Thought Leadership
Customer journeys are nonlinear in nature. And with the number of touchpoints increasing, there’s a parallel increase in social channels such as Marketplace and the Metaverse. Thus, organizations must observe, analyze and be there for the client at the right place, at the right time, and with the right content and offerings.
This is why we hear over and over again from CXOs that they want to partner with experts who will find the right solutions for them in their business context.
According to Salesforce, more than four out of five consumers say the experience a company provides is as important as its products and services. And Adobe research finds that 90% of consumers are more likely to buy from a brand that delivers a good customer experience—and to stay loyal to that brand. So it’s not surprising that 75% of CX leaders are increasing their investment in analytics to gain deeper insights into customer behaviour and preferences, according to Forrester.
What Good Looks Like
The case for investing in CX is irrefutable. What’s harder to define is how and where that investment should be made, and what outcomes justify it. In other words: In CX, what does good look like?
As we unpack this complex problem, we believe A.I.R creates good customer experiences:
- Authentic. This is the key to loyalty and connection. Deliver value in line with your purpose—serve not merely your most pressing need, but rather the underlying longings and narratives of your customers. Serve your customers with integrity and consistency.
- Inclusive. Let customers know they are part of something. Here you’re inviting them to become involved in the larger cause. They are not a mere consumer, but a partner-contributor. Your tone is personal, inviting and familiar.
- Responsive. You communicate with speed, context and focus. Your customer interaction is data-driven and smart; you’re continuously learning and adapting. Your products and services are there to alleviate pain points.
Holistic Approach to CX Transformation is Key to Realizing Desired ROI
Organizations that want to lead the way in CX and maximize ROI need to embrace a holistic approach that focuses on investing in designing frictionless customer journeys and customer engagement platforms that enable those journeys across the life cycle; transforming the enterprise to deliver CX excellence across touchpoints; leveraging data to continuously learn and personalize experiences; and leveraging technology innovations to fundamentally re-imagine customer experience.
The ‘how’ of CX Transformation—Leveraging a Studio Approach
As organizations begin to answer the key questions—What does good look like? More importantly, How do we transform to achieve desired business outcomes?—we urge them to keep in mind this modifier: “for us”. It’s a crucial distinction while charting the path of transformation. Success lies in making these very contextual to the business and its end customers.
Therefore, we advocate a flexible Studio approach that engages a true multi-disciplinary team of experts (business strategy, experience design, technology, product, data, analytics and more) focused on the desired business outcome; guided by a unified methodology and tools. This team brings the right balance of contextual outside-in and inside-out perspectives to craft the optimal path to CX transformation—strategy through execution.
Real-World Success
CX transformations can be broadly sorted into three categories:
- Improving existing services and products to drive growth. In situations in which clients have challenges with their existing digital product or service, our experts conduct a CX assessment to understand the depth of the issues, then come back with quick-turnaround solutions that start showing improvements in overall CX.
Case study: Working with a leading pest-control company, we designed an end-to-end roadmap that both enabled localized, relevant experiences for customers, and drove better brand awareness and lead generation. We then developed a detailed plan to help the client accelerate implementation of critical features, while advising on its future-state solution architecture. The client saw a 15% increase in on-site engagement and a 10% boost in its conversion rate.
- Enterprise front-office transformation for CX excellence. As enterprises scale and move into revenue of $1 billion and up, it becomes important to revisit the entire marketing, sales, service and other go-to-market application ecosystem to provide a better experience for internal users, partners, and customers. These applications come into play during the sales and service component of the customer journey, and a break in that experience can have a big impact on overall CX ratings.
Case study: This engagement involved an end-to-end digital front office transformation. Working with a communications leader, we built a digital architecture to help the client create a next-generation cellular network to unleash the power of 5G, develop new revenue streams by creating a consolidated GTM across the spectrum. As part of the transformation, the entire lead-to-order life cycle was simplified to reduce cycle time from 45 days to 10 days while streamlining the service experience for customers and partners through an omni-channel approach.
- Create connections through customer delight. Digital marketing and commerce are the main parts of a customer journey, and a sharp focus is needed to continuously monitor, measure, and improve. User expectations keep changing with time—especially in today’s fast-paced environment. Keeping on top of this and responding in an agile fashion is a key to success for any organization.
Case study: We helped a leading software firm reimagine its UX and customer experience. After assessing the client’s existing platform, we recommended a platform architecture that included customer data platforms and marketing automation platforms to enable data-driven decisioning and orchestration. We then built out the required data pipelines and integrated them with the platforms. The client saw an additional $4 million in revenue attributable to the improved CX.
Summary and Next Steps
Customer experiences need to be Authentic, Inclusive and Responsive. Strong business outcomes are achieved through focusing on contextual, holistic orchestration of “The 8 Dimensions” via relevant multi-disciplinary teams focused on business outcomes—all seamlessly orchestrated through a unified methodology and tools.
To learn more about our Studio approach, the 8 dimensions of CX transformation, and our client success stories, download the report, or contact us.
