We are in the age of experience. The new consumers are more demanding than ever: they have practically infinite information about the products or services of their interest in the palm of their hand and can verify with just a couple of clicks what all the competitors offer, from the small ones to those located in the other corner of the planet.
The consumer is no longer satisfied with the fact that the item he buys is of good quality or meets the functional standards for which it was purchased; he also wants to have a unique and unforgettable experience throughout the process: from researching the product to after-sales. In relation to this, a 2020 Deloitte Digital survey detected that 80% of customers make purchase decisions based on their emotional bond with a brand, while the consulting firm, Kantar, had detected that as a result of the pandemic, 48% of people valued empathy more in their business relationships.
In this context, a CX (customer experience) strategy is essential. And the cloud -often combined with other technologies- is a key enabler to deploy this strategy.
Omnichannel as the horizon
One of the basic initiatives that any CX strategy must incorporate is omnichannel. This means that all service channels are integrated in such a way that the customer feels homogeneity in his interactions, regardless of whether he decided to communicate through the web, social networks or WhatsApp. In this way, the cloud implementation multiplies the effectiveness, ensuring the coherence and consistency of data and applications, while enabling secure access from anywhere and from any device.
Another fundamental pillar for a CX strategy is capturing “the voice of the customer”: having the mechanisms in place so that the consumer can deliver his feedback in real time to allow a company to understand how close (or how far) it is from delivering truly memorable experiences. This can be done through online surveys carried out at the same time that the client establishes contact with the company, or through subsequent communications when the person already had time to process the experience.
From listening to action
Once again, the cloud offers standardized and effective tools for carrying out surveys, not to mention that it is extremely efficient not only for its distribution, but also for its subsequent analysis: the executives responsible for customer service can have this information on their device to analyze metrics and generate reports thanks to a machine learning engine. This enables them to discover deviations and take corrective measures to optimize the customer journey.
If these decision models are automated and directly connected to a cloud marketing platform, it is possible to generate dynamic communications to achieve an immediate impact on the customer: the reversal of a problem, cross-selling, or taking advantage of the presence of the person in a specific site, among others.
The culture factor
Although technology plays a fundamental role, the main change that an organization must make is cultural: it is useless to implement the latest innovations available if we do not have a ”customer centric” approach, where behavior is analyzed, empathy is generated and an active listening is promoted in relation to their needs, their tastes and their claims. The key word is personalization: according to McKinsey, 94% of companies consider this to be a crucial point for success when it comes to CX strategies.
The challenge is just beginning and the consulting firm, Gartner, goes a step further. In the predictions made in its Top Strategic Technology Trends for 2022, it assures that this year the TX (total experience) concept will take off: a combination of customer experience (CX), employee experience (EX) and user experience (UX), with the aim that each interaction with each stakeholder group reaches the highest levels of commitment possible.
Customers are looking for unforgettable experiences and the cloud empowers CX strategies to make it possible.