Customer experience as a concept has evolved drastically in the last few years.
For a while now, companies have known the only real way to differentiate themselves from their competitors, is to invest in meaningful, memorable customer interactions. However, the rapidly evolving state of consumer expectations is making this process tougher than it once was.
In a digitally-transforming world, customers expect each brand they connect with to be fully customer-obsessed, and CX-focused. It’s no longer enough to simply respond rapidly to customer queries over the phone. Organisations need to meet with their clients on a multitude of different channels, offering immersive, convenient, and personalised experiences.
The only way to keep up with the competition is to invest in the right technology. CX solutions, from CCaaS software to helpdesk tools and workforce management applications are crucial to every brand moving into 2023. The question for many business leaders is, where should they begin upgrading?
Step 1: Assess Your Customers
There are countless ways for brands to enhance their CX strategy today. Some companies implement self-service tools and portals which allow consumers to solve their own issues without human input. Other organisations focus on using technology to empower support and service agents, so they can provide more personalised experiences on multiple channels.
Before diving into any new investment, businesses need to take the time to understand their target audience, and their specific requirements. Using the analytics built into contact centre platforms, alongside service desk reports and feedback, business leaders can learn more about which channels customers are using to connect with their brand.
Mapping, and understanding each stage of the customer journey, and how it’s influenced by different support strategies will allow companies to implement tools which offer quick return on investment. Try to answer questions such as:
- Which channels do our customers prefer to use? (video, voice, chat, etc)
- Which strategies generate the most positive feedback from customers?
- Where are customers currently experiencing friction in the CX journey?
- How does our brand compare with similar companies?
Step 2: Consider Your CX Team
In recent years, companies have discovered CX (Customer Experience) and EX (Employee Experience) are often two sides of the same coin. To generate fantastic customer interactions, brands first need to invest in giving their teams the right tools. Engaged, empowered, and enlightened employees are more likely to impress and delight consumers.
With this in mind, business leaders will need to assess the different types of employee personas in their CX team. A company supporting a team of hybrid and remote workers will need to invest heavily in cloud technology that offers immediate insights to staff wherever they are. Agents working on increasingly complex consumer queries might need their CCaaS system to integrate with their UCaaS technology, so they can collaborate with subject matter experts.
For many companies, it will be important to create a CX technology stack which integrates all of the tools team members rely on into a simple, straightforward, and intuitive platform. This will boost workplace efficiency and minimise agent frustrations. It may also be helpful to explore the benefits of workforce management and engagement tools to help align different teams and strengthen resource management within the CX space.
Step 3: Evaluate the Latest CX Trends
As customer expectations have continued to evolve, new solutions have emerged in the technology market to tackle a host of different challenges. For instance, artificial intelligence has emerged as a common component of the contact centre environment. The right AI solutions can enable self-service opportunities for consumers, while improving access to valuable data and insights.
Already, around 90% of teams using AI for CX say they’ve seen improvements in the efficiency of their teams, processing speeds, and transaction volumes. Tools with access to machine learning and Natural Language Processing capabilities can also assist teams in uncovering meaningful information from each conversation with a customer. These tools can detect sentiment, and intent based on key trigger words and a customer’s tone of voice.
Using intelligent, next-level tools in the CX environment can provide business leaders with the guidance they need to make data-driven decisions which improve CSAT and NPS scores. Companies can also consider various other trending technologies such as:
- Automation for reducing repetitive work in the contact centre
- Virtual assistants to guide and train employees in real-time
- Extended reality to meet with consumers in immersive environments
Step 4: Create a Strategy for Measuring ROI
Successfully updating and optimising the CX environment in any business landscape requires companies to have a strategy in place for monitoring the outcomes of different initiatives. Before implementing any new tools, business leaders should ask themselves how they’re going to measure the impact these tools have on their customers, and their bottom line.
For instance, if a company wants to improve its NPS and CSAT scores, it may need to implement reporting and analytics tools which provide useful insights into how many repeat customers stay with the brand, and how often clients churn. It may also be necessary to integrate survey and polling tools into the contact centre to help with collecting customer information.
Innovative tools for reporting and analytics will make it easier to monitor the metrics affected by each new CX strategy. In many cases, the latest reporting tools on the market can even use AI to make data easier to understand, or provide companies with visualisations they can share with stakeholders.
Step 5: Consider Compliance and Security
Finally, innovation in the CX environment should never come at the expense of security, privacy, and compliance. Now more than ever, consumers are becoming increasingly concerned about how their data is stored, retained, and used by contact centres and brands. As a result, they require their companies to show a consistent commitment to keeping information secure.
When investing in any new CX solutions, business leaders will need to research how the data collected by these environments is stored and managed. Some companies may need to look for CX solutions which give them control over data sovereignty and data deletion. Other brands will need to think carefully about how they can manage which team members can access which pieces of data.
Organisations should take the time to assess their risk and compliance landscape before they begin implementing new tools. The most secure, transparent, and compliant brands will be the ones most likely to earn long-term consumer trust.