Customer happiness is more important than ever. But sadly, customers are not as happy as they used to be. So, retailers need to do more than just satisfy customers; they need to impress them. At Maze, we believe the key is to help frontline teams feel motivated and in charge. We know about the connection between autonomy, motivation, customer satisfaction and sales. And we want you to know, too.

The connection between autonomy and motivation

A store performs when the frontline staff is eager and motivated. Our customers at Maze have seen this firsthand. When the frontline staff have more autonomy and more say in what they do, they get more excited about their work. Being able to make decisions makes them feel important and responsible. This leads to better teamwork and service. 

When the frontline staff choose their actions, they are more connected to the results and can act quickly. They are happier because they’re doing what they believe is best, not just what they’re told.

Mindspace’s survey found that happy workplaces share seven key factors. Four of them are: feeling that your work has a purpose, being valued, being involved, and a good work environment. Maze helps with all these things by giving staff immediate feedback so they feel motivated and part of the team’s success.

At the same time, Professor of Behavioral Science and Marketing Ayelet Fishbach’s insights discuss simple yet potent strategies for workplace motivation: setting specific and rewarding goals.  With Maze, these goals are built around boosting customer experience, and they become tangible milestones. 

How motivated teams boost customer satisfaction

Arun Sharma’s study at the University of Miami show “evidence that incentive systems based on customer satisfaction increase salespeople’s customer service response compared to salespeople whose incentives are based on sales volume”. In human words, rewards for making customers happy weighs heavier than rewards for sales.

So, the link between team enthusiasm and customer happiness is really strong.  Stine Solheim, the CEO of Fargerike, a client of Maze, agrees with this idea.

— It’s motivation, no doubt about it. After all, they (the frontline teams) sit on the sofa almost every night and check their results. So it has become a bit like that, you don’t want to miss out on anything here. It’s all very positive, she says.

This ritual of tracking feedback underscores the desire to excel. Similarly, the power of acknowledgment shines through Panduro Area Manager Christina Breilev’s words.

— Logging in and seeing good feedback from customers and forwarding it to the store managers absolutely fills me with joy. I can communicate directly via Maze with the store managers and give kudos to them for doing a great job.

Both of these Maze customers have seen great increases in customer satisfaction, thanks to highly motivated frontline teams.

From satisfaction to sales: the commercial realization

By now we know the connection between motivated teams and customer satisfaction. But that is not enough. Lets look at how customer satisfaction translates into sales.

Rosetta, a customer engagement agency, present data that shows that happy customers often buy 90% more and spend 300% more than other customers. This isn’t just a small increase; it’s a big opportunity for growth.

Our own data show that many of our customers who put true effort into making their customers happier, manage to sell 1-2 more items for each visit. Our data also show that and that prior positive in-store experience is up to 10 times more important than advertising to ensure footfall to your store.

Our partnerships with sports retailer Anton Sport and optics brand Brilleland both shine a light on the satisfaction-to-sales-connection. Anton Sport witnessed a whopping 50-60% surge in turnover in just a month when they used their customer centric model on new stores.

Brilleland’s commercial foresight, where behavior predict sales success, introduces an new dimension to traditional sales strategies. Brilleland’s managing director, Kjetil Engen, knows how well this prediction works.

— Just by looking at the behavior towards the customer, I can predict how the commercial result will turn out, he says.

Yet another Maze customer, Gina Tricot, and their sales growth, as echoed by Country Manager Heidi Engan, shows a solid link between customer satisfaction and revenue.

– (with Maze) We can see that the customers like our stores better. They do recommend us for friends and they come back. We can also see that the average sales go up.

In Summary

With the UK Customer Satisfaction Index’s unsettling findings and Associate Professor of Marketing Pennie Frow’s research on the decline in service quality, the call to action is clear.

An empowered work culture that fosters self-leadership, autonomy, and motivation is the golden triad for heightened customer satisfaction.

In turn, this satisfaction isn’t just an intangible metric; it directly catalyzes improved sales. Retailers should nurture their frontline teams and reap the duel rewards of delighted customers and soaring sales.