In these customer-centric times, customers want control over the conversations they have with companies. They demand guided, personalized and contextual self-service experiences that value their time. Companies that provide self-service experiences that align with these customer expectations reap the rewards of customer satisfaction. And this satisfaction directly influences top-line revenue, as measured by a decrease in customer churn, a reduction in contact center costs and an increase in customer loyalty and advocacy.

With so much at stake, companies must view self-service as a cornerstone of their customer experience strategy. They must invest to provide omnichannel self-service that aligns with customer expectations. And Genesys omnichannel self-service solutions are central to this strategy.

Companies must offer coordinated self-service channels to meet customer expectations. Experiences should be integrated so that customers can move from one channel to another with ease, don’t have to repeat an interaction or start over, and feel that their time is valued. All of this is key to provide a differentiated omnichannel self-service experience. When done properly, self-service deflects customers from the contact center, offering operational efficiencies.

After Eircom, the largest telco provider in Ireland, deployed Genesys omnichannel self-service capabilities, they saw their Net Promoter Score (NPS) increase from 5.6 to 6.3, realized a return on their investment in less than six months and experienced 100% increase in self-service in the first 12 months.

With a true omnichannel experience, companies can break through silos and implement self-service across channels. Seamlessly supporting a customer’s end-to-end journey—across communication channels and touchpoints—means that customers don’t need to repeat information to an agent. And to do this well, companies must share information and context across all channels the customer uses during an interaction.

Don’t just design a self-service omnichannel experience. Take it a step further and design self-service omnichannel customer journeys. You must create escalation paths between channels, such as from web self-service and visual IVR to automated chat bots, and then share context among them. This will shorten the overall customer journey and, ultimately, deliver a better customer experience.

Always take the pulse on evolving customer requirements. We live in a technology-fueled era; new communication channels, such as SMS, instant messaging, visual IVR, chat bots and virtual agents, are gaining use among customers. Companies that mature and offer Genesys omnichannel self-service will gain customer satisfaction and long-term loyalty.

To learn more about how companies are personalizing IVR, take a look at the Eircom case study.