Top 10 Trends to Emerge in Customer Experience Management

What is it stretching to the horizon?

Have you read Origin, the latest masterpiece from Dan Brown?

I felt, that the emerging Socio-business environment of today or the one we are heading to probably can be appropriately paraphrased by this quote from Origin.¹

‘Human beings are evolving into something different. We are becoming hybrid species – a fusion of biology and technology. The same tool that lives outside our bodies – smartphones, hearing aids, reading glasses, most pharmaceuticals – in fifty years will be incorporated into our bodies to such an extent that we will no longer be able to consider ourselves Homo Sapiens.’

It was only in 1983, that Compaq Portable, considered as first personal computer clone was released. World Wide Web started taking shape around 1989 when CERN opened the first external TCP/IP connections. Google registered the domain in 1997 and the first true smartphone iPhone was launched in 2007.

However, in the last two and half decades, technology has permeated like never before radically transforming every sphere of human life. Look at a few of the revealing statistics:

• In a population of 7.4 billion, there are 4.9 billion unique mobile users, 3.8 billion Internet users and 2.8 billion Social Media users
• In just 60 seconds in the Internet – 16 million text messages are exchanged on WhatsApp, 3.5 million search queries are run on Google, and 4.1 million videos are viewed in You Tube.²

And if it sounds mind-boggling, that’s about just only a fraction of what happens in the digital world. Putting all in perspective, the current business universe can be contextualized by a few phenomena as delineated below:

Speed of Digital Evolution – Moore’s Law ³

The digital revolution in terms of processing speed and degree of connectedness are two vital factors that significantly influence the competitiveness of a firm. As per Moore’s law, digital processor speeds, or overall processing power for computers will double every two years.

Technology Adoption Time ³

Technology adoption time has reduced drastically in the case of digital, or more in the case of Internet-based products. For instance, reaching a diffusion of 25 per cent (per cent of ownership) radios took more than 25 years. However, in the case of the Internet, it took even less than 10 years to reach the same figure.

Digital Expanse and Connectedness

Across domains, there is a gradual shift toward a digital space diminishing the physical borders. Unlike a decade before, there is a market siege by companies based on technology convergence. Quoting from These are the world’s most digitally advanced countries, there are few salient features of today’s digital landscape. Few relevant in this context are: ⁴

• Digital technology is widespread and spreading fast – Cross-border flows of digitally transmitted data accounted for one-third of the increase in global GDP in 2014 and it is increasing
• Digital players wield outsize market power – In 2017, Apple, Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon and Facebook were the five most valuable companies leaving behind their brick-and-mortar brethren
• Digital Technologies is poised to change the future of work – This is what is often being adduced as Second Machine Age when Automation, Big Data and AI-enabled by application of digital technologies could affect 50% of the world economy.

While the research to advance the digital age further will be in the core technology domains, it is critical for the business to recognize and work on of the emerging trends in every other area like customer Experience Management to stay competitive.

Here, I would like to quote from Shelly which exemplifies the clamant need around the corner: ⁵

The trumpet of a prophecy! O Wind,

If winter comes, can spring be far behind.

As we would see in the next section, Customer Experience Management will be a game changer for a business rather than being on the periphery as in the past. Following is an outline of what one can expect in Customer Experience Management in coming few years. The output presented combines integration of current research along with a pragmatic field experience. The trends are industry agnostic and likely to impact business firms irrespective of the industry they belong to.

1. An All Powerful and Choosy Customer will emerge

The basic ingredients of Customer requirements can be stated as Right (Product), Now (Time to Deliver / Recover) and Free (Cost). If not exponentially, digital technologies will push the boundaries of Customer requirements faster than ever. Connectedness will make the customer to become choosy and he will settle for not less than what he wants.

2. Customization / Individualization of products will be the key

Once the customers become choosy as he can look for far more choices, firms will have to shift focus to product individualization / customization. This will be similar to what I refer as ‘patient model’ when each patient in a medical center requires different types of medical care. This customization has been referred as N=1 by C K Prahalad when a firm will be exacted to tailor the product as per individual preference.⁶

3. Companies will have to focus on problem free product (simplification)

How many times have you called up WhatsApp call center (Do they have one in fact!)? WhatsApp is one of the best examples of problem free product when a Customer never has to reach out to the provider with complaint about the product. Many have written about strong correlation between a product and a satisfied customer and loyalty.^7,8 Due to vast choices available at fingertip and customization, Customers will tend to select problem free product more and more. Facing with more demanding customers, companies will have to invest in creating product free of defect. This will necessitate more rigor in building Customer Requirements from the design stage itself.

4. Not product, Customer Service will be a determinant of brand choice

More and more customers will decide on a particular brand depending on the quality of the service provided. According to American Express Global Customer Service Barometer 2017⁹, there is an emerging trend of importance of Customer Service while deciding to buy a product. As per the survey, top three countries where Customers hadn’t bought a product due to bad Customer Service are India (66%), Singapore (66%) and Mexico (63%). Similarly, there is a trend of Customers willing to spend higher due to good Customer Service. Top three countries in this category are India (21%), US (17%) and Singapore (16%).

5. There will be strong need for creating Real Time Experience

New consumer journey is shifting from sessions to spurts which Google has mentioned as Micro-Moments. This is when a consumer turn to a device and makes a decision. 65 % of the consumers agree that while doing a search in their smartphone, they look for the most relevant information regardless of the company providing information. This will emerge as the new battle grounds for the brands to Be There, Be Useful and Be Quick.¹⁰ And, wins at the Micro-Moments will be dependent on creation of relevant and personalized real time experience at the right moment.

6. Big Data and Strong Analytics will be leveraged

Real time analytics will require processing of huge influx of data real time. Analytics orientation will shift from Horizontal- Touchpoint based to Customer – Lifecycle based. Apart from the 3 big ‘V’s – Volume, Variety, Velocity, Big Data will play a critical role to create Value at the relevant moment. Big Data will be used in four stages – Collection of data from the relevant touchpoints and interactions, Processing and analyzing the data in conjunction with past data, Extraction of Actionable Insights and Measuring Impact.

7. Artificial Intelligence is here to stay bringing in accuracy and speed

If you are fascinated by the buzz around Chatbots, it is just the tip of the iceberg. AI is on the way to transform the fundamental rules that traditionally used to define Customer Experience. It is important to take cognizance of the fact that AI is not a single technology, rather it refers to discrete technologies or platforms which individually or in combination can add intelligence to applications. Adapted from Oracle’s Internet of Things Value Framework, Forrester report mentions following 5 ways how Customer Experience will be radically fueled by use of AI – Increased Efficiency, Reduced Friction, Enhanced Customer Empowerment, Proactive Action and Preemptive Service.¹¹

8. There will be gradual shift towards online channels

If one can turn the clock back by few years, you will see Customer support being equated with Contact Centers. However, there is a gradual shift towards Customer resorting to online channels for resolution and support and the numbers are significant. For the countries which top the list, percentage of Customers who use online channels for problem resolution are: India – 30 %, Hong Kong – 26 %, Italy 26 % and Mexico 25 %.⁹ One offshoot of this would be reduction on dependency on Call Center. Call centers will cater only to the core service needs where human intervention is inevitable.

9. Customers will depend more and more on Mobile Phone for required service

87% of the smartphone users keep their phone by side any time and 91 % often turn to their phones for ideas even in the middle of a task.¹⁰ Another critical indicator is Conversion Rates from mobile which shot up by 29 % in the last year.¹⁰ This tiny gadget, unnoticed, is gradually becoming integral part of our lives and more and more people will be using it for making an informed decision including when looking for a service.

10. Companies will shift to Relationship from Resolution

While conversion from Mobile has increased by 29 %, time spent per session by consumers has reduced by 18 %. At the same time, 65 % of the consumers agree that while doing a search in their smartphone, they look for the most relevant information regardless of the company providing information.¹⁰ This insinuates a transient nature of relationship with Customers focusing on ‘What’ rather than ‘Who’. This will entail the business firms to invest in strengthening relationship rather than being a provider of resolution. This is where predictive modelling will play a part as basis of success leveraging on AI and analytics.

Lastly ………

The imperative will be to stay relevant ‘At The Moment’ and companies that would act ahead of the curve will survive.

This quote which is attributed to Darwin is apt here, ‘It is not the most intellectual of the species that survives; it is not the strongest that survives, but the species that survives is the one that is able best to adapt and adjust to the changing environment in which it finds itself.’¹²

And that’s what the next summer is all about.

(Disclaimer: The views expressed in the article is of the author’s and doesn’t reflect the views of anyone else including the organization he is working for)

Article Link to Smart Manager

References

1. Brown Dan (2017) : Origin: Bantam Press, London, p 411
2. http://www.businessinsider.com/everything-that-happens-in-one-minute-on-the-internet-2017-9?IR=T
3. Borah Gautam (2015): Monetising Innovation: Bloomsbury, New Delhi p. 74

4. Chaturvedi Ravi, Bhalla Ajay, Chakravorti Bhaskar (2017): These are the world’s most digitally advanced countries: World Economic Forum

5. Shelley Percy Bysshe, Ode to the Wind
6. Prahalad C K, Krishnan M S (2008): New Age of Innovation, Driving Co-created Value Through Global Networks, Mc-Graw Hill
7. Krivobokova O V (2009 : evaluating Customer Satisfaction as an aspect of Quality Management. Proceedings of World Academy of Science.Engineering and Technology
8. Chai K H, Ding Y, Xing Y (2009) : Quality and Customer Satisfaction Spillovers in the Mobile Phone Industry
9. American Express Global Customer Barometer, 2017
10. Adams Laura, Burkholder Elizabeth, Hamilton Katie : Micro-Moments – Your Guide to Winning the shift to Mobile :Google
11. Legget Kate (2017) : How AI will Transform Customer Service : Forrester
12. https://quoteinvestigator.com/2014/05/04/adapt/

Author Introduction

Gautam Borah is the Author of the book Monetising Innovation (Bloomsbury, 2015). He is currently working as Vice President – Customer Operations in Vodafone India. He can be followed as @gautamkborah on Twitter.