Sarah Jenkinson chats to Laura Lao, Gousto
Gousto delivers everything food lovers need to cook the recipes they love, weekly. We deliver quality ingredients, in exact portions; with step-by-step recipe cards that make cooking simple and enjoyable. With flexible delivery and a new menu of delicious recipes to choose from each week, the customer chooses what to cook and when.
You entered the UK Customer Experience Awards last year – and won! Can you tell us a bit about your award winning initiative and what it meant to you to win?
We entered the category relating to Insight and Feedback and we showcased our approach to using customer feedback to continuously improve product and service. One of the key things we showed was how we collate customer feedback at every touch point, and how we turn that data into key indicators which we use to determine product innovation, operations refinement, and service upgrade.
Winning the award was very exciting and unexpected for us. We had low expectations about winning because it was our first time at the awards, and we were competing with big industry leaders such as Samsung UK. The award was a huge recognition of our work, and it motivated us further to improve our approach to harvest information from better customer feedback.
How’s life after winning an award?
Winning the award has presented us with many opportunities to connect with other businesses, share experiences, and learn new ideas and best practices. We turned our learning into projects to improve our current processes, and we saw great results. We definitely want to keep this innovative momentum going to drive further improvement to what Gousto has to offer.
What exciting things have been happening at Gousto in the last 12 months since winning your Award? Any exciting customer experience projects you can share with our readers?
We’ve been really busy in the past 12 months since winning the award. We listened to our customers, and worked on several big feature changes to our service. We are really happy to share with you the exciting changes we’ve brought about.
First of all, our chefs have introduced many “under 20 min” recipes because customers have been telling us that they want quicker recipes for busy workday evenings. These recipes often add a Gousto twist on some of the classics. Although quick to prepare, they are in no way compromised on great taste!
The second feature we’ve launched recently is more delivery days. We used to offer options to get a box delivered mid-week or at the end of the week. Now customers can choose to have deliveries on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and even Saturday. What’s more, customers can even switch between different delivery days every week!
Another exciting change we’ve brought about is more flexible box size. Customers may choose to receive 2—4 recipes for 2 or 4 people, so they can easily share Gousto if they have guests staying over, or if they simply want to indulge themselves in more Gousto treats.
Last but not least, the most recent feature we’ve introduced is shorter order lead time for all delivery days. Now customers can arrange a delivery as little as 3 days ahead. So there is no more waiting around for a week for your box to arrive – we’re always ready when you are!
And if that’s not enough, we’ll be bringing out our brand new iOS app in a few weeks’ time. Customers will be able to put Gousto in their pocket and order delicious meals on the go!
What advice would you give to other companies considering entering this years’ awards?
If you are considering entering the award, think no more. It’s a great experience, and it’ll be very useful for you to benchmark your practices against other businesses in the industry. It’ll be amazing to win the award of course, but even if you don’t win, you won’t walk away with nothing. The most beneficial gains are the connection and the learning when you are part of this community.
Any offers on for readers of our blog?
Definitely! Give Gousto a try today with £25 off your first box, simply use the code CXM625.
Sarah Jenkinson
PR and Communication Manager
Customer Experience Magazine
Email: SJ@customerexperiencemagazine.co.uk
Telephone: 020 7558 8241 020 7558 8241.
I am passionate about Customer Experience and love hearing about all the wonderful things companies are doing to put the customer at the heart of their business. In my role at Awards International I manage the blogs on our Awards websites, I write articles for Customer Experience Magazine and support our clients with all the PR opportunities that being involved in our Awards brings.
Connect with Sarah on LinkedIn: uk.linkedin.com/in/sarahjenkinson/
Follow Sarah on Twitter @SarahJJenkinson