Remember the old expression, “You only get one chance to make a first impression”? Well, it is still valid with both employees and customers. While the steps to successful on-boarding are different for each, the success of this process is critical to forming sustainable long-term relationships.
New Employee On-Boarding
The objectives of the new employee onboarding process are:
- Make them feel welcome,
- Get them productive quickly,
- Answer their initial questions,
- Teach them about the company or department culture,
- Make them excited to return to work every day.
While different businesses have different ways to accomplish these objectives, I have found that a few basic steps go a long way to achieving success:
- Meet and greet the new employee when she first enters the building.
- She will go to the cafeteria or break room, drink coffee or water, and explain how the day will unfold. She will also share any questions she has and either answer them immediately or promise to get an answer the same day.
- Take her to HR and ensure you are called when she completes the paperwork. Try to make this step short.
- Take the newbie to her desk and do the usual housekeeping, such as pointing out the bathroom, office supplies, and break facilities.
- Introduce her to her onboarding coach/mentor. This person will show her the ropes, teach her the job, and ensure she is comfortable. Let them work together for the morning.
- Take the newbie and mentor to lunch at a place consistent with your culture. Don’t talk about “work.” Talk about culture and expectations. At this meal, I always told my new employees that I only had two rules;
- Do right for our customers.
- If you are not sure about a decision, picture it being written on the front page of the local and her hometown newspapers. She is not making the right decision if she doesn’t like how it would go over.
- After lunch, let the two of them work out how the afternoon will play out.
- Check-in with both the newbie and mentor a little before quitting time. Make sure she has had all of her questions and concerns answered.
- Make sure the two of them keep in close contact throughout the coming weeks, but the newbie should be left alone as much as she feels comfortable since that is the only way she will make mistakes, ask questions, and learn.
- Check in periodically over the first few months and ensure everything is OK.
New Customer On-Boarding
The objectives of the new customer onboarding process are:
- Make them feel welcome.
- Set expectations.
- Answer their initial questions.
- Tell them what will happen from receiving their order until the customer is trained and getting value from their purchase.
- Ensure they know who will be responsible for each step and how to contact them with any questions.
These are the steps I found to be most effective in making new customers feel comfortable with their purchase and not develop a case of buyer’s remorse:
- Welcome them to the elite organization of users of your product.
- Explain how the onboarding process works.
- Give them a list of key individual contacts and their contact information.
- Tell them the expected schedule and when and how often it will be reviewed.
- Explain any unique installation requirements and ensure they will be ready when the equipment arrives.
- As installation day approaches, turn over the responsibility for onboarding to the installation team but make yourself available to help when needed.
- Check-in with the customer after each step of the process. Share observations, etc., with your sales counterparts.
- After equipment sign-off, send a brief satisfaction survey and follow up as appropriate.
- Check in at the 1, 3, and 6-month anniversaries of sign-off and again make sure all is well. This is critical because if a user is not actively using your product within this time frame, there is only a 10% chance he will ever become an active user.
- Then, survey again after one year, which should coincide with the end of the warranty. Discuss your service agreements and recommend an appropriate solution for them if appropriate.
As with the new employee on-boarding, this process should yield delighted, loyal employees and customers. Give it a try!
Related Reading:
Customer Retention Begins Before the Sale or Treat Your New Customer Like A New Baby
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