Customer experience is the perception a customer has of a brand based on a collection of interactions including marketing campaigns, product use, social media presence, customer service contacts, and more. Exceptional customer experience can increase customer loyalty and retention and turn customers into brand advocates. Therefore, CX impacts the bottom line.
In these digital days, consumers have much more exposure to brands, making it important that brands always act consistently and with the customer experience in mind. CX can be very emotion-driven. One bad interaction – a controversial Facebook post or some bad publicity – can cause a customer to have a negative perception of a business that is difficult to overcome.
Because CX impacts revenue, it has become increasingly important to businesses. In fact, Gartner estimates that two-thirds of companies now compete mainly on CX and that number is expected to increase. While companies used to compete on price and quality, today’s consumers expect great customer experiences and will reward businesses by paying a premium, purchasing more products, and referring friends and family. Some people view the current business environment as “the experience economy.”
Positive, consistent CX doesn’t happen on its own. Because there are so many possible interactions that can shape consumer perceptions, brands should take a structured approach to managing the customer experience. Organizations that recognize this have implemented Voice of the Customer (VOC) teams who are responsible for designing, analyzing, and optimizing customer experiences for all touchpoints along the customer journey. These teams often aggregate and holistically analyze data related to CX.
