Each week, I read many customer service and customer experience articles from various resources. Here are my top five picks from last week. I have added my comments about each article and would like to hear what you think too. Deloitte Shares Loyalty Trends and Best Practices for 2024 by Alicia Esposito (Retail TouchPoints) To […]
Each week, I read many customer service and customer experience articles from various resources. Here are my top five picks from last week. I have added my comments about each article and would like to hear what you think too.
(Retail TouchPoints) To drive customer retention and loyalty, most brands and retailers continue to rely on purchase discounts (77%) and loyalty program points (61%), according to Retail TouchPoints research.
My Comment: Let’s kick off this week’s “Top Five” with a trends report from Deloitte. The first trend that caught my eye had to do with paid loyalty programs. Yes, people will pay to be in a program that offers perks, discounts, and more. I refer to these more as membership programs, but let’s not quibble over words. Whatever drives repeat business – and ideally, customer loyalty – is a good program.
(Quality Digest) Customer service involves those everyday interactions between customers and the frontline employees whose job it is to greet them, wait on them, ring up their purchases, or otherwise engage them directly. It’s common for businesses to have clear standards on how employees should interact with customers. After all, they want those customers to keep coming back and, ideally, be so pleased with how they are treated that they tell their friends about the business.
My Comment: What makes some companies and brands great? It’s the experience, and this author has some excellent insights. I’m often asked to define customer centricity. My definition is that a company or brand considers how every decision will impact the customer (good or bad). This article describes it as “When every person thinks about how their actions will affect the customer’s experience, even employees who never have direct contact with those customers.” It must become part of the company’s values.
(Forbes) If customer relationship marketing were to be recognized for its innovation, the best likely measure of it would be the millions of loyalty programs it has spawned. Most, however, are more likely to be copycatting than introducing new ideas.
My Comment: If you’re interested in loyalty programs, this article is excellent. The author shares six mini-case studies from brands you’ll recognize, such as Starbucks, NASCAR, and more. This is a taste of what they do to create a better customer, guest, and fan experience. I always enjoy learning what rockstar companies and brands do.
(No Jitter) With all the hype around artificial intelligence over the past few years, you’d think we would be tired of AI and moving on to the next big thing in customer experience (CX) by now. However, per our sneak peek at Metrigy’s upcoming research study, AI for Business Success 2024-25, 2024 will be a banner year for AI in terms of company acceptance of the technology.
My Comment: Did you think I could go a week without including an article on AI? I agree with the title. What a difference a year makes. The improvement in the digital experience is huge. And it not only supports the customer, but also the customer service agent. Yes, 2024 will be a banner year for AI, and it will continue to get better!
(Tethr) Automation in the contact center isn’t new, but in 2024, we expect to see automated technologies taking on more routine processes and workflows than ever before. If 2023 was the year that contact center leaders began thinking about how new AI-driven technologies could improve operational efficiency and the customer experience, then 2024 is poised to be the year many of those leaders put those new technologies into practice.
My Comment: This excellent article about trends in the contact center features six experts (including myself) weighing in on the most significant trends and predictions for 2024. You’ll enjoy some interesting and relevant insights from those who know!
(Hiver) Artificial Intelligence (AI) has rapidly evolved in recent years. Its significant impact is visible in various sectors, including customer support.
My Comment: Let’s end this weekly roundup of customer service and CX articles with a report discussing AI replacing humans. If you’ve followed my work, you know that I believe it will not replace humans, but we will have to adapt and adopt new ways of working. The report is “gated,” so you’ll have to share your contact info to get it, but if AI is in your world (and it probably is), this is a report worth reading.
Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.
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