Chapter 4

Customer service today

Customer experience defines brand success for consumers today. More than two-thirds say a company is only as good as its service.

Top issues where a human rep is most desired

Physical problem with a product or service
Billing is inaccurate
Technical issues (software, digital, online)
Product replacement/return
Delayed package or delivery problem
Clarification of benefits or account features
Internet outage
Reservation or booking issue

Top issues where a bot can help

Make a payment
Update account information
Request information on a product
Login issues (user name, password)
Checking status of a claim

70^%

of consumers

say a company is only as good as its service

39^%

of consumers

say dealing with customer service is always a hassle

Which industries are on the right track?

Consumers responding to this survey reported that banks and financial institutions have the best customer service, followed by cellular providers, pharmacies, retailers and insurers.

Bank/financial

38^%

Cellular provider

23^%

Pharmacy

22^%

Retail

22^%

Insurance

18^%

The Empathy Imperative

Now more than a year into the pandemic, consumers worldwide have adjusted how they work, live and play.

Even though friends, family, a meal or a workout are just a tap in an app away, one in three individuals reports feeling more isolated than before. In the US this was even higher—42% of surveyed consumers have become less connected to others.

And, in a landscape where people are increasingly looking for easy resolutions to their issues through digital channels, almost 60% still prefer talking on the phone. For customer experience leaders, it's clear that human connections are crucial to customer success.

Finding that empathy is the most important factor in a customer experience challenges conventional wisdom that CX should ultimately provide effortless experiences.

It's now essential for customers to feel listened to, heard and understood—even if that means taking longer to resolve their issues. There are times when they call the service centre just to have a conversation with someone.

Empathy in customer service means:

Knowing each customer, understanding their preferences and anticipating what they need—not asking them multiple times why they've called.

Giving them a connected experience that transfers customer context across channels.

Knowing, in real time, whether an agent interaction or an expedited interaction using technology like a bot would better serve a customer.

Giving customers what they need, in the way they need it, before they know it’s a need.