Over the years, many companies have evolved with their implementation and use of customer-centric programs, beginning with database marketing and campaign management to improvements in delivering on the customer experience. However, most companies have not taken the next step in the customer-centric journey to build trust with their customers and demonstrate the two cornerstones of trustability - intent and competence.

This boils down to two primary objectives: do you have the best intentions for your customers' interests? And are you competent in delivering on those promises?

These concepts aren't entirely new to decision-makers. Competence has been a component of past positioning. For instance, do we ask customers to re-identify themselves in channel interactions repeatedly, or do we recognize our most valuable customers immediately? Some companies have been able to achieve these capabilities to some degree, often by building a comprehensive customer data warehouse that draws customer information from across multiple channels and functions to develop a single view of the customer.

Customers expect us to be competent. Delivering on these expectations is critical in an environment where customers have increased choice over which companies to do business with. If we don't deliver, they'll abandon us and go to a competitor or a new market entrant that has discovered a way to simplify or otherwise improve their experience. Simply put, customers are less loyal than they were in the past. So it's imperative to leverage those resources that are available to help retain them, especially our best customers.

Some companies show good intent. For example, savvy retailers will remind customers when an offer or a temporary discount is about to expire. That shows customers goodwill and intent. If customers believe that you're acting in their best interests, they'll not only trust your organization and provide your business with longer-term value, but they'll also recommend your company and brands to their friends and family, representing additional potential sales.

Battling Short-termism

Perhaps the biggest challenge that decision-makers face in creating a culture that engenders customer trust is avoiding a strategy that focuses on achieving short-term gains in sales and profits at the risk of endangering customer loyalty in order to meet Wall Street's earnings-per-share expectations. When companies try to steer customers to conduct transactions in order to meet short-term business goals, they do so to meet the interests of the company. But it's not in the customer's best interests. Such a tactic might help a company meet its short-term business goals, but it could come at the expense of a customer's longer-term value to the organization, including more profitable relationships over the long course.

Demonstrating Intent and Competence

There are various ways that companies can exhibit good intent in order to help gain customers' trust. For instance, few consumers truly know which mobile communications pricing plan is best for them among the many options that are available. This represents an opportunity for mobile carriers to proactively educate prospects and customers about the perks and differences between various plans. Even if customers opt for a different plan or even a lower-priced program and it results in a carrier having to adjust the previous month's bill for them to reflect the changes, this may reduce short-term profitability but it may also provide the carrier with longer-term customer value and referrals.

Here's a tip for retailers: if you have a return policy on products, make it straightforward and easy. Don't make customers have to jump through hoops to make a return. Demonstrate good intent and deliver on this consistently throughout all outlets to display your organization's competence.

A similar approach can and should be applied to contact center processes for all types of companies. Make sure customer support processes are simple and handled consistently for customers each time they reach out for assistance, regardless of the channels they use. A customer's inability to reach a live agent in a timely manner is a great failure in competence, especially if your marketing motto is 'we listen' or 'we care about customers' or something similar.

Identify "Moments of Truth"

It's also important to remember that when developing strategies for demonstrating intent and competence, not all customers or transactions carry the same value. As part of their effort, decision-makers need to determine so-called "Moments of Truth" that strongly influence a customer's perception of a company and their willingness to continue to do business with them or to advocate on their behalf.

For example, a moment of truth for a banking customer might be when they get hit with a checking overdraft fee. If the bank plays hardball with customers in good standing, they risk losing some of their most valuable accounts over a fee that at best will provide it with marginal short-term value. Instead, by alerting high-value customers to an overdraft and communicating that a fee will be waived due to their status as a preferred customer, the bank will likely gain the favor of those customers and stimulate goodwill, perhaps leading customers to consider buying additional products from the organization in the future.

Let's say you've identified six or seven consistent moments of truth among your company's customers. Drill down and you'll likely discover that maybe just two or three of those moments matter most to your high-value customers.

It's critical for companies to deliver on what they promise to their customers; otherwise, they'll quickly lose customers' trust. For instance, a healthcare insurance provider that promises to cover 80 percent of the cost for certain classes of prescriptions and then regularly denies coverage or limits its coverage to a single medicine will cause customers to question its credibility.

The best customer experience ratings come from companies such as Costco. They deliver exactly what they promise. Through intent, companies can examine what they can deliver today and meet those promises and then plan for the future to ensure that those goals are met. Companies that deliver on intent and competence stand a far greater chance of retaining their most valuable customers and optimizing their business results.

About the Author: Orkun Oguz is a Partner of Peppers & Rogers Group. Contact him at ooguz@1to1.com.