It may not seem like it, but not too long ago, customers who wanted to contact companies had to go through a specific channel of the company’s choice between 8 am and 5 pm, Monday to Friday.
Organizations were in complete control of where interactions took place and when. As a result, it was infuriatingly tricky for most customers to get in contact with the company. But company’s have almost completely lost that control.
Innovation from e-commerce to mobile phones and the Internet of Things has wholly changed customers’ demands. Today’s customer expects service on the device and platform they choose at a time that is convenient for them.
So, where does the customer journey begin? With the answering of a query? We’re afraid not. In today’s age, your customer starts their experience with you by searching you online or researching how to solve their problem before they reach out to you.
A McKinsey & Company survey found that almost 50% of customers engage 3-5 channels during their journey, and with the rise of COVID-19 across the globe, this has increased. More customers than ever before are engaging with businesses online, and McKinsey estimates that digital channel adoption accelerated by 5 years in the first 8 weeks of the pandemic.
Gone are the days of customers and companies only using traditional communication channels such as voice, email or live chat. Instead, customers are communicating more confidently on platforms of their choosing while businesses are increasingly expected to meet the demand of personalized experiences across all platforms.
Digital adoption across most businesses has created an even more significant emphasis on customer experience. According to a report by Gartner, more than 70% of customer service and support leaders plan to dedicate their budgets to digital channels and capability in 2021.
This era of instant, anywhere, anyplace interactions can make or break the customer journey, and contact centers play a critical role.