Happy Friday! ‘This week in CX’ brings you the latest roundup of industry news.
This week, we’re looking at new research into how determined companies are for great CX even in our tumultuous times. There’s also research into how investments into customer engagement can greatly benefit your business finances.
Key news
- Just a year after creating their Metaverse division, Disney have fired the entire team in their latest layoff plans. The team consisted of 50 members, all of whom have now lost their jobs. Although they will still remain in the company, their role is unclear for now. What does this mean for the Metaverse going forward? Is it already nearing its end?
- Fujitsu and Whitbread, two major players in the hospitality industry, have teamed up for a five-year multi-million partnership deal. The deal, which builds on a 35-year relationship between the two companies, aims to modernise and upgrade IT services in Whitbread’s hospitality brands. With this new partnership, Fujitsu will provide outlet-focused IT services, allowing Whitbread employees to focus on providing excellent customer service.
- Scandit have found that 87% of drivers in the UK are irritated by a lack of functionality in the device they use for operational post and parcel delivery tasks. Whether they use a dedicated scanning device or a smartphone, over a third (32%) wish they could scan more than one code at a time, 29% struggle with scanning damaged barcodes and 22% have difficulty scanning in low-light conditions. The average UK worker is now also tasked with dropping off a package every six minutes.
- A survey of nearly 12,000 professionals and employers by recruitment firm Hays found that just over a third of employers would be more open to a four-day week if staff spent the whole time in the office. The research also found that 62% of professionals would rather work a four-day week in the office than do five days on a typical hybrid pattern.
Commentary share: UK AI whitepaper
The UK government has shared an AI whitepaper to guide the use of AI in the UK, driving responsible innovation and maintaining public trust in the revolutionary technology. Currently, organisations can be held back from using AI to its full potential because of a patchwork of legal regimes causing confusion.
“There is a clear need for continued investment into specific emerging technology areas such as artificial intelligence. This is critical if the UK’s tech sector wants to compete as these nascent technologies will hold the answers to many of the future’s challenges, therefore it is exciting to see the UK push for growth. Avoiding giving responsibility for AI governance to a single regulator means businesses can really push for innovation and take a better approach – enabling the sector to develop at pace with fair checks and balances – which will also maintain public trust.
Technology innovations like ChatGPT or Bard AI can radically transform business models and whole industry sectors, and the UK needs to have a seat at the table to co-shape the future of our industries.”
– Andreas Rindler, Managing Director of Private Equity at BCG.
70% of retailers would completely redesign shoppers’ digital experience
Wunderman Thompson Commerce & Technology’s ‘A Vital Recession-Survival-Strategy for Digital Retailers’ report analysed the importance of a differentiated CX amid the cost-of-living crisis, economic uncertainty and tightening purse strings.
A third admit to providing an inconsistent experience across shopping channels. This figure rises amongst FMCG (80%) and automotive (46%) brands. The leading factors cited as preventing an improved CX include limited budget (46%) and lack of time (36%). Over two-in-five (42%) claimed they do not have the resources to focus on customer retention.
Fortunately, despite widespread economic disruption, budget cuts and redundancies, the appetite to satisfy customer needs remains undeterred. 71% of organisations believe that with unlimited time, budget and expertise, they would completely overhaul existing customer experiences from scratch to maximise sales.
The research also showed that:
- 76% feel they have a clear understanding of key customer frustrations
- 77% have a clear view of their highest value customers, as well as their lifetime value
- 79% are confident in their ability to connect with high-value customers across channels.
Yet, while retailers may feel they know their customers like the back of their hand, the truth is that as little as 15% conducted their own research in the past three months. That’s a major problem considering businesses typically plan their CX initiatives 12 months in advance.
Investing in customer engagement can help you meet your financial goals
Twilio’s fourth annual State of Customer Engagement Report reveals that, amid constrained resources and economic uncertainty, 81% companies that invested in customer engagement met their financial goals. The report is based on a survey of more than 4,700 B2C leaders in key sectors across the world, plus a parallel survey of over 6,000 global consumers. It also incorporates data from Twilio’s own customer engagement platform, including Twilio Segment.
94% of UK companies that invested in digital customer engagement saw revenues grow, with an average increase of 107%. The data shows that effective customer engagement strengthens a brand’s ability to adapt to shifting market conditions and evolving consumer preferences. Customer engagement leaders report increased customer retention, conversion and long-term loyalty. 58% of UK businesses report that investment in digital customer engagement has improved their ability to meet changing customer needs.
The findings highlight an urgent need for brands to leverage zero- and first-party data in order to improve CX and increase customer lifetime value.
The stakes of using that data effectively are high. UK consumers reported they will spend 15% more with brands that personalise engagements. Companies believe the impact is even bigger, reporting that consumers spend 41% more when engagement is personalised.
However, brands continue to overestimate how well they are meeting consumer expectations for communication preferences, protecting customer data privacy, and transparency around customer data usage. Additional UK consumer insights include:
- Customer tolerance for impersonal experiences has never been lower. 48% of consumers report being frustrated with their interactions over the past year, rising from 44% the year before.
- Consumers want a faster transition to a cookieless future. 32% of UK consumers always or often reject cookies on websites. Nearly two thirds (64%) would prefer brands use only first-party data to personalise their experiences.
- Real-time personalisation boosts customer lifetime value. 71% say that personalised experiences increase their loyalty to brands.
- Consumers trust brands less than brands realise. 28% of consumers say they have stopped doing business with a brand after expectations for data privacy weren’t met.
A new immersive AI 3D billboard has been spotted! On March 26, Nike’s Air Max 1 trainers turned 36 years old. To celebrate, they shared a huge double screen AI billboard in Hangzhou, China. It’s impressive! What do you think? And how many more immersive tech billboards will we see in the future?
Thanks for tuning into CXM’s weekly roundup of industry news. Check back next Friday for the latest updates of the week!