Which customer generation gets your attention?

A new generation of customer has emerged - confident, technically savvy, and demanding - can you handle them?

If you haven't already heard of "Generation Y", you soon will. With millions of people falling into the Generation Y bracket, this customer will fundamentally transform the way we deliver service. Born in the 80s and 90s, and sometimes known as "Millennials" this army of confident, networked, techno-savvy young adults crave financial independence and demand new relationships with you.

Not only are these new customers more self-reliant, they are also more trusting of their peers via Facebook and Twitter than of brands and organisations. They are happiest when they can self-serve and will actively avoid speaking with contact centre agents unless absolutely necessary. The rise of instant communication technologies made possible through the use of the internet and new media means online research, price comparison sites and social media, play a critical part in Generation Y's purchasing decisions.

So how do we best serve this precious consumer with high demands, short attention span and diverse purchasing behaviour? 

1. Deliver an experience: Don't just deliver a service or a product. Amazon, First Direct and Apple are all businesses which have moved beyond the commodity of a product. These brands offer a lifestyle that is highly attractive to Millennials.

2. Give your customer a choice of contact: Customers are no longer happy with just traditional contact methods, and are beginning to set their own agenda and create their own environment to communicate. Their fast paced lifestyles demands quick and easy contact. Webchat, iPhone apps, social media, SMS, email and phone - the list of communication methods goes on. Offering multichannel contact allows your customers to get in touch in the way they want to.

3. Know your customer and their history: Customers want you to know who they are, what services or products they have, and their history. They demand the assurance of having someone on the end of the phone to deal with their problems, they want to like the person they are speaking to and for that person to be the voice of the brand. Generation Y expects more than just their queries to be answered.They demand emotional connections and relationship building as part of the service.

Have you got the x-factor?

Of course we can't just focus on the Millennial customer. Generation X, or Baby Boomers, may be less tech savvy but are still comfortable with technology and are currently the fastest growing demographic on Facebook. Generation Y might be the largest segment of customers but Generation X earns and spends more.

Then there's the up and coming Generation Z. The internet is Generation Z's life. Incredibly web savvy they are tuned into social networking and blogs. They are 'surgically attached' to a mobile phone and have a short attention span. Whatever you do - make sure it has a mobile application. Generation Z is tomorrow's Generation Y, so we shouldn't forget about them.

It's important to understand customer generation in relation to each individual organisation. Offering a multichannel solution to meet the expectations of each customer base is an effective customer management strategy. Where social media and web chat may be the communication channel of choice for Generation Y, voice may the preferred channel for Generation X.

A study by Capita found that the majority of organisations taking part already tailor customer communication to fit with their generational customer base. We also found that only 54% of organisations taking part in the survey are preparing for the arrival of Generation Z. Capita believes this could mean lost opportunities. Organisations already looking at communication channels of the future will be ready for the rise of new generations putting them one step ahead of their competition.

X + Y = Effective Workforce

Not only is it important to understand your client base, it's equally important to understand your workforce. Just as with communication channels, the workforce also needs to complement your customer needs.

The call centre industry employs over half a million people in the UK, and many of these are of the Generation Y era. No one can deny that Generation Y's are the technically adept driving force behind the call centre industry, yet this generation can be the most difficult to engage with, manage and retain.

Managing a contact centre effectively does not necessarily mean filling it with young people. A wide range of skills can be gained from a multigenerational workforce, especially as Veterans and Baby Boomers remain at work longer, with numbers continuing to rise.

Service should be tailored to suit customer generation in relation to individual organisations. Understanding differences in customer behaviour means you can run, manage and recruit effectively within your call centre, in order to deliver the most effective customer management solution. Capita achieves this through expertise in recruiting and training agents as well as using a multichannel approach to suit your customer needs.

Overall it's about having a holistic customer management approach which incorporates a multichannel contact strategy to suit all of your customers. Knowing your customer base inside out and matching employee skill sets to complement your organisations unique customer demands will result in a sustainable customer strategy.

For more information on how to effectively tailor your communication strategy to suit your customers, contact Capita.