Using NPS® to engage with customers has resulted in a 98% CSAT rating

“No more razor bumps.”

That’s the common shaving problem that inspired Tristan Walker to create his namesake health and beauty company, Walker & Company Brands, Inc. The company’s flagship brand, Bevel, is the first and only shaving system designed for men with coarse, curly hair.

The multi-blade razor you typically find on the market cuts hair in a way that causes it to retract beneath the skin. This leads to ingrown hairs, also known as razor bumps, and can be irritating for those with coarse or curly hair. “Our biggest obstacle is easing our customers’ fear of shaving,” said Jaimel Gauda, head of Customer Success at Walker & Company. “They’ve been told since they were teenagers that you cannot shave with razors, it won’t work. But we’ve built up a lot of faith.”

Bevel is a single blade, double edge safety razor designed to cut hair at skin level—it is the first shaving system that is clinically proven to reduce razor bumps. By tackling such a consumer-centric problem, it’s clear that customers are a top priority for Walker & Company. Frequent travelers can request complimentary blades to be delivered to their hotels, which are waiting for them—accompanied by a handwritten note—when they arrive. “We’ve elevated the product from something that’s not so nice at the bottom of the shelf in the drugstore, to a truly first class experience,” Gauda said.

For fledgling companies, maintaining a great customer experience is the key to continued success. Zendesk Support helps Gauda’s team manage customer interactions in one seamless product, making it easy to keep track of engagement. Net Promoter Score℠ (NPS®) is a simple built-in survey tool within Support that allows Walker & Company to gather customer feedback and utilize the information to improve their products.

“Our NPS feedback has been an invaluable tool for building relationships with our customers and making improvements. As a bottom line, we want to make sure we’re doing what customers want and that they’re happy,” Gauda said. “We interact with our members through various channels and Support is tremendously helpful in keeping things streamlined and on track.”

By using NPS customer feedback data, Walker & Company has been able to make significant organizational changes. Agents have adopted a more tailored approach to engaging with customers, delivering live one-on-one video tutorials more proactively and adjusting correspondence method based on customer preference. Phone support hours have been extended so that needs are addressed as quickly as possible.

Several product features have been added to better cater to customer requests. Customers can now pause subscriptions for longer than a month, and the option to purchase starter bundles for gifting has recently launched. Members can also access their upcoming shipment schedule within their account console, and order additional products as needed.

NPS also allows Walker & Company to be more proactive in engaging with customers. Responding to feedback and initiating conversation through the surveys have helped create an open dialogue with users. “It’s surprising when we learn about customers who might have been struggling with an issue but have never spoken up,” Gauda said. “It’s been incredibly valuable to hear from customers who don’t usually interact with us.”

The benefits of Support and NPS extend to other departments too. Sharing customer feedback with teams in engineering, development, marketing and creative have led to significant progress, including improvements to the customer checkout process and billing flow. “It also helps when everyone in the company is required to do at least two hours of customer support every week,” Gauda said.

With new products and product lines in the horizon, Walker & Company has made customers’ needs the driving force of innovation. “We want to build the world’s most consumer-centric health & beauty product company,” Gauda said. “Everyone deserves to have a great shave.” By helping Walker & Company manage customer service in a seamless way, Support ensures that the company’s growth strategy continues to revolve around its customers.

Net Promoter and NPS are registered U.S. trademarks, and Net Promoter Score and Net Promoter System are service marks, of Bain & Company, Inc., Satmetrix Systems, Inc. and Fred Reichheld.