Four Customer Experience trends to keep an eye on in 2022

Traditional Customer Experience (CX) practices have been radically disrupted over the past two years. More customers have shifted away from face-to-face interactions and opted to connect with brands digitally. NielsenIQ found that 67% of consumers have changed how they shop due to COVID-19.

Furthermore, Accenture published an article detailing how CX is progressing past traditional customer journey touchpoints to become a holistic approach known as Business of Experience (BX). Currently, CX is often treated as an addition to the customer or marketing functions but should be adopted as an integrated Business priority to deliver strategies that meet customer demands. Traditional CX is no longer enough to deliver on evolving customer expectations.

It’s imperative to understand potential changes in the CX sphere to prepare an effective CX strategy for 2022. So, what are some of the trends you can expect to see in 2022?

1. Digitisation – Investment into technology designed to improve CX and gain credibility

Businesses must have a digital strategy designed to meet customer needs to stay relevant and retain a competitive advantage. Customers want to engage with your brand on multiple platforms and across numerous devices. Technology has changed the way people shop, socialise, and consume information. However, the key differentiator in a digital strategy is how it incorporates and improves CX.

In a survey conducted by The Economist Intelligence Unit and sponsored by DXC and Leading Edge Forum, 68% of businesses report that their annual profitability increased over the past three years due to digital strategy.

2. Omnichannel VoC Campaigns – particularly with Social Media integration

Omnichannel experiences are no longer a convenience for customers but an expectation. If a customer orders food through a website, they expect updates via email/SMS/the app. Consumers engage with brands across multiple channels. Consistent messaging and experiences drive sales and revenue and result in improved customer satisfaction and a larger market share.

The greater your presence across platforms, channels, and devices, the more opportunity your customers have to reach you. Integration across multiple channels is necessary to create a seamless omnichannel experience. This will be particularly pertinent with VoC campaigns in 2022, as businesses can gain important insights from multiple touchpoints. Trust and value will drive CX in 2022 – businesses want customer insights that allow them to make decisions and inform strategy.

3. Voice of the Employee – An inward focus for an external benefit

Happy and engaged employees will be the biggest differentiator for businesses creating a customer-centric culture. Your employees are the face of your company and your biggest brand ambassador as they interact with your customers directly.

Even though most customer interactions occur digitally, employees still play an important role in the journey and their attitude drives their behaviour. Whether your customer has a positive or negative experience with your brand depends on your employees’ performance.

4. Sustainable practices and conscious purchasing

Consumers are more environmentally aware and would rather support responsible brands concerned with how their operations affect society and the environment. More so, they actually seek them out. Sustainability is a key consideration in purchasing decisions and, as such, brands need to actively implement sustainable business practices.

Change is inevitable - businesses need to constantly re-evaluate current strategies and adapt accordingly. CX and the evolution to BX will result in a key advantage over the competition in 2022.