Customer Experience: Factors of Success Key customer experience considerations to support the modern day contact center

Transcription

1 Customer Experience: Factors of Success Key customer experience considerations to support the modern day contact center Connect with Confidence.

2 Customer Experience: Factors of Success Customer experience means many things to many people. For some the term is synonymous with customer service. For others the definition can vary widely. Regardless of your interpretation of what customer experience is, the reality is customer experience cannot be ignored. For a select group of executives across all industry verticals, customer experience continues to be a key differentiator that enables their organizations to stand apart from their peer group. While some companies excel at delivering a world-class experience, others continue to limp towards improvement. Regardless of where an organization sits in this spectrum, advancements in contact center technologies provide a rock solid foundation upon which experience initiatives can be developed. But technology alone cannot support the customer experience. Instead, companies must incorporate design principles that leverage the technologies and address the customer s need. This whitepaper is part two of a three-part series that focuses on identifying the proper mix of multi-channel contact center solutions to deliver the level of seamless, personalized service that end users have come to expect. In part three we will share insight into the best practices of developing a financial model to justify multi-channel investments. Highlights Customer Experience Overview... 2 Focuses for Success... 3 Implementation Considerations

3 Customer Experience Overview According to a recent Customer Experience Impact (CEI) report, 86% of buyers will pay more for a better customer experience, but only 1% of customers feel that vendors consistently meet their expectations. This study is just one of many that supports the findings of the CEI; it reveals that consumers feel significant gaps between their willingness to conduct business with an organization and the organization s ability to deliver as expected. These studies highlight trends of increased customer frustration and the resulting impact to the organization s bottom line. Several other studies suggest that customer experience initiatives continue to be in the top 5 priorities for the majority of US-based executives for several years running. But why do gaps continue to grow despite prioritized efforts to improve alignment between companies and the customers they serve? The simple answer is that consumer technologies and expectations outpace even the most nimble company s attempt to keep up. Of course other factors play a role in how the customer experience is designed, and received, but the role of technology continues to be key in today s complex service environment. In fact, companies that miss the mark on getting their technology suite properly aligned tend to lag behind their peers in revenue, profitability and market share. Experience The new differentiator Very few organizations deliver world-class customer experience. Companies such as Amazon, Apple and Zappos have a reputation for delivering world-class customer experiences day-in and day-out. Executives in these companies all share a common vision for their customers. They have built their business around the consumer and the technologies consumers live by. Regardless of whether consumers transact through the company s website, mobile application, over the phone or in person, customer experience is consistent, personalized and evolving for top performing, market leading organizations. These organizations have found the correct balance of product and service to create a competitive advantage over their peers. 2

4 For the remaining companies that strive to deliver customer experiences that are on par with market leaders, the road ahead can often look too bumpy to proceed. These companies have the ability to deliver successful customer experiences, however they must revisit their service model from the bottom up. Since the experience starts with the first customer touch, aligning service channels, integrating personalization and implementing proactive interaction are vital to delivering a relevant and meaningful service experience. Leveraging common contact center technologies provides companies with a solid foundation to build all other customer experience initiatives. Focuses for Success In part one of this whitepaper series, we discussed the benefits of using five key technology solutions, which included Inbound and Outbound phone, Mobile, SMS and Web. These technologies, when properly designed and implemented, provide companies with the framework to support multi-channel service initiatives. But technology alone isn t the answer. In order to realize the fullest potential of these technologies, companies must design their solutions in a manner that promotes ease of use and removes the burden of decision from the end user whenever possible. Companies that invest in multi-channel solutions can achieve superior customer experience when they focus on: 1. Personalization Demonstrate knowledge of the relationship with the individual consumer. 2. Proactive Information Provide information to end user based on the most common reasons for contact (i.e. savings account balance or next payment due). 3. Dynamic Treatment Provide options and treatment strategies specific to the end user s product/service portfolio. 4. Relevant Deliver information unique to the end user s needs. 5. Responsive Leverage intelligent handling to ensure end user moves throughout the service experience with ease. 3

5 Each of these focuses provides end users with a streamlined experience that makes company contact seam effortless. When combined together, the result is a cohesive multi-channel service environment that will impress the toughest critics. 1. Personalization Personalization strategies continue to evolve as the pendulum between the needs of the company and customer swings. Today, consumers expect that the companies they do business with will know who they are and be able to anticipate their needs regularly. The approach to delivering a personalized interaction is quite simple but often overlooked. The most successful companies understand that consumers want to be recognized and valued for the relationship they have with the organization. In fact, in a survey conducted by Genesys, 38% of consumers cited that personalization was a driving factor in delivering a happy customer experience. Since personalized treatment strategies rely on end-user identification at the start of the interaction, companies have a simple method to deliver a high-valued touch point with very little effort on their part. Actually, the most successful application of this approach is simply referring to the end user by name in conjunction with dynamic treatment and proactive information. 2. Proactive Information Perhaps one of the greatest enhancements to the customer experience is the use of proactive information. Upon successful identification of end users, companies are able to push relevant information to the consumer. Whether it is a bank account balance, payment information or status, proactive information removes much of the burden from the user. This approach is used by most service organizations very successfully. In fact, the most successful companies employing this strategy find that anywhere between one-third to two-thirds of users cease the interaction after hearing a proactive information read-out. Higher success rates are common for verticals with simple transactions such as credit card balance requests. 4

6 The key to success in using this approach relies heavily on high identification and authentication success rates and tightly integrated data sources. 3. Dynamic Treatment How many times have you called a company with a specific question, only to be forced to sit through a long list of menu options and generic messages before you can make your selection? If you re like most, the answer is too many times. Dynamic treatment eliminates the one-size-fits-all service model. Instead, end users are presented with service options and cross-sell/up-sell offers that are relevant to their relationship. Dynamic treatment strategies must be considered during the design and development phase to ensure that all customer segments are accommodated. By implementing this treatment strategy, customer experience is improved as the cognitive load on the consumer is reduced and transactions become streamlined and meaningful. Additionally, the organization demonstrates that the consumer is an individual with unique needs and goals. 4. Relevant Customers continue to be vocal about their dislike for receiving generic messages and irrelevant information. As companies look for ways to improve their customer experience, delivering relevant information, in conjunction with the other focuses discussed above, will continue to play an integral role in delivering top-rated customer experiences. SMS, inbound and outbound phone interactions should be at the top of the list for companies wishing to transform their service model. These channels provide an easy path to deliver meaningful insight, whether it is proactive offers or account-centric information. Designers who work for highly successful service organizations know that less is best and that each point of contact made with the customer is an opportunity to win that customer s loyalty. 5

7 5. Responsive Responsiveness is key when customers choose to move through the service interaction despite success in delivering a personalized, proactive and dynamic interaction. For many consumers, the thought of moving around the contact center invokes a sense of anxiety that can lead to substantial losses for organizations that fail to deliver at the agent level. In this context, companies must use their understanding of the customer relationship to connect the end user to the appropriate agent group in the event they provide little to no input on their needs or the types of transactions they wish to complete. Intelligent routing and treatment strategies have proven to be highly successful under these scenarios as companies have the capabilities to treat users with basic information such as ANI or end-user provided credentials. Implementation Considerations Designing a world-class customer experience must start with a basic understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of your internal design and development resources. Since the evaluation of customer experience begins as soon as consumers initiate contact with a company, having a team of experienced user interface designers who understand trends and behaviors across all service channels can mean the difference between success and lack thereof. If your organization is like most, you will benefit from engaging an experienced team of design and development professionals. Doing so will ensure your investment yields the greatest return and you are positioned for success with your customers. While it is tempting to go into this process alone, many organizations that do so typically fail to deliver a cohesive experience across all multi-channel touch points. Given the continual shifts in customer expectations and their intolerance for sub-standard interactions, failure in this area may result in a ripple effect that con devastate the company s bottom line. By employing a third-party partner to drive the multi-channel requirements and design initiatives, companies will streamline the process and enjoy the benefits of decades of practical experience. Timelines, work effort and ultimately the end product will be improved and will position the company for success in delivering a world-class customer experience. 6

8 Looking ahead In part three of this whitepaper, we will explore the best practices related to developing financial models such as Return on Investment (ROI) to support the contact center technology and service investments required to deliver a successful multi-channel experience. About Digital DataVoice (DDV) Digital DataVoice Corporation (DDV) is a recognized leader in the design, development, deployment and support of custom self-service and assistedservice solutions for contact centers. With more than 25 years of experience, DDV assists customers looking to optimize these long-term investments through a unique set of multi-channel contact center offerings. Schedule your consultation today sales@ddvc.com , Say Sales Visit us at 7