Customer Experience trends

In practice, too much money and energy is invested in CX innovations, while the basics are not yet under control. Before embarking on new applications, you first need a solid CX vision and a customer-driven mindset. Without a structured CX process you cannot determine which tools and innovations will add value. 

We are happy to tell you more about the recent developments and trends around Customer Experience Optimisation (CXO), the hypes and successful applications. You will also read more about the key success factors for CXO that strengthen your competitive position.

Voice: the most-discussed CX innovation of the moment 

Voice in particular is a much-discussed trend at conferences, in online articles and on the news. This is often about the fact that more and more people have a Google Home or Amazon Alexa at home. 

The current applications are still limited to information provision. It is rapidly evolving towards transactional interactions. In a while you will be arranging everything with Voice. The Bluebot from KLM will soon not only be able to share the weather of your destination, but also to select and reserve the right ticket for the right price for you. All only with your voice and a Voice device (+ application).

Chatbot: the hype that is not paying off 'yet' 

• Before the focus shifted to Voice, there were many other "hypes" in the field of CXO. For example, the chatbot appears to be a handy tool for answering frequently asked questions and completing after sales activities. This offers two advantages:
• organisations can cut back on customer care
• the customer can contact the organisation 24 hours a day, 7 days a week thanks to a chatbot

A 'dumb' chatbot, which works according to a fixed question-and-answer tree or is based on tagwords, only has no answers to many questions. These must then still be taken care of by 'real' customer care professionals.

A self-learning Artificial Intelligence (AI) solution can handle many more things independently. Its implementation is expensive, complex and time-consuming. That is why many websites now use semi-automated chatbot solutions. These capture the most frequently asked questions and forward detailed questions to an employee.

Meanwhile, some organisations have been quietly working in a dark corner of the office for years on an AI-based customer chatbot solution that is far from ready for a commercial launch.

VR/AR/MR, wat kun je ermee?

As for virtual-, augmented-, of mixed reality there is also a lack of good business cases where real impact was made on the customer experience. Organisations such asIkea and Coolblue look for applications in impressions of furnishings. Games likePokemon Go and Jurassic World offer a more intense gaming experience by projecting game characters into the 'real' world. 

Few organisations are currently involved in, for example:

• simulating educational activities;
• making the explanation about the installation or operation of a product more pleasant and, above all, more understandable;
• expanding the information provision with virtual visualisations. Think of dashboards, agendas, or deeper explanations about museum pieces.

4 beautiful examples of VR applications 

• the Mixed Reality training app from Bluf. Amsterdam for KLM Cargo; 
• the VR soft skills training app for managers to practise interactions with their employees; 
• the Meeting Rembrandt app, with which you can communicate with Rembrandt and receive tips about painting; 
• the collaboration between the Police Academy and educational institutions to simulate situations for training using VR. 

Beautiful examples that will hopefully inspire you!

Interesting CX hypes. But is the foundation in order?

Trends and hypes in the field of Customer Experience optimisation are often followed with the aim of improving service. Often companies simply go along with it to radiate innovation. A well-thought-out CX strategy is missing. Four things are needed:

• The development of a solid CX vision and customer-driven philosophy.
• Unlocking all relevant data sources to retrieve customer insights.
• In-depth customer journey analyses.
• Identifying and prioritising painful areas in the customer journey.Mooie voorbeelden die je hopelijk inspireren!

When the Customer Experience needs to be improved, the focus quickly shifts to new innovations. But is it really smart to focus all attention on the development of new touch points? For example, do you have to implement an advanced chatbot if your customer journey analyses show that your website is loading too slowly? And are you going to make customers who are frustrated about the quality of your product happy with a voice solution?

Learn from your customers by talking to them and analysing customer data. If you have a good basis for CXO, new innovations will only really add value. Do you want to get started with this? Our Customer Experience Consultants are happy to share ideas. 

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