As businesses focus in on new technologies to streamline their operations, the traditional needs of the customer have been left behind in certain instances. While new advances have sped up a lot of internal processes, there is a case to be made that companies might need to re-evaluate the experiences their customers are receiving. Here are five trends they could consider:
Predictive analytics
Data can help businesses to create a more personalised experience for their customers and predict their future actions and buying habits. For example, many contact centre platforms in telecommunications and banking currently have analytics and reporting tools but may not be using the advanced analytics available to create value for their clients. Unlike previous solutions, advanced analytics can help contact centres generate actionable insights about what will happen next in a customer journey using data-led facts rather than instinct. By creating a predictive analytics model manually using existing data and mapping out a full customer journey, telcos, law firms, et al. can achieve this effortlessly.
Phygital experiences
Blurring the line between physical and digital, ‘phygital’ experiences came to fore in 2023 and continue to expand into new industries. Offering customers an omni-channel journey that moves between online and in-person touchpoints, they have become especially prominent in areas linked to the financial sector such as banking and insurance. However, phygital experiences are also expanding beyond this into telcos as well. For example, Vodafone, a company that recently found itself number one in both the UK and Australian Customer Effort Index telcos rankings, recently used this technology to create a creating a phygital shopping experience for an Italian department store in which the telcos firm created a software-defined wide area network (SD-WAN).
AR and VR
Another trend Vodafone has jumped onto is augmented (AR) and virtual reality (VR) experiences. The telcos giant regularly collaborates with VR and AR providers across its worldwide markets to offer customers new experiences through smartphones across gaming, apps and entertainment. For example, one of its first partnerships of this kind was between Vodafone Germany and Nreal, an augmented and mixed reality glasses provider. This along with thousands of other examples across a multitude of industries show that AR and VR experiences are becoming the norm within customer experiences. It’s also predicted that as they evolve further, brands will soon be showcasing their ranges by building virtual worlds around their products.
Chatbots
No matter what the sector, more brands are turning to the chatbot market to improve their support and customer experience. In fact, US tech research consultancy Gartner predicts that by 2027, chatbots will become the primary channel for customer service in a quarter of all businesses. By being able to able to handle simple queries without human involvement, they reduce the response time significantly and can allow human agents to focus on more important tasks.
Balancing human connections and machine learning
The growth in machine learning within customer experience management is enabling businesses to make data-driven decisions that enhance customer interactions. However, one of the main challenges facing various customer facing departments is the need to strike a balance between AI-led tech and human touch points, ensuring that technology facilitates authentic human relations, rather than replace it. A good example of finding the perfect balance is self-service customer options in the form of short explanation videos made for the customer. This type if customer experience allows them to watch in their own time, but then also have the option to speak to a human agent if they wish to push their case further.
