FEATURE: CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE
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Research conducted by
Genesys reveals consumer
preferences for interacting
with a business and what
factors they place the highest
priorities on, as well as the
limitations to such
a relationship.
E
lingo research has shown that,
while the type of industry will
greatly influence customer
experience (CX), ultimately it is a
matter of choice and first contact resolution.
This is one of the key takeaways from
research The Genesys State of Customer
Experience that was conducted and released
by Genesys.
The research reveals how consumers prefer
to interact with a business, what personal
information they are willing to share in
exchange for a better experience and what
businesses miss when it comes to delivering
an exceptional experience across their
customers’ journeys.
“Some industries face fierce competitive
pressures – where the customer experience
literally can make or break a business,” said
Joshua Solani, CX Advisor at Elingo. “In other
industries, such as government agencies,
competition isn’t a factor. For example,
renewing your driver’s licence isn’t always
classified as a ‘great experience’, but there’s
nowhere else to go. When consumers
have the option to choose, the customer
experience is critical.”
Solving the problem first time was identified as key criteria to CX.
According to the research, 29% of customers value first contact
resolution the highest when it comes to customer service and
support interaction.
“It is also interesting to note that many businesses fall short of the
mark when it comes to the expectation of immediate service,” added
Solani. “It is vitally important to initiate a mobile-first strategy, in
other words engage with customers on their terms. Your customer
experience reputation and brand are at stake when you make
your customers wait for assistance, regardless of the channel. This
is driving growth in service channels that offer more immediate
response, like social and self-service.”
Effective CX management
Solani says it was also evident from the research that customer
experience management remains siloed and this presents the
business with a real challenge. He added that effective CX
management takes collaboration and coordination across multiple
organisations and there are a few tactics that can be used to help
the decision maker.
“Know your customers,” he said. “There are segmentation strategies
to get you started. It’s equally important to obtain a clear picture of
how customers want to engage and interact with your business.
“On-going customer segmentation activities are crucial, as is
understanding the lifetime value of each customer and segment.
Another important factor is customer experience tracking.
“Customer longevity, loyalty and customer lifetime value are most
frequently tracked as components of the customer experience
tracking effort; marketing is more likely to report repurchase timing
than customer care managers, and surprisingly less than 30% of
companies overall track channel preference.”
However, truly getting to know and understand the customer
means gathering data and utilising this information strategically.
Solani says it is incredibly important to use data to guide decisions.
“Providing customers with a seamless journey often means
anticipating their needs and using analytics to make informed
decisions and guide the next action,” he said. “This is what often
Choice, mobility
and convenience
drive customer experience
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