.’

“We built the Starbucks brand first with our people, not with the consumers,” 

It’s a quote from CEO Howard Schultz that shows a vastly different approach than many companies are taking. They’re talking about putting the customer first, but don’t see employee happiness as the crucial part it is in that equation. 

7 Tips to Make Employee Engagement a Strategic Priority and its Impact on Customer Satisfaction

1. Gauging Employee Feedback: Real-time Insights

The image shows real-time analysis of employee feedback

Think of your business as a journey to success. To ensure you’re on track, consider pulse surveys as your trusty compass. These brief check-ins with your team offer real-time insights, helping you navigate the path ahead. It’s like having a constant finger on the pulse of your organization, understanding its needs and concerns. Additionally, leveraging social media channels like Facebook can enhance this process by providing an informal platform for team members to share feedback and ideas, further enriching your understanding of the organizational landscape. With pulse surveys, you can make informed decisions, ensuring everyone is motivated and engaged. Just as explorers use their compass to find their way, let pulse surveys guide you toward a more successful and connected workforce.

Impact: This enhances customer satisfaction by fostering an engaged workforce attuned to customer needs. Empowered employees deliver exceptional service, translating into positive interactions and experiences that elevate overall customer satisfaction levels.

2. Prioritize Authenticity in Employee Engagement

The image shows priortization of Authenticity in Employee Engagement

The key to genuine engagement is that it should be driven by leadership that truly cares. 

Leaders that take real steps, even if they’re in a direction they haven’t gone yet. 

You don’t necessarily need to ditch the fun stuff–just make sure you offer truly valuable resources to keep employees engaged at work.

One of the ways leadership can show employees that they’re after honest feedback and encourage employees to speak up, is to be open and transparent about the steps of the grievance procedure. Another valuable approach is to consider hiring cro professional. Leveraging recruiting email templates can significantly streamline this crucial process.This step can significantly enhance the organization’s commitment to addressing concerns and promoting a culture of trust and collaboration. Clarifying how a grievance will be dealt with lets employees know they have a voice and that their concerns are taken seriously. It’s one of the most practical ways to let them feel empowered and create a healthy culture in which everyone participates. Additionally, using tools like a WordPress Quiz plugin allows you to create a quiz that is both powerful and engaging, which can further facilitate communication and feedback in a user-friendly way.

Impact: Prioritizing authenticity in employee engagement cultivates genuine connections. Sincere interactions resonate positively, fostering customer trust and loyalty. Enhanced rapport between staff and customers elevates satisfaction, leading to lasting business success.

3. Personalize Your Employee Engagement Tactics

Pictorial representation of personalizing Employee Engagement Tactics

It’s nearly impossible to engage an entire team all at once. We’re all unique, and employees are no different. 

What matters to and motivates one person might not even register for another. Recognizing everyone’s unique motivations and aligning those with your business goals will lead to much more effective outcomes. Utilizing an efficient tool for employee experience can provide much of the customization you need, improving the health and wellness of your staff.

You can create Reels to show your appreciation to some of your employees for their performance, but you cannot do it for the rest of your team, as individual preferences and motivations vary. Additionally, you can use editable poster templates or poster maker to make creative and visually appealing content for your employee appreciation posts. You can also personalize your approach by customizing pay stub designs to reflect individual achievements and contributions, fostering a sense of recognition and value among your team members. Alternatively, you could show appreciation by holding employee award ceremonies in which you hand out trophies, like custom crystal cube trophies, to deserving employees. Moreover, consider offering wellness programs as an added benefit, such as partnerships with local gyms with trainers, promoting a healthy work-life balance and reinforcing the well-being of your team.

If you want a team that’s truly engaged, make sure to tailor your strategies to individual needs. 

This means you should make assumptions about what the ‘team’ wants, but speak to employees individually. 

Impact: Individualized approaches demonstrate care, enhancing employee morale and commitment. Elevated team satisfaction translates to improved customer interactions, amplifying overall customer satisfaction and driving business prosperity.

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4. Double Down on Employee Training and Development

The image shows employees receiving training

One of the best ways to keep people engaged is to help them learn new skills, especially when it comes to training and Mobile App development. These skills are not only beneficial for your company but also for the individuals within it, making them valuable assets for any Website developer. To understand the broader context of challenges that small businesses face today, you can take a deep dive into current business obstacles. If you are a B2B company, you could organize a training where employees would get acquainted with different software solutions for B2B ecommerce, as well as gain insights into industry best practices. 

Continuous training and skill-building naturally lead to better job opportunities, linking directly to confidence and the ability to serve customers effectively. Part of this development includes ensuring that employees are aware of their roles and responsibilities, which starts with a specific job description, including the complexities of cross border payments.

It’s not just about sending employees to a workshop now and then; it’s about weaving development opportunities into the fabric of the business, as seen in the best software companies. When an employee knows how to raise and resolve issues, it contributes to a healthy and engaging work environment. As a conclusion, investing in your employees’ development, by creating a learning and development framework to enhance employees’ skills, as well as providing opportunities for continuous learning and growth through training programs, mentorship, and career pathing, will pay off on a long run. In this sense, the initiative to implement a strong people strategy can help in creating an engaged, motivated, and skilled workforce that contributes to the organization’s success and it further enhances clear communication, talent development, performance management and inclusivity and diversity. Partnering with a travel management agency will greatly enhance employee training and upgrading opportunities while streamlining processes for employers and staff. This is just one benefit the company can offer its employees when it comes to trainings and business-related travel. And that will increase productivity and staff engagement. In this sense, TravelPerk stands out as a budget travel company that offers effective booking systems and affordable travel options for hassle-free business trips, because of its user-friendly interface, wide network, and committed customer support, guaranteeing seamless experiences for both businesses and employees.

Impact: Doubling down on employee training and development fuels expertise and confidence. Skilled and motivated staff deliver superior service, heightening customer interactions. Elevated customer experiences drive satisfaction, fostering loyalty and contributing to sustained business growth.

5. Create Meaning that Fits Your Mission

The image shows employees taking part in socially responsible projects

Truthfully, not all companies and roles are something people can be genuinely passionate about, but that doesn’t mean that it can’t be made more meaningful. You can connect employee engagement initiatives to larger societal goals through strategic Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives. These CSR initiatives will allow employees to easily take part in socially responsible projects that resonate with their values and are somewhat connected to your business. 

Impact: By linking employee engagement to CSR, businesses infuse purpose. Aligned with societal goals, engaged employees deliver improved service quality, resonating positively with customers, boosting satisfaction, and fostering loyalty.

6. Put People Together

The image shows employees engagement

Community and working together are magic beans in the quest for employee engagement. And there are plenty of ways to create a sense of togetherness. For those in the eLearning industry looking to enhance their online offerings, check out our complete LMS platform at WordPress LMS plugin to effortlessly create and sell online courses, lessons, assignments, and quizzes.

You could start by creating specific employee communities based on interests, hobbies, or professional development goals. Encouraging people to work together beyond work-related tasks and enabling them to tap into the passions and interests that make them want to jump out of bed in the morning, can strengthen their bond and with that, their engagement at work. 

Take it one step further with mentoring programs, or even reverse mentoring programs, facilitated in collaboration with the employer of record. Why not encourage younger employees to mentor more senior staff on emerging trends, technologies, or cultural insights? Exchanging knowledge in all directions will create a more dynamic and enriching work environment for everyone, and keep things interesting. 

Impact: Elevated employee engagement via communities and mentorship fosters a motivated workforce. Enthusiastic staff deliver exceptional service, creating positive customer experiences. Heightened satisfaction and loyalty result in sustained business growth.

7. Invest in a true wellbeing

The image shows an employee having a healthy work-life balance

Creating a truly healthy work-life balance shouldn’t cause employees more stress. Make sure your business is set up in a way that always puts people first, and promotes wellbeing. 

Investigate whether there’s a need for certain health and wellness programs, what mental health resources would be appreciated, whether anyone needs access to medical weight loss experts, and how you can go above and beyond to make your employees feel happy and healthy.

Because true engagement can’t just be fostered on the work floor. It extends to understanding and supporting your employees’ well-being, whether they need help finding childcare, navigating oxygen tank vs oxygen concentrator options, or simply a listening ear. You’ll need to make sure that your employees are engaged human beings, not just employees.

Impact: Elevating work-life balance reduces employee stress, reflected in customer interactions. A people-first approach and wellness initiatives create contented employees, fostering genuine engagement. Enhanced staff morale positively influences customer loyalty and satisfaction.

Will You Make Employee Engagement Part of Your Main Strategy?

Make employee engagement a cornerstone of your strategy, and watch your business flourish into a masterpiece that delights customers and drives growth. Remember, just as a well-prepared meal leaves a lasting impression, genuine employee engagement, even among remote foreign employees, leaves an indelible mark on customer satisfaction.

And an efficient customer satisfaction feedback platform can be of great help. It not only will help you share CSAT surveys but will gather all the feedback in real time and analyze it with AI-powered Text Analysis. So, all you need to do is pick an in-built template, create a survey in 2 minutes, and get ready to listen to the voice of the customers. 

 

 

About the Author:

Emilija Kovačević is a marketer with over 7 years of experience and a proven track record in marketing management, social media marketing, content marketing, and event management. Currently, she holds the position of Marketing Lead at Skale, where she focuses on various acquisition channels that yield impactful results in terms of SALs and brand visibility. In her spare time, she’s learning languages and traveling around the globe.

Manisha Khandelwal

Senior Content Marketer at SurveySensum

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