7 Myths of Customer Experience (And Why They're Wrong)

MYTH NO. 4: CUSTOMERS EXPECT TO INTERACT WITH MORE THAN ONE REPRESENTATIVE WHEN CONTACTING A COMPANY.

According to Robbins, this is a case where customers say they want one thing when they actually want something else. The reality is that 64 percent of customers expected to talk to the same agent on the phone as they would on chat, while 67 percent of companies thought they would expect to communicate with different reps. Essentially, customers are saying that they don’t want to have to repeat themselves, and that they want companies to know them, where they’ve been, and what it’s like to be in their shoes.

What to do about it: On average, customers use four or five physical and digital channels during their interactions with companies, according to Robbins. Companies need to minimize the impact of channel hopping so that customers can move from one channel to the next intelligently. This applies equally whether customers are in a brick-and-mortar store or on a web page.

MYTH NO. 5: INBOUND PHONE CALLS ARE STILL THE PREFERRED ROUTE (OR METHOD) FOR CONTACTING COMPANIES.

This myth is reflected in how companies choose to support their customers: 97 percent of companies support inbound phone calls, “but when we look at the other channels, it starts to drop off significantly and quickly,” Robbins said.

This is in stark contrast with the reality, which demonstrates a preference for other channels. In fact, 53 percent of customers would prefer to use chat as their first contact with a company; only 11 percent of contact center leaders agreed.

According to Robbins, a channel other than the phone won out as the primary preference for the first time in 2015. (However, it is important to note that even today, when there is a serious concern or complicated question, customers still prefer the phone.)

What to do about it: To adjust to this reality, companies should look at existing channel offerings and decide which ones make sense to continue pursuing. While becoming omnichannel might seem like the best course of action, that’s not necessarily the case for all companies. Far more important, experts agree, is that for every channel a company offers, the service on that channel must be good. Why would someone want to wait 20 minutes on hold when he can get much quicker service on Twitter?

MYTH NO. 6: CUSTOMERS WILL NOT PAY MORE FOR A BETTER SERVICE EXPERIENCE.

The numbers tell a far different story, with 69 percent of consumers saying they would in fact pay more to do business with a company that has a good customer service reputation. Only about a third of companies believed that.

What to do about it: The answer, quite simply, is to invest in your contact center. While the contact center was originally built for efficiency and pooling resources to accomplish more with less, there is an advantage in having teams that regularly come in contact with customers. “They can also drive your customer satisfaction and loyalty because they’re there. They’re the touch point that knows what customers are going through and have the ability to affect it immediately, if we give them the tools and resources to do so,” Robbins said.

“Contact centers also have more insight about customers than marketing, product development, or any other departments combined,” Robbins added. “I know that when I’ve invited marketers into our contact center, they’re practically drooling over the information and insight we get from customers during interactions.”

MYTH NO. 7: COMPANIES CAN DO CLOSE TO NOTHING TO ADDRESS MYTHS 1–6 AND STILL BE SAFE.

If your company falls into this bucket, good luck!

What to do about it: “If you work in the customer relationship world, in any capacity, if there’s any advice that I can give you, it’s don’t just expect change,” Robbins said. “Embrace change, because this is the world that we live in.”

And those who aren’t proactive are very likely to regret it.

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Associate Editor Oren Smilansky can be reached at osmilansky@infotoday.com.