A theme we hear across all the sectors we serve is "we need to be easier to do business with." It's easy to say, harder to do, and even harder to know you are doing it well. Whether you are in P&C, life, annuities and investments, health, or banking, we are all trying to attract and retain the same customers—and we are all using "ease of doing business" as a key to deliver. But what does that really mean? Here are a few thoughts and lessons from our recent experiences that you may find helpful.

First, know and agree on who your #1 customer really is. This can be a challenge, especially in the complex world of insureds, direct sellers, career agents, independent agents, general agents, brokers, wholesalers, intermediaries, and so forth. Unbeknownst to many of our senior clients, there is still great confusion and debate deep within the organization as to who their #1 customer really is. It's often clear to the CEO, but the clarity becomes obscured the farther down the organization you go.

Take, for example, the head of Marketing and Agency Management. Obviously, his or her view is that agents are the most important customer. On the other hand, the head of Operations and Service believes the insured is number one. Both use the term "customer" but the meaning is obviously very different. Both are also communicating to their respective audiences and employees their version of who is #1 and how they need to be easier to do business with. For this company, neither version of "the #1 customer" believes the company is all that easy to do business with. This lack of clear definition has led to inconsistent priorities, conflicting resource allocation, an overly complex servicing model, and an underwhelming experience for customers. For this company, both sets of customers needed to be clarified, including a consistent corporate vocabulary, before ease of doing business could be enhanced.

Second, define and prioritize your customer segments and their service needs. We can't be all things to all people. Segmentation of your customers, their needs, and what creates an advantage versus what are "table stakes" needs to be clear. A simple framework to consider using appears in the table below.

Third, communicate to your customers what you are going to do well, then really deliver. Putting yourself on the hook for what you really intend to deliver provides focus for the organization. A good example is a client who communicates turnaround time expectations to its agents for quotes and new business applications. Better performing clients consistently communicate what they are trying to achieve. Of course, you need to ensure that you have the business model design and resources to deliver. But setting expectations your customers understand and appreciate can quickly align management, staff, and resources.

Finally, measure, communicate, and improve. Many clients measure their customer satisfaction levels, share them with staff, and constantly look for ways to improve. Still, there are others who need to spend more time studying their customers' experiences. If you want to improve ease of doing business, make sure you have consistent and thorough customer satisfaction measurement systems, transparent communication of results, and continuous improvement programs to respond to customer needs.

Yes, ease of doing business is hard to define, and it's different for every company. If you want to improve, make sure you agree on who your customer is and what they need before jumping to solutions. Also, you might want to ask this question around your organization: "Who do you think is our #1 customer and what do they need to be successful?" You might find the answers revealing. Good luck, and let us know if a conversation on the subject would be helpful.