Delivering an excellent Customer Experience (CX) has become the supreme discipline in online business. Nevertheless, according to a Bain & Company study, 80% of companies are certain: "We already shine with an excellent customer experience!" Unfortunately, only 8% of customers share the same opinion.
This result should make many companies start thinking. Because in a competition in which the exponentially growing range of products, services and information are becoming more and more competitive, a unique customer experience is one of the few possibilities for differentiation.
Don't believe in everything you hear
In an effort to achieve an outstanding customer experience, companies often take the simplest route. They believe in what has been persistently promising in online business for years or look at all current trends. The consequence: you fall for many myths! To protect you from this, we show you in this article the 4 biggest myths of the Customer Experience.
Myth 1: The CX cannot be measured
"How can we measure something that happens in the minds of customers? - That is not possible". Many companies follow this line of thought, but they fall for the first myth. Because measuring the CX is not only about the thoughts of the customers, but also about the turnover of the company, that is the result of a good customer experience.
In the same way as the easily measurable sales figures, companies should check whether the customer experience is perceived as positive. CX expert André Morys, CEO of konversionsKRAFT, says that customers often don't know exactly what they need. Only when they see a product they find it great. For this reason, companies should first meet the hygiene factors and meet the needs from the customer's point of view to meet the requirements. By adding elements that customers may not be aware of, a more positive impression and result of the customer experience can be achieved. This needs to be reviewed and evaluated. According to marketing analytics expert Jim Sterne, this is possible by measuring the CX in 3 areas: customer satisfaction, task completion and goal achievement. Their combination then indicates whether the changes are effective at the interface to the customer.
Our free whitepaper will tell you which key figures need to be defined and which further insights the experts Andre Morys, Jim Stern & Co have on CX optimization.
Myth 2: Always relate data
Which company doesn't know it? Collecting data has become part of daily business. So why not invest a lot of time and money in the meticulous (possibly manual) examination of this data in order to identify possible correlations - that's what everyone does! With these statistical evaluations in the pocket and the clear goal of a flawless CX in mind, many managers then make important strategic decisions.
However, Gartner studies show that this is a clear myth that many companies fall for. Instead of actually improving the customer experience, data-based action has the opposite effect: the customer experience deteriorates. Gartner analyst Ed Thomson says, "Companies are better advised to understand what customers are trying to achieve than to monitor demographic or psychographic information. He continues: "Instead of just studying customer data, you need to examine the needs that arise throughout the lives of your customers. We recommend that you do not correlate - but understand the needs.
Myth 3: No innovations = no customer experience
Under the motto "Innovate or die", many companies in a time of AI, VR and Co are firmly convinced: no innovations = no customer experience. So there is a lot of tinkering with different measures that mankind has not yet seen. It should be as exciting as possible. 3D shopping? Product views via AR? Bring clothes to life? Everything already seen!
Many companies invest large sums of money and many resources in the development of a virtual shopping trip that remains in memory, emotionalizes and triggers a "WOW effect". They fall for a huge myth. Because the attempt to be extraordinarily innovative is often very time - and resource-intensive and delivers few results. Because customers, like people in general, are afraid of change. Instead of reinventing the wheel, it is sufficient to apply existing innovations from other markets or optimize existing solutions.
For example, a restructuring of customer service or the implementation of same-day delivery can create much greater added value for the customer experience than working for months on a project that customers then find difficult to accept. After all, innovation is not an end in itself, but should have added value from the customer's point of view.
Myth 4: Chatbots are indispensable for an excellent CX
"Nothing works without chatbots" - a myth that was probably brought to life by the company. Because while already over 60% of the on-line dealers plan to integrate a chatbot for the coming half year, only 2% of the users would like to communicate with one. So it is out of question that there will be more and more bots in the future, but it should be noted that from the consumer's point of view it is not absolutely necessary for a positive customer experience.
Almost every online shop customer has already made the acquaintance of a chatbot. Because at least 54 percent of the respondents of a Voice of the Customer (VoC) platform Usabilla study stated that they would rather talk to a chatbot than a human consultant if they saved 10 minutes. Because users want to be helped quickly - a machine is allowed to do that. However, since they have limited intelligence, they often find it difficult to report complaints or solve problems. Thus, most customers wish to be looked after for more in-depth matters with specialist knowledge and, above all, the humanity of the employees. CX can improve the customer experience, but companies should never forget that one-time customer experiences often require emotion and trust, which bots cannot deliver.
