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When designing a better customer experience, many organizations today are focusing on convenience. Whether it’s companies finding inventive ways to deliver their products or working to make their customers’ lives easier, convenience has a positive effect on customer satisfaction.

But to make sure you’re delivering the best overall experience, you’ll need to start with a few simple steps. Below, 10 Rolling Stone Culture Council members each shared one thing leaders can do to maximize convenience and create more happy customers.

Listen to Your Customers

When businesses listen, when we hear people, it creates a bond. That’s always the beginning. From ordering a meal at a nice restaurant to buying a new car or house to embarking on a new marketing campaign, when we listen to the customer, we best serve that person — customized, on point. It sounds simple, but in our fast-paced world, you must hone the art of listening, then deliver. Magical! – Scott Cowperthwaite, AfterFiveMedia

Respect the Customer’s Time

It’s great to create brand engagement, but make sure it’s of high value when you’re interacting. Are there any elements, particularly administrative, that can be automated? Are you learning about them in the interaction? What are they gathering about you? Are there any pain points that can be addressed upfront? You feel valued when your time is respected! – Lisa Buffo, Cannabis Marketing Association

Let Your Customers Feel Comfortable

Everyone’s normal is different depending on where and how they live. Let customers shop however they feel most comfortable — in-store, online, by private appointment, virtually, via FaceTime or text. Offer curbside pickup and free shipping. Weekly Zooms with your VIP customers are highly effective to showcase new products, samples or styling tips. Follow up with an email and watch sales grow. – Lynn Rosenthal, Periscape

Understand Customer Behavior

Understand your customers and their behaviors, then take that knowledge and create a user experience that caters to their needs in a way that is as simple and effective as possible. Customers will feel that connection and respond to it in a positive way. – Vanessa Gabriel, Drop Delivery

Design Products With Customers in Mind

Focus on customer-centered design. Design the entire experience from discovery to point of purchase through the lens of convenience. Think about what really makes your product or service of value and focus on making sure the customer is aware of this. Keep it simple. You don’t need a lot of “extras” to engage your customer, whether online or in person. – Ashley Deese, AshleyDeese.com

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Make Reaching Out Easy

Make it easier to contact a representative of your business, so when they do have questions, they’re able to be answered in a reasonable amount of time. – Tommy Stalknecht, Single Music

Simplify Your Processes

Simplicity is key. The world is full of too many choices and consumers are exhausted from it.  Streamline your messaging, your feature set, your pricing and your checkout. Make it easy to communicate, learn and get help. By bringing simplicity to your customers, you’ll build loyalty for the long run. – John Tabis, The Bouqs Company

Educate Your Clients

Offer on-demand learning to create a ripple effect. We offer an online educational tool made specifically for our business to teach clients about the industry and our products. Educating everyone from growers to budtenders allows us to deliver the best customer experience, through education, at each level of the plant’s life. Education optimizes the customer and consumer experience. – Jessica Billingsley, Akerna

Put Customer Interests and Needs First

The key is to approach each user with maximal empathy. Think about their experience with the singular focus of optimizing for their needs and interests. That means putting your own perspective and biases aside and looking through their eyes. It’s a challenging but important and enriching process that leads to a much better customer experience! – Dan Giuliani, Volt Athletics

Experience Your Product as a Customer

Consider first what the customer is actually doing when they are in the process of or just finishing engaging with the product. Follow that path. Is it clunky? Is it efficient? Is it fun? Is it too transactional? How does the wording feel? Put yourself in the shoes of your customer and remember the small things that delight you, and then infuse as much of that as possible while remaining professional. – Lizandro Salazar, ArcataX Inc.

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