We live in an era where every business decision purely depends on the customer experience. The need for effective and consistent customer satisfaction is on a higher rise than anytime before. To progress continuously, brands need an alternative to engage customers at all touchpoints. In the rat race to lure and retain customers, brands use various innovative technologies and strategies to hold back the customer’s interest as per the latest trends.
The more companies work towards better brand building and customer development, the more the retention, and the more the profit. By 2021, customer experience will take over all the benefits a customer receives from product and price. Customer acquisition will primarily depend on how well you treat your existing customers.
Digital technologies obstruct traditional linear marketing to purchase. Customer satisfaction and service excellence remains the best chance for a business to influence customers and navigate them through cult points of interactions.
1. Advancement of street stores
Soon taking a stroll in the store will be like scrolling through the website. Digital expansion has paved the way for retail businesses to flourish with the help of big data, AI, and analytics. Irrespective of the channel, digital commerce has brushed the lines between physical and online stores to deliver an omnichannel experience and influence customers at all touchpoints.
Smart street stores will continue to use digital technologies to promote rich experiences that compliment the strength of their online presence that cannot be offered by online channels.for.eg. Price comparison, product features, trial-and-demo, and in-store purchases. All retail stores, big or small, are turning to digital technologies to scale up their business.
2. Personalized experience
Customer expectation is on the rise due to data technology and personalized experiences. Every customer wants products or services designed to meet their specific needs and requirements. With great personalization comes excellent customer experience. Tech-savvy and digitally exposed customers will expect a super personalized experience from their brands.
- Brands will pay special attention to super hyper-personalization in 2020 and beyond.
- Unique technologies like AI, BI, Analytics will connect more customers with brands.
- Through CX software and online survey tools, companies will be able to collect customer data in real-time, analyze it, and drive instant insights by powerful surveys.
- Customer feedback will be online, and data gathering will be relaxed.
- Product innovation and service will lead to more customer acquisition and retention.
3. Turn to Intelligent Assistants
Intelligent personal assistants will drive customer experience to the next level. Smart appliances like Apple Siri, Google Assistant, Samsung Bixby are more capable of taking requests and delivering instantly. Customers will eventually move towards such speaking technologies for better interactions. Intelligent assistants devices will be a big success by 2021.
With commercialization and enhancements of AI, these virtual machines could make our work more comfortable by making payment online, comparing rates, choosing brands, real-time support, and juggle through complex data to respond to queries, answer calls, etc.
4. Personal touch
Human interaction will continue to boom, and digital customer support will play an essential role in providing anytime, anywhere service. The majority of the customers still need human interventions of customer support and escalation. During contingency measures like COVID-19, the customer service team can work from home, and deliver exceptional service.
Remote human team will function with the help of digital support to perform beyond expectations. Mass adoption of teleservices will allow support experts to deliver service round the clock and across the globe. The addition of such virtual assistants will help improve customer service and boost customer satisfaction at all critical touch points. It’ll also lead to a reduction in customer churn and loyalty.
5. Instant delivery will be smooth.
With rising customer demand, the delivery of goods and services may be challenging for many companies. Logistics and shipment companies will play an essential role in establishing a robust delivery network between customer and company. To meet the delivery needs, companies will adapt to smart shipping systems like drone delivery, same-day delivery in high-density areas.
Moreover, smart ride-share companies like Uber and Lyft will play a vital role in bringing the fulfillment ecosystem to the changing economy.
6. Virtual Reality Or Augmented Reality
Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (VR) will bridge the gap between the virtual world and the physical world and create an immersive experience. Phone-based reality will rise by 2020 because of computation advancements and the progression of smart development.
- Virtual showrooms will be trending
- Customer can choose brands through AR/VR
- Customers can shop through ARVR
- Customers will be able to suggest design and patterns in their products
- Smart systems will monitor every transaction and customer experience of businesses.
Expert says that businesses will succeed in delivering high-quality customer experience only if high performing technologies back high performing applications. Multi-channel, omnichannel customer experience will spike profit and increase customer base and reduce churn. IT and virtual assistants will make it easier for employees to work from home and deliver excellent customer service. Digital support will enable non-stop customer support and work across the globe, providing first-hand resolution, troubleshooting, and fixation. Virtual reality will make everything quick and easy to shop, draft, and choose.product wisely.