Last week, I opened a new business checking account at a small local bank nearby. As we were finishing up with the paperwork I asked my banker, Maryanne, how to sign up for online banking. She told me I could do it on the bank’s website.

The next day I discovered that in order to gain access to online banking, I would first need to download a file, print it out and fax it back to the bank (fax it?!). Now frustrated, I called the branch and they said they would get the paperwork ready and if I stopped by to sign the form they would take care of it. I went back to the bank, signed the form and was told that I would get an email with detailed instructions. Awesome.

Several hours later, I received two emails, both pretty cryptic. One welcoming me with “marketing speak,” the second containing my temporary password. I went to the website, clicked the link for online business banking and was asked for my “Access Code.” I knew my username and I had the temporary password, but I had no code. There were no further instructions.

Two phone calls to the bank later, we figured it out – but the whole process was unnecessarily frustrating and time consuming.

My frustrating experience as a new customer leads me to ask a question: What’s it like for your customers and clients when they’re working with your seemingly routine processes? Here’s how to find out:

1. Map it out. Whether you’re simply onboarding a new client, or selling a product online, map out all the steps and write them down. Post-it notes are great for this. Put one step on each note and put them on the wall. Keep asking the question, “And then what happens?”
2. Try it yourself. Go through every step as if you are the first time user. Look for the missing pieces and challenge yourself to find them. Make any necessary corrections. You can also ask someone else, who’s not familiar with the process, to try it out and give you their feedback. (Better yet, watch them as they go through it.)
3. Mark your calendar. The key to a great process or customer experience is to review it from time to time to make sure it’s still working as planned. I suggest doing this twice each year for every process you’ve got. Sign up for your own newsletter and see what happens; sit in the back of the room and look at your PowerPoint presentation to make sure it’s readable; send yourself a message using the “contact us” form on your website.

We get so accustomed to looking at the world through our own lens. Take some time and have a look from the client and prospect point of view. Believe me, they’ll thank you!!