Remember the last time you had an amazing experience as a customer? Maybe it was an app that seemed to read your mind, a website that made shopping effortless, or a company whose digital support solved your problem instantly. That’s customer experience (CX) in action, and it’s becoming the decisive factor in whether businesses succeed or fail in today’s increasingly digital marketplace.
What Exactly Is Customer Experience?
Think of customer experience as the total impression your business leaves on people—from their first click on your website to their latest purchase and everything in between. In today’s digital-first world, this means creating seamless experiences across your business’ mobile apps, websites, and digital platforms, while ensuring each works harmoniously with your physical touchpoints. It’s not just about having a functional website or flashy app. It’s about how all these digital and physical pieces work together to make customers feel about your company.
Why Should You Care?
The numbers tell a compelling story. According to research firm Forrester, companies that excel in customer experience outperform their competitors by nearly 80%. That’s not a typo—80%. Want more evidence? Studies show that 73% of consumers consider customer experience when making purchasing decisions, and 86% are willing to pay more for a better experience.
In today’s digital age, this means:
- Online and offline interactions should feel like one seamless journey
- Your app or website should be as intuitive as consumers’ favorite social media platform
- Support should be available 24/7
- The experience should be consistent whether they’re on their phone, tablet, or computer
The Hidden Cost of Poor Digital Experience
Think about the last time you tried to use a clunky website or a poorly designed app or had a negative experience with customer service. Did you stick around? Did you tell others to avoid the business, store, or service provider? Poor digital experience isn’t just about losing one online sale—it’s about losing a customer’s lifetime value and potentially their entire network of friends and family impacted by their negative review.
In today’s world, where one negative app store review, even just a negative comment, can reach thousands of potential customers instantly, providing a great digital customer experience isn’t just nice to have—it’s essential for survival. Word-of-mouth matters too as information flows quickly with texting, chats, messenger tools, and more.
Taking the First Step
How well do you know the customer experience of your business? Fully understanding your current customer experience is like getting a health check-up for your business’s digital presence. This process, known as a CX audit, can be as simple as a two-day inspection to identify quick wins or as comprehensive as an eight-week deep dive into every customer touchpoint, both online and offline.
The key is to start somewhere.
Begin by asking:
- Who are your customers, and are you segmenting them appropriately?
- How easy is it for customers to use your website or app?
- Where are the friction points in their purchase journey?
- How does your online experience compare to competitors?
The Path Forward
Massachusetts is home to the most innovative companies in the world. From startups to the biggest brands, the best success stories are often built around amazing customer experience.
Whether you run a bank, retail chain, law firm, tech company, or one of the myriad other customer-facing businesses in the Commonwealth, you must lead with amazing products and services supported by equally amazing customer experience.
Improving customer experience doesn’t mean you need to rebuild your entire digital infrastructure overnight. Sometimes small changes can make a big difference.
The most successful businesses today understand that customer experience isn’t just about having a great app or website, it’s a mindset that should influence every business decision, from how you design your digital interfaces to how you train your staff to support online customers.
Remember: Your customers’ digital experience with your business is happening whether you’re actively shaping it or not. The question is: will you take control of it to ensure it’s working in your favor?
This is a blog post contributed by Eric Karofsky, an award-winning CX, UX, and employee engagement industry expert who leads VectorHX, a human experience agency. VectorHX partners with companies to analyze and enhance customer experiences that build loyalty and design user experiences that delight.
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