Each and every interaction a customer has with your business \u2013 from the first moment they land on your website, to talking to a sales rep, to onboarding and using your product, to contacting your customer support team when they have a problem \u2013 all add up to create an overall customer experience.<\/p>\n
This customer experience is the lasting impression a customer has of your brand. It\u2019s the combined result of their experience with your people and products across multiple touchpoints, and it directly impacts whether or not customers will want to keep doing business with you. According to research<\/a>, 88% of customers say the experience a company provides is as important as its product or services, up eight percentage points from 2020.<\/p>\n It\u2019s clear that customer experience is a key concern for customers \u2013 and a competitive differentiator for businesses. A great customer experience doesn\u2019t just help you to stand out from your competitors; it also has a vital role to play in helping businesses to reduce customer churn and improve retention rates, build brand loyalty and trust, and grow your revenue.<\/p>\n So it\u2019s fair to say that creating great customer experiences should be a top priority for businesses. But where should you start? Read on to learn everything you need to know about customer experience: what it is, why it matters, and how to get it right.<\/p>\n Learn how Intercom can help you deliver seamless, personalized customer experiences at every stage of the customer journey<\/a><\/p>\n Customer experience, also known as CX, is the sum of every interaction a customer has with your business.<\/p>\n From initial brand awareness right through to using your products or service, every interaction with your business\u2019s people, products, or service contributes to their overall customer experience.<\/p>\n This means that there are hundreds, if not thousands, of opportunities to engage and delight your customers<\/a> throughout their journey \u2013 but unfortunately, that means there are just as many opportunities to get it wrong or miss the mark.<\/p>\n \u201cCreating a positive customer experience isn\u2019t just one team\u2019s job; it\u2019s every<\/em> team\u2019s job\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Today, customer expectations of these experiences are higher than ever<\/a>: our research showed that a whopping 83% of support teams are seeing customer expectations increase this year, up from last year\u2019s already high 75%.<\/p>\n This is why instilling a customer-centric mindset across the entire business is so important. Creating a positive customer experience isn\u2019t just one team\u2019s job; it\u2019s every<\/em> team\u2019s job. From product to marketing to sales to support, every team can help to create more impactful, personalized customer experiences that drive increased customer satisfaction<\/a>, loyalty, and retention \u2013 and boost your business\u2019s bottom line.<\/p>\n If customer experience is the sum of every interaction a customer has with your business overall, digital customer experience refers specifically to those touchpoints that happen digitally. Examples of these touchpoints include:<\/p>\n For modern customers, digital customer experiences are an integral part of their overall customer experience. As a result, it\u2019s more important than ever to deliver digital customer experiences that measure up to customers\u2019 needs and expectations, regardless of channel or platform.<\/p>\n \u201cSeamless, integrated solutions can help you to deliver better CX at scale\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n When it comes to creating an impactful digital customer experience, technology should help \u2013 not hinder \u2013 your efforts. Slow, disconnected tools; poor user experiences (UX), such as hard-to-navigate websites or glitchy apps; and unhelpful chatbots can all damage the customer experience.<\/p>\n On the other hand, seamless, integrated solutions can help you to deliver better CX at scale, allowing you to leverage bots and automation to deliver fast, efficient, personalized customer experiences<\/a> without needing to log more hours or add extra headcount.<\/p>\n An omnichannel customer experience is a cohesive, integrated customer experience that\u2019s synchronized across multiple channels. It elevates the entire customer journey by connecting every possible touchpoint that customers encounter, whether in-person or online.<\/p>\n That means a customer can begin their journey with your brand by engaging with an ad on social media or an email marketing campaign, and continue it physically or digitally on different channels without ever having to start over. Everything is coordinated and synchronized so that marketing, customer service, sales, and customer support initiatives can meet the customer where they are, in the context<\/a> that makes the most sense.<\/p>\n Along with being consistent and continuous across channels, an omnichannel customer experience can be resumed across any device, whether on desktop, mobile app, or even an in-store kiosk. Customers can chat with a bot, reach out via email, or connect through a virtual live chat function, and all three will feel like part of the same continuous conversation \u2013 instead of three separate, siloed interactions.<\/p>\n \u201c85% of customers say they expect consistent interactions across departments \u2013 but 66% say they often have to repeat or re-explain information to different representatives\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n With omnichannel, every new touchpoint and engagement is a natural, seamless, and personalized progression of the previous one. This also empowers sales and support agents, who can follow the same customer across all channels and see the full context of their journeys and customer history and provide even more tailored communications.<\/p>\n Today\u2019s customers expect omnichannel customer experiences<\/a>, and anything short of this leads to friction, frustration, and missed opportunities. According to Salesforce\u2019s State of the Connected Customer<\/em><\/a> report, 85% of customers say they expect consistent interactions across departments \u2013 but 66% say they often have to repeat or re-explain information to different representatives.<\/p>\n For businesses that can meet these omnichannel expectations, however, there are numerous benefits. Salesforce\u2019s research reveals that 83% of customers are more loyal to companies that provide consistency across departments. This loyalty drives higher retention and revenue, leading to sustainable business growth. Not only this, but businesses with an omnichannel customer experience strategy are also able to collect better customer data<\/a>, which in turn empowers them to continuously optimize their CX and deliver greater value to their customers.<\/p>\n See how Rebag unified its online and in-store shopping experiences to create delightful, cohesive customer experiences with Intercom<\/a><\/p>\n Personalized customer experiences are any experiences that have been tailored to a customer\u2019s unique preferences and history.<\/p>\n \u201c89% of support leaders say personalized support is a key competitive differentiator\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n The growing demand for personalization shows no sign of slowing down. In fact, our research revealed<\/a> that 89% of support leaders say personalized support is a key competitive differentiator \u2013 and teams that deliver personalized support are two times more likely to report increases in customer satisfaction and retention.<\/p>\n By collecting and leveraging first-party customer data<\/a> and triggering next steps based on actions users have taken, businesses can create relevant, targeted customer experiences that are more personal and engaging.<\/p>\n For a B2B software company, for example, once you know your customer is in a certain industry, you can use targeted messages<\/a> to share industry-specific case studies or other content that is more likely to resonate with their unique needs.<\/p>\n Or for an e-commerce business<\/a>, this personalized experience might look like sending them a reminder of the items they left behind in their cart \u2013 with a personalized discount code to help get them to the checkout.<\/p>\n You might be wondering: how does customer experience differ from customer service<\/a>?<\/p>\n Customer service is the support you provide to your customers and potential customers throughout the customer journey. It is usually a specific interaction or series of interactions, such as when a customer reaches out to your support team and gets assistance.<\/p>\n \u201cCustomer experience includes customer service interactions, but is not limited to them\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Customer experience is the sum of every interaction with your business. It includes these customer service interactions, but is not limited to them. It also doesn\u2019t necessarily involve another person (or chatbot); things like navigating your website or engaging with your product are all part of the customer experience, but aren\u2019t examples of customer service.<\/p>\n Seamless, personalized customer experiences<\/a> don\u2019t just create happy customers \u2013 they create significant opportunities for business growth<\/a>. Here are four key benefits of customer experience that highlight just how important it is.<\/p>\n One of the challenges businesses face when it comes to delivering an omnichannel customer experience is how to ensure they\u2019re delivering cohesive, consistent experiences across so many touchpoints. It can be tricky to maintain it all, especially when you\u2019re working across multiple channels and trying to balance personalization and engagement without over-messaging.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re not sure where to start, the emerging discipline of customer experience design<\/a> can help. By borrowing a few best practices from CX designers, you can create optimal customer experiences for every stage of the customer journey.<\/p>\n Want to see what it looks like to get customer experience right? Watch a demo<\/a><\/p>\n How can you understand if your existing customer experience is meeting customer needs and expectations?<\/p>\n Using customer satisfaction metrics such as Net Promoter Score (NPS)<\/a> or a customer satisfaction (CSAT) score can help you to get a simple picture of how happy your customers are with your business and services.<\/p>\n NPS and CSAT are measured on numerical scales, which is useful for quick pulse checks, but behind these numbers are a wealth of further insights. To create the best CX programs, you need to talk directly to your customers, listen to their pain points, and gather their feedback.<\/p>\n A voice of the customer program<\/a> can help you to collect and act on these insights, allowing you to measure and analyze your customer experience. Don\u2019t have time for a full VoC program? Surveys<\/a> are a quick and easy way to get real-time, actionable feedback from your customers, without disrupting the customer experience.<\/p>\n When it comes to delivering great customer experiences, what are customers actually looking for?<\/p>\n According to research from PwC<\/a>, the things that people value most in their customer experiences are:<\/p>\n As the factors with the greatest impact on customer satisfaction, these are areas you should look to enhance at every opportunity in order to quickly boost your CX.<\/p>\n Here are some examples of how you can incorporate all of the above to deliver even better customer experiences that tick all your customers\u2019 boxes.<\/p>\n Customers want fast, efficient answers to their problems. One of the best ways to provide this at any time of the day or night? Allow them to self-serve<\/a>.<\/p>\n By creating always-on self-serve resources such as help centers or knowledge bases<\/a>, you can enable customers to get almost-instant answers, without even needing to contact a member of your team. This creates a speedy, effective customer experience for them, and keeps your team free to focus on more complex queries that need a human touch.<\/p>\n To create an even more efficient customer experience, combine these self-serve resources with a Custom Bot<\/a> to help troubleshoot and triage questions, then use machine learning to deliver up the perfect content for the situation at hand.<\/p>\n Boxes ticked:<\/p>\n \u2705 EfficiencyWhat is meant by customer experience?<\/h2>\n
What is a digital customer experience?<\/h3>\n
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What is an omnichannel customer experience?<\/h3>\n
What is personalized customer experience?<\/h3>\n
Customer experience vs. customer service<\/h3>\n
The importance of customer experience<\/h2>\n
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\nA global report from Qualtrics XM Institute<\/a> found that customers who received excellent experiences were 3.6 times more likely to recommend a business<\/strong>, 3.3 times more likely to trust a business<\/strong>, and 2.6 times more likely to purchase more from a business<\/strong> than customers who received poor experiences.<\/li>\n
\nAccording to Forbes<\/a>, US consumers mention a good experience to an average of nine people<\/strong>. Conversely, but just as importantly, they\u2019ll talk about a bad experience to 16 people \u2013 and that\u2019s not even accounting for a poor online review or tweet, which can reach many, many more.<\/li>\n
\nA study in Harvard Business Review<\/a> revealed that customers who have had positive experiences are likely to remain customers for five years longer<\/strong> than customers who had negative experiences.
\nOn the other hand, PwC found that<\/a> 17% of U.S. consumers said they would abandon a company they loved after just one negative customer experience, while 59% said they would end a relationship with a brand after multiple negative experiences.<\/li>\n
\nThe same Harvard Business Review study discovered that customers who had positive past experiences went on to spend a whopping 140% more<\/strong> than those who had the poorest experiences \u2013 meaning that customer experience is a major driver of future revenue.
\nPwC\u2019s study also found that customers are willing to pay a premium for products from brands that offer a better customer experience.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\nDesigning customer experience<\/h2>\n
Measuring and analyzing customer experience<\/h2>\n
Examples of great customer experience<\/h2>\n
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1. Empower customers to self-serve<\/h3>\n
\n\u2705 Convenience
\n\u2705 Knowledgeability<\/p>\n