It is no secret that in today’s digital world – with new technologies and multiple points of contact – the customer journey and customer experience management (CX-customer experience ) are becoming increasingly complex. First, online shopping appeared in addition to traditional shopping. Then social networks and mobile technologies began to develop, and now the most modern technologies are involved in communications: from IoT devices with voice control to applications and systems based on AI.
In most cases, all of these digital contact points are still considered independently of each other. Separate channels are managed by different teams and departments – and this can seriously slow down interaction, reduce the speed and efficiency of responding to customer requests. As a result, customers have a negative experience with the brand.
For a customer experience technology to be truly high-quality and memorable, it must be so at every point of contact. This means you need to create personalized interactions that resonate with your customers. Research shows that the brands with the most effective omnichannel strategies hold 89% of their audience, while for all the rest, this figure reaches only 33%. And also so important is customer experience journey mapping software. How can you remove barriers between different teams and provide a holistic approach to digital customer experience optimization? Here are 5 steps to take:
Analyze
By using X data (customer experience data), companies can truly influence how target audiences view brands. Tools such as the CSAT and Ease of Use provide insight into the subjective factors that drive customer behavior. By combining this information with O-data (operational data) from internal systems, you have the basis for designing and implementing personalized interaction with your audience.
X-data can be used to understand, for example, why visitors abandon online shopping carts or leave the site immediately after navigating to it. These insights will help you develop a concrete action plan to solve the problem. However, the real benefits for your business lie at the interface between X and O data. By integrating them, you can improve the quality of interactions at every stage of the customer journey and, as a result, increase profits.
Identify the key points of the buyer’s journey
Leading digital customer experience shaping brands place great emphasis on creating positive experiences at every touchpoint. To do this, they collect X-data at each of the key stages of the customer journey: finding and choosing a product or service, point of purchase, support efficiency and post-purchase feedback.
There are a number of platforms that help automate the collection of this information: you can integrate tools to receive and analyze feedback directly on the site, create personalized emails and short online surveys.
It is important that the collected data comes from the correct audience. By getting insights from target customers, you can tailor your products and services to their individual needs.
Constantly improve.
No chef will offer guests a dish that he has not tried himself. The same applies to customer experience – you need to go through the buyer’s journey on your own and test the platforms that they use. By analyzing the different scenarios for how customers interact with a brand, you can identify common challenges they face. This will allow you to develop a plan of action to address the difficulties that arise and create a superior experience. Don’t stop there and be sure to keep analyzing the effectiveness of digital customer experience.
Show your customers that you heard them.
Receiving feedback from a client requires a clear conclusion – a response from you, even if it’s just a “thank you” for your time. Customers with a specific problem need help finding a solution or contacting support. However, the more digital touchpoints there are, the more difficult it is to figure out which channel is the best to respond to a customer. A clear algorithm of responses depending on the frequency and type of interaction will help you choose the right one. VIP clients, for example, deserve a personal conversation or a personalized message.
Key rule: the response should be taken by the employee who can actually solve the client’s problem. This will allow you to quickly and efficiently respond to audience requests and prove that you truly value them. The ideal feedback rate is determined by the organization’s ability to act in the current situation. The faster you can respond to change by responding to it with change within your organization, the more responsive the feedback you provide to your customers will become.
Convert satisfied customers into brand ambassadors.
Word of mouth is a critical customer experience management tool, especially in the age of social media. 95% of consumers use social networks and review sites to evaluate a product or service. Therefore, online brand reputation management is key.
New technologies are helping to track what is being said about your brand across digital platforms and integrate X-data into existing systems. For example, comments on social networks show what your audience likes or dislikes, what they have a request for. Be sure to respond to negative reviews: this will not only help solve a specific problem, but also demonstrate that you care about your customers. Respond to positive reviews, not just criticism. Encourage your audience to share positive experiences by adding a Share button to all online channels, including mobile apps, and special “rewards” such as virtual badges can be provided for the most active users.
And we cannot ignore the fact that the COVID-19 pandemic has added many new nuances to the relationship of brands with customers: for the latter, the importance of support from companies in today’s difficult situation has increased. For 65% of SAP Qualtrics respondents, the question of how their favorite brands act in a crisis is very important. By asking customers for feedback, show that you are doing it primarily in their interests and to support them.
As much as caring for customers, consumers are concerned about the brand’s support of its employees and the company’s lack of intentions to use the difficult time to obtain their own benefits and profits. Thus, 48% of respondents noted that they trust brands more, knowing that they care about their employees.
This means that when installing sanitizers in a store, companies should not forget that they need to check the health of their employees. Plus to the brand’s karma, care for employees of other companies also adds – during the most difficult period, grocery retailers began to recruit staff in coffee houses and restaurants that were closed due to quarantine.
The future of customer experience.
Digital is a key battleground in the new experience economy, and the edge is on the side of companies that are capable of delivering superior customer experiences. The number of platforms and different ways of engaging your audience will only grow, which means that digital customer experience transformation is becoming a critical success factor. After all, personalization and speed have always been, are and will be inherent characteristics of a great customer experience .
In conclusion, customer experience and what is connected with this are so important for every business, and it does not matter what kind of business you have, it can be small or big but it actually needs a great customer experience.
