Bridging the Customer Service Gap

The way we communicate is rapidly changing. Texting is becoming the preferred means of mobile conversation and some companies are abandoning voice mail. Organizations are under pressure to keep up with these changes while also providing fast and reliable service across multiple channels. And while progress is being made in understanding customer needs through speech analytics and other solutions, many organizations still struggle to close the gap between consumer expectations and services.

“There’s a new breed of consumers today,” noted Elan Moriah, corporate officer and president of Verint Systems’ enterprise intelligence solutions, during a keynote speech at the company’s Global Customer Conference in Las Vegas this week. “Consumers expect choices and they use numerous channels like chat, the phone, email, and social networks.” Speech analytics offers companies an opportunity to understand customers and spot opportunities to improve service and product experiences, noted Brian Miller, a workforce operations administrator for Thomson Reuters. “While speech analytics doesn’t create innovation [per se], it’s the vehicle for it,” Miller said. “It causes people to realize that this is the voice of the customer telling us what they need and that causes us to make changes quickly.” As an example, Miller told me about a software product that first-time customers were having difficulty downloading. Through speech analytics, the company determined that the download process was not going smoothly and customers were becoming increasingly frustrated. Miller’s team shared these insights with other departments including technical communications, marketing, and development. The various teams then worked together to build a smoother and simpler installation process which led to 5,000 fewer calls about the software in two months. “When calls about downloads normally peak, they actually went down,” Miller said. “This was a great example of how speech analytics helped us understand what needed to be fixed.” Indeed, speech analytics is gaining traction as the technology advances, maintained Nancy Treaster, senior VP and general manager of strategic operations for Verint enterprise intelligence solutions. “Speech analytics started as a broad brush to get a basic understanding of your customers but now it has become more focused and targeted, which helps companies even more,” Treaster said.

Many organizations, however, are still a long way from providing optimal customer service. In a survey of 1,000 consumers sponsored by Mattersight, which offers predictive behavioral analytics software, 75 percent of the respondents said they felt frustrated after speaking with a customer service agent, even if their problem was solved. This suggests that other problems occurred or the solution was short-sighted. And besides long wait times, the number one thing that annoys customer when contacting a call center is reaching customer service reps that don’t understand their needs. There could also be a disconnect between the customer experiences companies are focused on and what customers expect. A speaker representing a financial services company at Verint’s conference, for example, mentioned that the company was experimenting with letting callers choose the music they listen to while on hold. Instead of spending resources on music selections, I imagine customers would prefer to have their calls quickly answered.

5 Do’s and Don’ts for Effective Native Advertising

Native, sponsored, branded-no matter the name, paid content has become an indisputable force within the media space.

Altimeter Group defines native advertising (see also: sponsored or branded content) as a form of converged media that combines paid and owned media into a form of commercial messaging that is fully integrated into, and often unique to, a specific delivery platform. Simply stated, this practice allows publishers and advertisers to establish interdependent relationships that enable both parties to boost the bottom line and advance audience engagement.

But, as behaviors change, media brands must establish one solid definition on which to build an enduring foundation. “As the digital ad industry continually evolves, sometimes the definition of native is changed or altered from moment to moment,” says Mark Yackanich, CEO of Genesis Media. “It can be in-feed, sponsored content with multiple distribution strategies, non-traditional ad forms, and more, all under this one umbrella term. As we refine what constitutes native advertising and add more ad formats to the mix, it’s important for everyone to be on the same page so that we can have quality conversations about the best ways to approach each.”

Thus, as native advertising becomes more common throughout the media industry, publishers and brands must understand the best practices behind successful content creation and strategic execution. Here, we outline the five biggest mistakes made within the space and how collaborators can realign their approaches to avoid such missteps moving forward:

DON’T: Become consumed by this new flow of income.

Because media companies often struggle financially, native advertising provides an additional income that aligns with the overall publication, while increasing revenue simultaneously. But, when blinded by dollar signs, publishers frequently lose sight of what’s truly important-maintaining editorial integrity.

“If content isn’t properly vetted, and publications are simply blinded by the money, the advertisements will hurt the brand’s credibility in the eyes of the consumer,” explains Austin Paley, corporate marketing communications manager for Blue Fountain Media. “If the outlet is approving anything just because they want the money, it’s compromising the integrity of the publication, which in turn, hurts the quality and quantity of their readership. Not only will the publication lose its brand loyalty-it will eventually lose the sponsors, as well.” Thus, publishers must blend native advertising with editorial content in ways that add value both figuratively and financially.

DO: Put quality content creation ahead of bottom-line results.

Andrew Graham, co-founder of Clear, explains, “The objective of native content is to own the area where what’s newsworthy overlaps with what advances the sponsor’s business interest. In recent decades, the ad business has focused on persuasion, and journalism has always been about publishing the truth as it presents itself. For native ads to work in news outlets, it has to resemble real news. So one definitive element has to be articulating traditional news values in a way that conveniently benefits the sponsor in some tangible way.”

However, Paley notes that many traditional journalists see native advertising as selling out because the publication is displaying an advertisement that appears to be editorial content in exchange for money. But, because most media brands have editorial control over what runs and what doesn’t, they can ensure everything is done as authentically as possible. For instance, 90 percent of all online news audiences cite relevancy as the top factor in sparking interest with regard to in-feed sponsored content. Consumers want to engage with content that educates no matter the underlying motives. Thus, publishers and advertisers must collaborate to develop content creation methods that allow the publication to retain its tone and integrity, while also supporting the advertiser’s goals.

DON’T: Position native advertisements as editorial content.

Publishers often sabotage native advertising strategies by failing to label content as such, as 81 percent of readers believe brand familiarity and trust are crucial for sponsored content success. Audiences are more receptive to such advertisements that appear in publications they already trust.

“Failing to clearly label native content can result in disappointment, frustration, and lack of trust from the audience,” explains Mike Kisseberth, chief revenue officer for Purch. “Media companies often treat native content as second class to editorial, but since it should be labeled clearly, it needs to exceed expectations and value. Native content should be held to the highest bar on quality.” Consequently, the more skeptical readers become with regard to the content they consume, the more likely publishers risk compromising or losing audience trust.

DO: Set forth specific guidelines for sponsored content creation.

Substandard content can trigger loss of readership, thereby significantly hurting the brand and publisher. Joe Pulizzi, founder of the Content Marketing Institute, recommends that publishers implement rigorous review processes to guarantee content aligns with editorial quality throughout the publication. Publishers should establish creative guidelines or adopt the suggested steps below:

Designate separate editorial and native content development teams.
Establish specific editorial standards for sponsored content.
Sell sponsored content as ongoing programs, not short campaigns.
Refuse to publish content that fails to meet the standards of the publication.

DON’T: Focus on selling the given product or service.

Sponsored content customarily goes beyond classic advertising methods to generate added value that ties back to both the overarching mission of both the brand and the publication. Therefore, content that fails to meet such standards typically falls flat, as this content appears self-serving in the eyes of the audience. Marco Hansell, CEO of Speakr, emphasizes that brands can’t just sell because, if the audience doesn’t gain anything from reading this sponsored content, all energies to educate consumers will have gone to waste. Sponsors, henceforth, should focus on creating content that provides information and facilitates dialogue, for audiences are no longer as receptive to one-way selling propositions.

DO: Provide added value that drives loyalty and brand advocacy.

Beyond all else, sponsored content must be relevant, transparent, trustworthy, and valuable. Only then will paid media transcend old and new ways of advertising. Paley highlights that publishers must consider their target audience when accepting native advertisements. Publishers have every right to refuse offers that fail to meet their criteria. Ideally, publishers will only accept content from brands that share the same core values as their audience. Publishers should also limit the amount of native content that appears each week or month to avoid alienating audiences, for consumers want to know they can depend on the given publication for genuine value, not just paid promotions.

DON’T: Create content that fails to resonate with the given audience.

When native content doesn’t align with the publication’s usual voice, readers defect, for they lose trust in the publication and lack interest in the content. For instance, The Atlantic‘s infamous sponsored ad for the Church of Scientology (which has since been pulled from the site itself) stands as the prime example of misaligned content, as this native advertisement failed to match up with the publication’s usual editorial. Paley adds, “The controversial topic was praised in an article that wasn’t parallel whatsoever with the typical guidelines and subject matter that the team produces on a regular basis.”

The Economist also missed its target audience by teaming up with BuzzFeed in an unlikely partnership to share top stories from the year in question. While BuzzFeed typically caters to more playful topics, this list abandons The Economist‘s more serious approach to news in an attempt to disseminate information in an unexpected, yet awkward fashion that fails to resonate.

DO: Align native advertisements with the publication’s voice and overall promise.

Sponsored content that does align, on the other hand, allows the sponsor to spread brand awareness and provide valuable content that educates and enlightens. Netflix recently ran an ad in The New York Times, for example, that promoted “Orange is the New Black.” However, this content went beyond promotional by offering fresh information on women in the prison system and even included video interviews thereby remaining true to the publication and boosting awareness simultaneously.

Starbucks also partnered with The Onion to promote its Doubleshot Espresso by publishing an article that captured the comical essence of the site perfectly. This native ad maintains the satirical vibe The Onion is famous for, while also spreading the word about the brand’s newest product.

Both examples demonstrate an integral understanding of the publication and how, through content, both can establish symbiotic relationships that foster collaboration and growth.

DON’T: Assume that native advertising will further brand awareness.

Rebecca Lieb, vice president, content marketing at Teradata Applications, notes that, native advertising is one tactic that may not be right for every brand or publisher. Sponsors, in particular, must assess whether or not their values align with that of the publication, as well as determine which channels would be best when attracting their desired audience. Native advertising only succeeds when consumers embrace the content, as paid media operates under an “opt-in” mentality. Audiences must obtain value that they could not gain elsewhere. Therefore, instead of producing sponsored content with the intention of increasing brand engagement and awareness, advertisers must first verify the KPIs that will drive desired actions so they may achieve their end goals.

DO: Establish content creation strategies that boost consumer engagement.

Ultimately, as consumer behaviors change, sponsors and publishers will have to alter their strategies in order to sustain relevancy and engagement. “Advertisers will be forced to find better ways to integrate their advertising into the natural workflow of a consumer,” Hansell emphasizes. “This does not mean just shoving a display ad in the same real estate as a consumer’s normal content. This means actually adjusting their advertisement strategy to include well thought out native advertising plans that seek not just to advertise, but also add value to the consumers they are reaching.” Sponsors will need to monitor audience preferences and behaviors in order to provide content that continuously educates and delights.

Telecoms Dial into Digital Marketing

The days when telecom providers held a monopoly over voice and data services are quickly eroding. New entrants like Netflix, Google, and Internet TV providers are rapidly changing the telco business. Poor customer service and complicated pricing plans are risky practices.

And even though telco companies sit on a mountain of data points, other companies like Apple, Facebook, and Google are also amassing huge amounts of customer data. To compete, telcos must deliver innovative products and services and connect with customers on a personalized level.

The Personalization Conundrum
Digital marketing and providing better customer experiences is a priority for the telecom sector, according to a survey of more than 200 telecom executives conducted by Econsultancy and Adobe. In terms of providing consistent, personalized experiences, 73 percent of the respondents say their marketing activities are integrated to some extent, but two in five (44 percent) say the ability to fully utilize marketing technology is still a key challenge.

“Telecoms are personalizing at very different levels of sophistication,” observes Stefan Tornquist, vice president of research at Econsultancy. “Much of that variation is related to where they stand in terms of unifying their disparate proprietary systems, databases, and marketing applications.”

And when it comes to sharing data with third parties, telecoms are “sharing everything they can that isn’t restricted PII [personally identifiable information] like call histories,” Tornquist adds. “The more specific the data, the more valuable it is, and in the case of telecoms, it can be very specific indeed, especially as our phones are increasingly our main conduit to the digital and wider world.”

But even though telco companies have access to a bevy of rich data points, they face numerous obstacles in leveraging that data, notes Forrester Research analyst James McQuivey. “People will say they don’t want their data collected but they still expect brands to know them, so telcos, like other industries, have to walk a fine line between both demands,” McQuivey says.

The pressure is also rising for telcos to keep up with the innovative ways that companies are collecting ad revenue, including those outside of the telecommunications industry like Netflix and Amazon. “There comes a point where if you’re not using your data, someone else will figure it out,” McQuivey adds. “I think telco companies need to test their level of risk tolerance.”

Searching for New Revenue
Indeed, companies like Verizon and AT&T are experimenting with new revenue streams through partnerships with brand advertisers and app developers. In 2013, AT&T introduced a two-tiered price plan when it launched “GigaPower,” a broadband service that is designed to operate at the same speed as Google Fiber. Subscribers can pay $70 for the broadband service if they agree to receive targeted ads from AT&T and its partners versus the ad-free version, which costs $99.

Verizon is also offering incentives for customers to receive targeted ads. Customers who sign up for Verizon Selects, a program for tracking Web browsing and mobile-app behavior, can win rewards like gift cards and dining or entertainment discounts.

Verizon’s data marketing arm, Precision Market Insights, recently came under fire though, when Jonathan Mayer, a lawyer and computer science graduate student at Stanford University, reported that a unique identifier was being used to power a “zombie cookie”that continued to track users even after they’d opted out. Verizon has since said that it will allow subscribers to opt out of being tagged with the persistent tracking code.

U.S. telcos are not the only companies being squeezed by new competitors. Etisalat Misr, the Egyptian arm of mobile telco giant Etisalat, which operates across 19 countries in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, is also searching for fresh revenue.

“As a telecom operator, our revenue is declining as more players enter the market,” saysKhaled Almansouri, chief information officer at Etisalat Misr Egypt. “And so we’re looking into new revenue streams beyond our legacy services.”

Etisalat chose Teradata’s Integrated Marketing Cloud platform to help it consolidate its customer service and marketing data as it pursued new markets. One of those areas included B2B customers. Etisalat credits the Marketing Cloud platform with helping it attract B2B mobile advertisers who are interested in targeting against the carrier’s data profiles. In 2013, within a few months after launching the platform, Etisalat expanded its customer outreach to more than 1 million customers.

The company is also looking for other ways to monetize its data as customer intelligence. “We have to capitalize on the rich data that we have,” Almansouri says. “For example, if a petrol station wants to open in a certain area, we can tell them when traffic is busiest because we know the movement of our subscribers.”

Additionally, the company is looking into expanding its offerings with cloud services and machine-to-machine learning. “By 2020 we’ll have about 50 billion connected devices,” Almansouri adds. “As more things become digitally connected, it will be important for us to help our subscribers stay connected across their different devices.”

Enabling Trust
Carl Boeing, global head of sales, customer engagement, and commerce at Hybris Software, agrees that telco companies have to find more ways to leverage their data profiles while maintaining the customers’ trust. As an enterprise ecommerce platform provider, Hybris helps telco companies like Vodafone and Telmore created personalized messages for subscribers. “But increasingly we’re seeing telecoms become brokers or enablers of additional connections and play matchmaker between customers and brands whose products might interest them,” Boeing says.

As an example, Boeing points to a capability Hybris is developing in which mobile subscribers create “wish lists” of products that interest them on an app and allow carriers to share that list with retailers. When the consumer walks into a store equipped with beacon technology and opts into sharing his or her profile information like a photo and name, a sales associate can offer the item to the customer, perhaps at a discount. “

“The telco can make both customers happy by giving retailers a qualified lead and consumers get the product they wanted,” Boeing explains. “It’s a win for everyone.” But for such a situation to work, the carrier must have the customer’s explicit consent, Boeing adds. “The customer has to see value in this notion of sharing information so making that connection between the consumer and brand at the right time is critical.”

Trust and transparency are key drivers of customer relationships, notes Natalie Petouhoff, vice president and principal analyst at Constellation Research. “The key to privacy is to have services that are opt-in and companies need to explicitly say how the customer’s information will be used,” Petouhoff maintains.

Companies should also let customers choose what information about them can be shared. “Customers might want to allow a telecommunications provider to use their preference for sports-related information to provide content or promotions,” Petouhoff notes. “But they might not want marketers to use information on their general browsing history because it could be considered too intrusive.”

Leveraging real-time analytics is one way telcos can add value to their services while still offering products and services, she adds. For example, customers can be alerted to various data and application plan options during roaming periods. On the backend, telcos should also analyze real-time network traffic from large users to manage capacity more efficiently and minimize network slowdowns.

As the mobile and telco space becomes increasingly fragmented with new competitors eating up market share, telcos must focus on delivering relevant, flexible, and reliable experiences to their customers or risk disruption.

Who Needs Customer Experience Certifications?

We have entered the age of the customer – when companies only win by being customer-obsessed and delivering exceptional experiences. This is great news for customer experience professionals. Their skills and expertise are in demand, and at Forrester Research, we expect customer experience to continue its maturation into a full-fledged profession.

Unfortunately, the lack of university degree programs or even rigorous training for customer experience hinders that maturation process, and contributes to a shortage of qualified CX professionals. That makes it harder for CX leaders to build high-functioning teams that can drive business transformations.

According to data from a recent Forrester survey, while 73 percent of companies aim to be CX leaders in their industry or across all industries, only 25 percent say their CX programs actually improve customer experiences. What holds them back? One culprit: They don’t have the right people with the right skills. Only 21 percent of companies we interviewed said that their firm’s CX program had effectively improved internal CX capabilities.

In my latest report for Forrester, “Who Needs CX Certifications?“, I look at the CX certification programs created by vendors and the Customer Experience Professional Association (CXPA) that try to fill the education and training void in CX. The programs fall into two categories:

– Voice of the customer (VoC) certifications. These offerings cater to CX professionals who specialize in collecting and analyzing feedback from VoC programs. They train and test on topics like selecting listening posts, turning insights into action, and creating closed-loop follow-up processes. Think of MaritzCX (formerly Allegiance), Medallia, and Satmetrix.

– Customer experience certifications. These programs certify that participants understand the competencies underlying the six disciplines of customer experience — customer understanding, strategy, design, measurement, governance, and culture — and provide an overview of core skills like journey mapping. The providers here include ASU’s W.P. Carey School of Business, Beyond Philosophy, the CXPA, Global CEM, Senteo, and Strativity. While today’s CX certifications are not without merit (my CCXP signals I have an interest in CX and am versed in the related skills) they are no substitute for the rigor of an executive degree program, nor do they emulate the learning that comes with years of on-the-job experience. Why not? Because the current crop of certifications are:

– Insufficient. Of the certification programs we reviewed, none provide more than a week’s worth of training or classroom time. That is not enough time to cover the content in sufficient depth, let alone mold a CX professional.

– Incomplete. Some programs train participants in basics like mapping customer journeys, but, overall, their curricula lack sufficient CX skills training. None of the programs offer enough training in design processes, research techniques, or how to map CX ecosystems that support customer journeys.

– Informal. Many of the certification tests are open book — and virtually all certification candidates pass the tests. As a point of contrast, more than 80,000 aspiring lawyers took the Bar Examination in 2013, and just 68 percent passed. The vast majority that passed had completed three years of law school before taking the test. Even though existing certifications are not perfect, they are not devoid of value either. CX pros still need to sharpen their skills, train their teams, and develop new sources of talent. And so I recommend that CX teams look closely at the certification programs and determine if any meet their needs.

Besides the two categories of certifications–VoC & general CX–the certifications also vary in the amount of training they offer, whether they’re more appropriate for novices or more seasoned CX pros, and whether they are conducted virtually or in-person. And I think CX pros have an opportunity–an obligation even–to encourage providers to create more rigorous certification programs. Beyond Philosophy, Satmetrix Systems, and Senteo have created more advanced certifications. And the CXPA is about to announce an authorized resource and training. That’s a good start. Companies should develop or source more comprehensive training that teaches deeper expertise as well. For example, several companies have worked with Strativity to create customized training curricula. And companies like BMO Financial Group, Cleveland Clinic, and Nationwide Mutual Insurance have created their own CX curricula and are developing their own certifications. Ultimately, I believe that universities will start to offer coursework, certificates and even degree program in customer experience. It’s just a matter of time. For now though, head on over to Forrester to read the rest of my report on how to make the most of the existing CX certification programs.

About the Author: Sam Stern is a Senior Analyst at Forrester Research serving Customer Experience professionals, serving Customer Experience professionals. Learn more about Forrester’s customer experience practice at forrester.com/customerexperience.

Understanding the Behaviors That Drive Sales Success

Because sales remains increasingly competitive, successful organizations must collaborate to cultivate an internal culture of high performance. But, as salespeople and sales organizations push back against the external forces that often hinder their ability to win, top performers must convey their experiences and knowledge to the entire team in an effort to align behaviors and enhance strategy.

The MHI Research Institute‘s “2014 MHI Global Sales Best Practices Study” polled 1,155 respondents to measure and analyze the behaviors, attributes, and performance of world-class sales organizations as they compare to all other sales organizations. MHI defines world-class sales organizations by assessing the three attributes that act as the cornerstones for sales performance culture:

Customer Core: How the organization connects and engages with customers.
Collaborative Culture: How people within the organization work together and with customers.
Calibrated for Success: How the organization measures, recognizes, and rewards its salespeople.

The following statistics explore how world-class organizations compare to all other sales organizations, highlighting how these top performers excel in an effort to demonstrate what laggards can do to improve:

Ninety-three percent of world-class sales performers clearly understand their customers’ issues before proposing a solution, as compared to 48 percent of all respondents, for these sales professionals offer a formalized value proposition that’s compelling to their prospects (92 percent versus 42 percent respectively).
World-class sales performers are also more likely to align sales and marketing to meet customer desires and needs (91 percent versus 38 percent).
Overall, world-class sales performers are more effective than when it comes to allocating the right resources to pursue large deals (93 percent versus 36 percent).
Said world-class sales performers are also more likely to collaborate across departments to manage strategic accounts (94 percent versus 43 percent) and jointly set long-term objectives with these strategic accounts (87 percent versus 34 percent) than all respondents.
While world-class sales performers better understand why their top performers are successful (92 percent versus 41 percent), these leaders also claim that the management team effectively helps the sales team advance opportunities (96 percent versus 43 percent).
Many top sales performers (71 percent) work for businesses that align their sales compensation policies with companywide goals and objectives.
World-class sales teams consistently reply upon their company’s own knowledge management system as the single source for collateral and information (71 percent versus 23 percent), with the majority boasting highly effective CRM systems that facilitate cross-departmental, face-to-face teamwork (61 percent versus 23 percent).

Key takeaway: Before companies can progress to the next level of sales success, their entire organizations must learn from the habits and behaviors of their top performers. World-class sales performers (89 percent) and all respondents (29 percent) work for organizations that leverage the best practices of their leading sellers to improve their entire workforce, as these companies recognize that they must understand why these top performers are so successful before applying these lessons to every area of the enterprise. The why drives the how, thereby teaching staff across departments how said strategies can enhance their own roles. While many salespeople learn best by doing, examples and best practices allow less experienced employees access to the knowledge they need to gain the advantage within the market, for collaboration and community lay an effective foundation for continued growth and success.

It’s Time to Change the Automotive Customer Satisfaction Survey System

When an auto customer buys or leases a vehicle at a car dealership, it’s common for the salesperson to ask the customer to give them the highest possible marks in the customer satisfaction survey that’s soon to follow. While I’ve been pressured by dealer salespeople to do this on more than one occasion (and even within the past several weeks), I’ve come to discover that these aren’t simply the actions of an overzealous salesperson that is out to pad his or her annual bonus. Customer satisfaction scores are also used by car manufacturers to reward dealerships with financial incentives and for automakers to flaunt their results over rivals. No matter how you slice it, it’s a flawed process that ultimately dissatisfies customers and can change an otherwise good customer experience into a bad one.

My own recent experiences typify what’s wrong with the process. A few weeks ago, as my car lease was nearing expiration, I began researching options for a new lease with the dealer I’d used along with a few dealers for other automakers. Unsatisfied with offers I’d received from other dealers, I set up a meeting with the existing dealer. When I arrived at the dealership, I met with a salesman I’d worked with before. I explained the features I was most interested in and “Joe” showed me a few cars on the lot. Before taking a test drive, Joe gave me a one-minute rundown on the car (a slightly different version of the model I was returning). After selecting a vehicle and agreeing to terms on a new lease, I made plans to pick up the new car a few days later.

Here’s where the customer experience began to head south. Joe rushed through the closing and said he didn’t need to go over the features of the new vehicle since he’d already done so a few days prior. Since the gas tank was nearly full, Joe offered me a voucher to use at a local gas station instead of filling the car himself. His logic was that I could drive the car for a few days and get some free gas out of the deal. However, I live 20 miles from the gas station, so it’s not like it’s convenient. I never did use the voucher.

During the closing, Joe implored me to give him the highest possible customer satisfaction scores. “Anything below a ’10’ (on a scale of 1 to 10) isn’t good enough,” since a lower score could impact his annual bonus, he explained. A few days later, I received an email from the automaker asking me to fill out the customer satisfaction survey. After giving it careful consideration, I filled it out. In most sections, I rated my satisfaction with the salesman a ‘7’. There were gaps in my customer experience, so I thought the scores were fair. Although I was informed that my survey response would be anonymous, I soon discovered it was anything but. Within hours of submitting the survey, I received a frantic call from Joe who claimed that he needed to check on the status of a refund check that had been promised to me for the vehicle I’d turned in. When I called him back, we discussed the check briefly before Joe asked me whether I’d filled out a customer satisfaction survey that day. Apparently, the dealership received the survey response I’d submitted from corporate and Joe was upset that I’d “crucified him” with the scores I’d given him. This seemed overdramatic to me, but given that Joe’s bonus and even future employment can be shaped by such scores, I can understand his concerns on some level. Nevertheless, the situation made me extremely uncomfortable as a customer. I’ve purchased or leased cars from this dealership in the past. Overall, I’ve had good experiences and have been satisfied with the vehicles. But this latest incident was downright unsettling. And the thing about it is, I’m not sure if I can honestly expect a better experience from another carmaker or dealer in the future since this appears to be an industry-wide problem. As automotive companies strive to become more customer centric, the customer satisfaction survey process needs to change so that automotive customers like me aren’t pressured by salespeople to give obsequious responses and salespeople and dealerships aren’t penalized when they receive less-than-exceptional scores.

10 Ideas to Take Your Customer Experience to the Next Level

Creating the perfect customer experience is a challenge for many of us. In recent years, we’ve seen many customer experience blunders. J.C. Penney, for instance, stands out as one of the most well known when it overhauled its operations without asking many customers what they wanted. The company changed the layout of nearly every store, overwhelming and losing long-time customers resulting in a 25 percent sales loss in one year. Lululemon is another example. CEO Chip Wilson, who, after it was revealed that the company’s yoga pants were see-through, responded to reporters by remarking how some women’s bodies just actually don’t work for wearing Lululemon pants. Then there was Papa John’s pizza which faced a $250 million lawsuit for sending out 500,000 text messages to unwilling recipients. Finally, there were the crop of companies like Borders which failed to see how the emergence of digital wasn’t just a change in marketing but also a change in business and consumer models. Rather than see digital as a way to distribute media like Amazon did, the company only saw the Web as a marketing and sales channel. As 2015 approaches, let’s make sure we’re not falling in these footsteps. Instead, let’s make sure we’re talking to customers about change and integrating those insights across the enterprise. Let’s pay close attention to all digital channels and work to enable that true omnichannel experience. Finally, let’s get our organizations on board to deliver consistent, personalized and optimal customer experiences. Here are my 10 ideas on how to elevate your customer experience across your organizations.

1. Be Proactive Brands that provide proactive customer service and reach out to consumers when potential issues are first detected and before they escalate into full-blown problems report a more loyal customer base and show positive word of mouth. Kate Leggett, vice president and principal analyst at Forrester Research, emphasizes in this article that proactive service has the power to keep consumers satisfied, strengthen loyalty, and increase revenue. For instance, financial institutions that alert customers of limited funds not only cut costs on their end, but they prove they’ve got the best interest of the customer at heart. By engaging in outbound notifications via an array of channels–phone, text, email, or social–brands also position themselves as content creators, for they have the opportunity to share information with both consumers and contact center agents in an effort to disseminate personalized, proactive assistance. Thus, companies must develop a well-balanced approach that allows them to engage proactively while maintaining personalization.

2. Provide Seamless Interactions “Omnichannel” is no longer just a buzzword. Having a single customer view is the Holy Grail for marketers and customer service leaders who are working to engage customers across different channels and provide a seamless and relevant experience in each one. But a report from Experian Data Quality reveals that many companies are struggling to enable the seamless view: Only 24 percent of the respondents said they have a single customer view. Walgreens is one of the emerging best practices in omnichannel experimentation. The drugstore chain is correlating actual revenue to seamless interactions. The company released data last year that showed people who engaged with the brand through several channels were likely to spend more. Customers who engage with Walgreens in person, online, and via mobile apps spend six times more than those who only visit stores, according to the company. And those who used a Walgreens app before visiting one of the stores, but not one of its websites, generated four times the sales of store-only customers.

3. Give Customers Control of Their Data With the growing number of weekly data breaches, giving consumers some control over the data that marketers collect about them is an essential part of the customer experience. Eric Bradlow, marketing professor and chairperson of the Wharton Marketing Department at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, notes that “More people are beginning to realize that businesses are able to track them and so giving people options lets you appeal to those who care about data privacy and also those who want offers that fit their interests.” Some companies have built customer portals, or preference centers, to enable data control. Senior Writer Judith Aquinio highlights here how Michaels and The Home Depot are letting customers create profiles about their preferences and interests to receive relevant messages.

4. Collaborate on the C-Level The CMO Council’s 8th annual “State of Marketing” report polled 525 global marketers to develop an in-depth view of marketing vitality and direction worldwide. As 1to1 Media staff writer Anna Papachristos pointed out in this article, chief marketers are confident that they will meet management’s revenue and market share goals for the coming year, as the economy continues to pick up pace. However, many are still struggling to obtain their desired level of influence within the executive suite. Papachristos makes the case that by working closely with CFOs to make the case for marketing spend and CIOs to ensure marketing automation gains and ROI, CMOs are poised to build partnerships that will enhance the enterprise from the inside out. Supportive internal relationships are the backbone for outward success. Thus, within the next 12 months, both CMOs and their C-level peers must make an effort to break down the barriers that hinder collaboration as they work to build one cohesive enterprise.

5. Don’t Ignore Mobile In recent years, widespread adoption of smartphones and tablets has left businesses tasked with creating a mobile-friendly user experience, including responsive websites and location-based search engine optimization. A recent infographic from Vision Critical highlights how companies that use tools and strategies that improve customer experience outperform companies that don’t, with 84 percent of CIOs at customer-centric companies now focusing on the mobile customer experience. It’s important to ensure mobile customer experiences are optimized going forward and include functionality like geo-location-based search, the ability to seamlessly transition to live help when necessary, and the technologies to easily optimize mobile sites.

6. Test, Test, Test It’s important to develop a policy of testing every campaign and customer experience strategy that goes out the door. The goal of testing is that instead of trying to figure out what your audience will respond to the most, you let them tell you directly. By testing varying elements to a smaller sample audience and analyzing the resulting metrics, marketers can gain a clearer understanding of how their audience will interact with their full campaigns and what works best overall, every time. Split testing involves sending different versions of a campaign, whether via email, social media, SMS or any other medium, to a small segment of your list or to a test group and then measuring the performance of each version to determine what’s most successful. By only changing one variable of your campaign during the test, such as the color or subject line, you can easily identify its direct impact in a scientific and statistically significant way. Once you’ve tested different versions with a small segment or test group, you can then use the best performing version for the rest of your list

7. Tap into the Power of Social With its low barrier to entry, social media holds the power to help companies of all sizes increase engagement levels and strengthen customer relationships. But social media isn’t just for marketing; it should be incorporated into your company’s customer service components. Social networks help businesses enable direct contact with the customer in such a way that it improves customer conversion, maintains customer retention, and achieves long-term loyalty. To ensure adequate attention to customers, a swift response is crucial. The speed of response is what will make you stand out from the rest and give your business the competitive advantage. According to a Forrester report commissioned by Conversocial, 33 percent of the social customer service solutions being used by those interviewed were actually selected by the customer service team, with the rest being obtained solely for marketing purposes. The study also found that 35 percent of social customer service agents have to restart the conversation with a customer agent for every single interaction because they don’t have a record of the customer’s conversation history. Hertz has gotten around that by establishing a dedicated social service team to resolve customer inquiries at first contact. Hertz resolves 100 percent of its customer inquiries via social channels before the need to escalate to the contact center.

8. Redefine Customer Loyalty Go back and review how your loyalty program did this year. What were the successes? The failures? What areas can you definitely improve in? This is the time to change the direction of your loyalty program for the year. Is there a social component? Are the awards experiential and personalized? Is your program tiered? If you repeatedly answered “no” to these questions, it’s time to freshen up your loyalty strategy. Syngenta, a 2014 Gartner & 1to1 Media CRM Excellence winner, recently re-imagined its loyalty program. The company created loyalty programs to reach each of its customer groups–Aliado OTO (OTO Ally) and Programa Mais Valor (More Value). The company aligned its people, processes, and systems across marketing, sales, products, financial, legal, IT, and other Syngenta business units to develop the program. Now clients accrue points when they purchase products, which can be redeemed for rewards. But these rewards are not the typical branded apparel, sporting event tickets, or future purchase discounts found in most point programs. Syngenta’a loyalty rewards catapult beyond the typical vendor relationship to offer real value-added services for customers. Syngenta tracks the program’s success by measuring individual share-of-customer–the total amount sold to the client, divided by the client’s financial potential. In 2013, 33 percent of OTO loyalty members redeemed $US1.8 million worth of services. And 100 percent of clients said they would recommend the services to friends and they would redeem their points for the same services again. Similarly, 30 percent of Focused members redeemed services.

9. Don’t Forget the Small Data Companies may be in constant pursuit of processes and technologies that help to integrate their Big Data, but by also embracing small data, companies can begin to create a more intimate image of the consumer and alter their strategies to meet the needs of those that bring the most value to the organization. Small data refers to structured data, like demographics, social data, or transactional information. Jonathan Moran, senior product marketing manager for SAS Customer Intelligence, said, “Small data is where the most value lies because of the detail it provides. Marketers often prefer small data because this data helps to round out the customer profile. A richer profile naturally provides the ability to deliver a more anticipated, relevant, and personalized campaign that improves the customer experience.”

10. Be Authentic Every company has the potential to deliver an authentic brand experience regardless of the size simply by enabling the right employees to do the right thing and by being transparent. Last year The Melting Pot started asking diners whether they’d share their comments and ratings regarding their dining experiences and found that the majority of diners were willing to have their comments posted online. The result has been The Melting Pot’s ability to provide reviews that come from actual diners. This process allows customers to make informed decisions about whether to visit a restaurant and also know what to expect when they walk through the doors. “It’s important that we’re transparent and customers understand the type of experience they will get when they visit a restaurant,” explains President Mike Lester. This post is part of the Customer Experience Professionals Association’s Blog Carnival “Celebrating Customer Experience.” It is part of a broader celebration of Customer Experience Day.

10 Digital Marketing Mistakes Every Brand Makes (and How to Recover)

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Despite digital marketing’s relative infancy, organizations across industries recognize that these emerging channels require significant attention. From smartphones to social media, digital has become an integral element in the way consumers operate day-to-day.

Yet, while all companies currently reside at different levels of digital adoption, all run the risk of committing the very faux pas that may hinder future progress and success. Here, we examine the 10 most common digital marketing mistakes in the space today, while also offering advice on how companies can rectify their approach as they work to realign their mindset:

1. Traditional marketing and digital marketing teams frequently operate as two separate entities. Just as entire organizations cannot function properly with siloed departments in place, marketing teams cannot succeed if traditional and digital channels remain divided. Thus, these disparate teams act cautiously, disregarding innovation and advanced strategies as neither group wants to run the risk of losing budget to the more effective channel, says Craig Kallin, senior vice president of business development and marketing at Primacy.

What to do: Break down silos to develop an informed cross-channel strategy. If companies truly want to run integrated, cross-channel campaigns, Kallin notes, they must create an organizational structure that supports that very philosophy. Ultimately, such integrated teams can leverage historical data captured by traditional means over the years to guide digital programs and initiatives, while also leveraging digital to test new approaches and programs before investing in traditional media.

2. Companies often attempt to rush progress, inevitably implementing the wrong technology and creating confusion. Many brands lack vision, planning, and commitment when they first enact their digital marketing strategies. Thus, marketers rush to choose a product or technology that may not be able to solve the important problems at hand, says Peter Wells, senior vice president of global sales at Certona. Implementing the incorrect systems at the start may inevitably warrant another partnership or product to manage in the future, leading teams to underperform.

What to do: Establish goals, develop plans, and research available technologies prior to adoption. Before companies can verify the proper technology, they must establish goals and develop plans that will guide their journey forward. As Wells emphasizes, jumping on the slick new product bandwagon may become costly. Therefore, once KPIs have been determined, marketers must thoroughly research the available technologies in the market to ensure that the solutions is the right fit for their needs, will integrate with existing platforms, and can scale with their growing needs.

3. Digital marketers implement programs simply because they can. Though counterintuitive, many digital marketers implement programs that lack purpose and diminish trust. For instance, marketers will create loyalty programs despite the fact that they provide no loyalty incentives whatsoever. They look to collect customer data, but they fail to offer any rewards or tailored engagements in return.

What to do: Make sure all initiatives drive value and support trust. Poorly planned and unsupported initiatives may drive customers to the competition, as they detract from the ability to truly engage and convert consumers. Thus, digital marketers must refrain from clinging to the latest trends because focusing on fewer initiatives that deliver value will positively impact trust more than any scattered strategy in the space.

4. Brands produce content for the sake of having content rather than offer relevant messaging that speaks to customers’ specific interests. As Navin Nagiah, CEO of DNN, notes, most brands believe the ability to post and share content across channels means they must produce an endless flood of information. Marketers understand that customer interactions take place across all touchpoints, leading them to believe that they must provide a constant stream of content no matter the platform, for they believe that visibility will result in engagement when, in reality, this strategy typically diminishes interest.

What to do: Post engaging content that demonstrates the importance of quality over quantity. Because content has clearly become an integral element of the digital marketing experience, companies must approach this trend carefully, as other brands have also hopped on the bandwagon. Instead of focusing on quantity, marketers must focus on the quality of their content. Engaging material has the power to strengthen customer loyalty and advocacy, while mediocre work will likely have the opposite effect.

5. Marketers think they can (and should) monitor and measure every point possible. Though marketers now have the ability to gather, analyze, and act upon data across the customer lifecycle, many will find that the power of digital can also hinder progress. “Most find themselves drowning in a sea of unnecessary data because they insist on tracking every point imaginable,” says Michael Behrens, vice president of eMarketing at WebMetro, the digital marketing arm of Revana Growth Services. “Ultimately, however, not all customer information and behavioral data can be brought to action, nor should it be.”

What to do: Take one step at a time to determine which touchpoints and metrics truly impact the bottom line. Instead, companies must develop a better balance via constant testing and strategy reconfiguration. Not every touchpoint will yield information that pertains to the brand’s bottom line, and these relevant touchpoints are likely to change as the customer experience evolves. As Nagiah highlights, marketers must climb the staircase to success, for there’s no elevator. But, by putting one foot in front of the other, they will soon reach the top.

6. Companies dream of an omnichannel strategy, but fail to centralize the incoming digital data. For years, marketers have romanticized the notion of an omnichannel experience. Yet, while many talk about breaking down the departmental silos that stall progress, few have successfully implemented this unified approach to customer experience and data collection, as companies typically lack a cohesive organizational structure, as well as the technological infrastructure to bring all incoming information together under one roof.

What to do: Integrate customer information to understand the customer experience and drive strategic development. Ultimately, data centralization will be the primary component standing between success and failure, for companies that neglect to integrate disparate systems are destined to struggle, hindering customer experience. “When it comes to data centralization, organizations must invest in the integrated technologies that enable marketers to be more efficient and effective with regard to actionable decision-making,” Behrens emphasizes. “Ideally, companies will have such an infrastructure in place from the start, as those who fail to implement such systems are destined to fight an uphill battle against resource decisions, siloed information, and enterprisewide inefficiencies. Unfortunately, however, such is the case for many on the journey toward digital proficiency, as few brands currently have the ability to blend incoming data across the entire organization.”

7. Marketers rarely look to consumer behavior for guidance, ultimately failing to uphold the brand promise. Despite the fact that consumer behavior ultimately drives brand success or failure, many neglect to tap into said actions to derive insight from this incoming data. As Wells highlights, these companies rush to implement the latest strategy because it’s the newest trend. But seeking solutions from this “business first” standpoint signals the wrong approach, as marketers disregard their own customers’ needs, desires, bad experiences, and demands for digital engagement.

What to do: Focus on customer centricity to boost trust and deliver ROI. By organizing campaigns that build upon their own customer insight, brands can easily strengthen trust in order to cultivate the types of relationships necessary for continued success. “Digital campaigns can’t succeed based on Big Data and analytics alone,” says Steve Warren, vice president and general manager, Teradata Interactive, at Teradata. “Instead, it’s clear and actionable customer behaviors that you need to consider. At the core of every marketer’s mission is delivering the perfectly tailored message to the intended target. But remember, digital marketing will always be secondary to an actual relationship. Try to forget about B2B or B2C and just be real.”

8. Executives invest in the necessary technology, but not the resources that drive success. While most leaders now agree that digital channels require special attention, many invest time and money into integrating the proper systems, yet few invest in the necessary resources. Companies often thrust management responsibilities on their already tapped-out workforces, setting the initiative up for failure from the onset.

What to do: Create teams that specifically care for and carry out the brand’s digital strategy. Technology isn’t going to operate itself. Instead, strategic development must also include finding the right person or team of people with the necessary skillset and bandwidth to make the investment worthwhile. Ultimately, brands must recognize that technology cannot replace employees, for the customer experience will always require the human touch.

9. Brands neglect to establish one program manager to monitor metrics and goals. Because companies often implement marketing initiatives with great speed, many use this “bias for action” as an excuse for not taking the time to develop comprehensive plans and well-defined campaigns with specific objectives. Thus, employees begin operating within their siloed departments without one program manager to oversee and deliver leads or sales.

What to do: Understand how each digital asset performs and its contribution to the end goal. By putting one program manager in the position to supervise all marketing activity, companies will ultimately come to understand the role of each digital asset with regard to how they individually and collectively impact the broader campaign, Kallin highlights. Thus, brands can easily create one comprehensive snapshot of the campaign and demonstrate how each asset contributes to the end goal so the program manager may effectively shift budget dollars to maximize campaign performance.

10. Marketing teams lack the enterprisewide buy-in needed to advance digital strategy development. As with every enterprisewide initiative, digital marketing requires top-down buy-in if said strategies hope to succeed. Implementation isn’t something that can be turned on or off by flipping the switch. Marketers need continued support so they may take slow, but steady steps toward success.

What to do: Gain executive buy-in and build partner relationships to enable a unified marketing strategy. True commitment must be supported from the top, or else investments in technology, partnerships, infrastructure, and resources will likely lack the fortitude to sustain long-term success. Thus, marketers must establish a clear set of strategic goals and develop a plan with launch milestones and success measurements to ensure all levels of the company are in the loop regarding progress. Developing partnerships with best-in-class providers will also enable marketers to integrate solutions for scalability and expansion. With said relationships in place, companies will be well on their way to establishing a unified marketing strategy that values and benefits the entire organization.