Customer experience: how we apply it to our client relationships

Customer experience (and its acronym, CX) seems to be on everyone’s lips these days.

But for us, it’s much more than a trendy term – it underpins everything we do at Wellmark.

We believe in the CX philosophy because it is fundamentally grounded in good relationships – and also because it works! As well as being an essential component of the marketing toolkit for our clients’ brands, it’s also key to the relationships we build with our clients (which probably explains why we’ve worked with some of them for 7 years and counting).

So based on our experience, what are the core ingredients for strong client relationships?

1. Understanding your needs

We take the time to listen and understand our clients’ goals, expectations and pain points, which allows us to create responses to meet their individual needs. We deliberately do not have any proprietary techniques – or what we would call ‘cookie-cutter’ approaches.

We’re also wary not to jump on every new bandwagon, but we do stay abreast of innovative approaches and technological advances. With a thorough understanding of the media options for healthcare professionals and consumers, we take a channel-agnostic approach to ensure we reach your audiences in the most effective and cost-efficient way possible.

2. Establishing clear communication

It goes without saying that communication is key in any relationship – and it’s certainly true for agency-client relationships.

We have a dedicated client services team who establish clear lines of communication, with processes that are tailored to your way of working. We also have an open-door policy, such that you’re welcome to contact any member of our team who is working on your account (rather than having to go through a ‘suit’). We find that this creates a smoother process all-round.

3. Being human

Let’s be honest – we spend a lot of time at work, and it makes life a hell of a lot more pleasant when we work with people who respect our humanity as well as our professional expertise.

We care about how our colleagues and clients are doing – and we like to work with people who do likewise. Finding common ground and building rapport is how we roll.

4. Being honest and transparent

Building trust is crucial to audience engagement in healthcare, for both patients and healthcare professionals alike.

The same goes for managing progress (and setbacks) in the delivery of client projects. So we make a point of being transparent, honest, and not afraid to challenge the status quo – but always with an understanding of your project responsibilities and business imperatives.

5. Taking a proactive approach

We care about your success and are committed to delivering the best results possible, so we’re always trying to think ahead.

We know that our clients are busy delivering important products or services that will ultimately improve health outcomes, meaning that marketing communications may be way down the list of priorities. For clients like this, we aim to lessen the burden by anticipating their needs and offering proactive solutions.

6. Delivering consistently

All of the above points pave the way for good relationships. But suffice to say that they don’t count for much if your commercial objectives aren’t met.

This is why we have a laser-like focus on the quality of our output. We deliver high-quality work, every time, on time. We also understand that most projects don’t have unlimited budgets, so we work ‘smarter’ to deliver creative outcomes that meet your budget while exceeding your expectations.

In our (customer) experience, these principles help build long-lasting relationships. If you can relate, give us a call.