Re-Thinking CX Strategy
Customer experience, of course, is what customers experience. It's cumulative, not just momentary. Its simplest definition is customers' realities versus expectations.
Therefore, a 1-to-1 ratio means CX success!
When realities match customer expectations, it's a good experience. When realities are less than expectations, it's poor CX.
This simple truth is an excellent guide for your 2023 CX strategy. In many firms, CX is at a crossroads due to continuing rapid changes in the economy, talent, supply chain, etc.
CX strategy needs a reboot, as seen in Forrester's 2022 CX Index: no firms have pierced the glass ceiling of "Excellent CX", and no industry has reached "Good" or "Excellent" status. Only 3% of firms are customer-obsessed in 2022, dropping from 10% in 2021. XM Institute's 2022 State of CX study reports a drop from 13% (2019) to 8% (2022) in firms at the top tiers of CX maturity. This trend is confirmed by the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), with 2022 performance at the lowest point in 16 years!
CX strategy today is shaped by the great CX awakening of 2009, when firms struggled for survival. It followed the CRM era, which followed the TQM era of CX strategy. CX strategy today is mercenary and remedial, in general. It seeks constant quick wins in revenue upticks, with numerous programs to remedy failure of the 1-to-1 ratio.
CX today is shaped by customers struggling for survival. TRUST, respect, transparency, flexibility, shared values, quality of life, and relationship strength are keys to EX and CX. They're long overdue! 33% of people do not trust family-owned firms, and 44% do not trust publicly-traded firms. How can CX excel without a turnaround in trust?
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Cracking the code for the CX Index, 3 CX Quality factors earn 3 Customer Loyalty goals. Effectiveness depends on customer-centered engineering, business models, operations, and proactiveness company-wide. Ease depends on customer-centered policies, processes, handoffs, and attitudes among your headquarters groups. Emotion is positive when issues are prevented. Retention is higher and less costly when Marketing and Sales target ideal customers and set realistic expectations. Enrichment is actionable via Expectations VoC that sets performance standards for Effectiveness and Ease.
The secret to CX ROI is pursuit of a 1-to-1 ratio for realities vs. expectations. When silos are smooth and when people come first, you're more likely to prevent issues. When issues are prevented, most of your current remedial and mercenary CX investments are not needed. By focusing on top issues' root cause metrics, return on CX is obvious and impressive.
2020s CX strategy must return to the basics of earning trust. To learn about CX+EX+PX Strategy Unpracticed Best Practices, see an excerpt from my LinkedIn Live webinar. This strategy of earning trust is called Experience Leadership: company-wide alignment of realities vs. expectations. It aims for a 1:1 ratio among the 3 stakeholders you rely on for growth: customers, employees, and partners. Marketing, CX, CS, EX, and PX teams are keepers of these insights and pivotal to facilitating Experience Leadership.
How strong are your teams in the 6 Experience Leadership competencies? (1) Lifetime Value Mindset: relationship strength focus to maximize cumulative profitability, (2) Customer-Centered Action: CX data and metrics inspire resolution of CX issue root causes, (3) Enterprise Use of Insights: growth activities and re-engineering based on CX insights, (4) Aligned Motivations: dedication to shared agendas, shared vision, and shared values, (5) Respecting Interdependencies: awareness and inclusion of groups who rely on one another, and (6) Consistency to Intentions: say what you mean and do what you say, and give heads-up on changes. These competencies are vital to ongoing CX success. As your enterprise builds these competencies, you'll see almost-automatic CX excellence.
Has your team made strides in any of these 6 Experience Leadership competencies? Let's inspire a global movement to earn customer trust. Your CX, CS, EX, PX, and Marketing teams can rapidly gain expertise in these 6 competencies through ClearAction's Masterclasses, Masterminds, and Mentoring.
What's most urgent now in CX strategy?
Customer Experience Consultant & Mental Fitness Coach
2yThis is an excellent article, Lynn. The 1 to 1 ratio concept rings true when it comes to reality and expectations for must organizations. There are some industries, however, where customers/citizens expect a dehumanizing, terrible, and arduous experience which is what they get most of the time. A good example is public sector agencies. How should these organizations be thinking about CX strategy given the low requirement of gaining loyalty or advocacy?