With significant increase in online sales and more customers opting to purchase through mobile devices, high street retailers are facing difficult times. No wonder it is time to elevate shopping experience to a whole new level. Though Retails Analytics is not a new concept, the approach faces challenges in brick-and-mortar stores. Investing in real-time Wi-Fi analytics, where modern in-store analytics technologies can integrate with existing in-store Wi-Fi infrastructure to capture precise and real-time customer behaviour in stores, can be a solution. Creating an inclusive shopping experience that effectively combines the online and offline experience is the need of the hour. Read More at: http://www.fourthsource.com/mobile/future-analytics-retail-19148

Flipkart , an e-commerce co., has decided to focus on social media, mobile interface and data mining to boost its position in the online retail market.  Data mining and technology improvements are going to take up a major role in the coming days. Up gradation in infrastructures and data centres are essential to maintain its position in the market.  The company also expects to achieve $8 billion dollar sales thus utilizing every resource at its disposal.  To know more, please follow:

http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2015-04-13/news/61102918_1_mukesh-bansal-binny-bansal-billion-day

Live chat is the best way to boost overall satisfaction with your customer service

- Zendesk Benchmark Report

Live Chat has emerged as one of the most satisfying customer service channels. This is because of the following reasons:

• Live chat moves customer requests away from web forms and feedback tabs to real time interactions, which enable questions to be answered directly
• Customers like the back-and-forth style of conversation

But, customer service providers should not forget the fact that customers want an accurate, relevant, and complete answer to their question upon first contact. Live chat agents sometimes fail to satisfy customers because of the following issues:

• When the customer has to wait more than 30 seconds for a customer service agent
• As agents start handling more and more chats, the increased workload may impact their ability to respond quickly and thoroughly

According to the Zendesk Report, “To optimize customer interactions, companies should monitor the ebb and flow of their live chat request volume by day and hour”.

To know more about the results of the Zendesk Benchmark Report on Live Chats, please read the following article by Noreen Seebacher, Chief Editor, at cmswire.com:

http://www.cmswire.com/cms/customer-experience/we-should-talk-how-live-chat-improves-cx-029235.php

•  Adoption of digital technologies has led to a customer-centric set of services. These technologies are nowadays demanded by banks, financial services firms and insurance companies.   With the world becoming competitive, sectors such as banking, finance services and insurance industries and product development, delivery and customer engagement are now being driven by a more mobile, social and data driven experience. But, the financial industry is still way behind firms in the consumer and retail markets. Firms in financial industry must ensure that they build a foundation for digital change. Read more at:   http://blogs.sap.com/banking/2015/05/19/digital-innovation-in-banking/

Today’s era is Online Era. Online brands are emerging day in and day out. There’s a lot of competition in this sector with thousands of startups growing. Amidst this competition, how do you plan to make your brand stand out? The answer to this is an interactive User Experience via websites that are the face of these brands. Website user experience (UX) is important in forming brand perceptions. By tailoring this experience according to the needs of the customers, a brand can easily win their loyalty.

Greg Zapar, Director of User Experience at Wire Stone, in his article at cmswire.com has shared four key points to keep top-of-mind when optimizing your website’s UX to drive value for your customers. They are:

• Every Touchpoint Matters

• UX and Content are One
• Aim for the Middle
• Visualize Everything

To understand them in detail, please visit the following link:

http://www.cmswire.com/cms/customer-experience/put-your-best-foot-forward-get-smart-about-user-experience-029130.php

“Data is the new oil”

This comparison of big data with oil has always been there, ever since big data came into limelight. It is considered that like oil, the more you extract from big data, the more you benefit.

Now look at this new statement:

“Data is the new soil”

This statement reflects the growth in the field of big data. From being used only for extracting information, it is now being used to explore new avenues. Big Data is now being used as a raw material from which new ideas can be generated and further processed into new products and services. Many examples of this were given at Sapphire Now, SAP’s annual user conference, where innovators demonstrated various fields in which they have started using big data sets to create unique products. Some of them are:

• Handle the short and medium term challenges that climate change creates
• Help “local spaces” understand what mobile customers want
• Provide shoppers with a contextual in-store experience
• Help companies create solutions and discover things like energy and profit leaks, make predictable promotions based on clustered buyer preferences

Thus, big data is now providing a new range of solutions to make our lives easier as well as better. To know more, read the following article by Virginia Backaitis, Senior Partner at Brilliant Leap, at cmswire.com:

http://www.cmswire.com/cms/big-data/is-data-the-new-soil-sapphirenow-029124.php

People are always going to go shopping. A lot of our effort is just: 'How do we make the retail experience a great one?'

-Philip Green

The basic ingredient for success in a retail business is a magnificent customer experience. And, in today’s world, where technology has become an important part of our existence, then why not should we use its power in retail? That’s the next milestone that needs to be achieved i.e. to make retail more technology oriented and thus, customer friendly.

The following article at business-reporter.co.uk, lists out 5 technologies that will change the customer experience in retail. They are:

1. Projection
2. Touch Screens
3. Augmented Reality
4. Nighttime Displays
5. Robots

To know more about them in detail and how they have been actually brought into use by various retail stores, please visit the following link:

http://business-reporter.co.uk/2015/04/28/5-technologies-set-to-change-customer-experience-in-retail/

“Customers don’t want just a personalized experience, they want a full package”

According to 2015 Customer Experience Trends Report and infographic released by InMoment, customers do appreciate the personalized touches that brands create for them, they are much more interested in providing value back to the company.

Lori Alcala, in her article on cmswire.com, summarizes top customer experience trends revealed in the report. They are:

• Shorter Surveys, More Listening
• More Reliable Online Reviews
• Stronger Relationships

She has also added an interesting excerpt from the report in her article. To see that and increase your knowledge spectrum about customer experience, please visit the following link:

http://www.cmswire.com/cms/customer-experience/want-to-know-the-top-cx-trends-infographic-029002.php

The field of marketing has gone through many transitions- the Trade Era, the Production Era, the Sales Era, the Marketing Department Era, the Marketing Company Era and last era that was going on is – the Relationship Era. Now again, a transition is taking place and a new era of Experience Marketing has emerged.

This article by Carla Johnson, Founder, Type A Communications, at cmswire.com talks about the need for this type of marketing in this competitive world and how companies are adapting this to enhance customer experience.  

The example of Marriott, the brand that has launched an original content studio that creates content that informs, entertains and adds value to travel lifestyle consumers, shows how building audiences by creating differentiating experiences has now become an important part of marketing.

To summarize, this article emphasizes the need to make content creation a core function of the business and the foundation from which all experiences, across the company, are created.

Read more at:

http://www.cmswire.com/cms/digital-marketing/experiences-the-7th-era-of-marketing-028978.php

“Augmented reality is an environment in which elements are supplemented by computer-based sensory input.” This technology has now made a comeback and is gaining popularity in many fields. Its new uses are now being explored in strategy, analytics, retail, marketing etc. as it gives the users an experience of how a real world item may look in a particular situation. Ferrari’s Virtual Showroom application is an example of how AR enhances customer’s experience.

This technology can also be seen as a follow-up of following trends which the world is experiencing:

• Mobile Devices
• Internet of Things
• Cloud Computing

Thus, Augmented Reality is now emerging as a useful tool to connect with customers. To know more, read the following article by Pierre DeBois, Founder and Chief Digital Marketing Strategist, Zimana, at cmswire.com

http://www.cmswire.com/cms/analytics/the-latest-reality-on-augmented-reality-028928.php

According to a 2014 survey of more than 2,000 business professionals by MIT Sloan and SAS Institute, 87% respondents share a common restlessness to elevate their organizations to the next level of analytics.

Being data driven, has now become a necessity for all businesses, especially financial institutions. Using predictive data analytics to interpret a wide range of internal and external data on customers helps financial institutions to identify best targets for a particular product and earn more by making timely pitches.

Russ Bunham, in his Forbes article, gives four tips on how financial institutions can use big data analytics to their advantage:

1. Creating a customized, consistent customer experience
2. Dissolving internal silos to have one view of the customer
3. Ensuring data insight flows to the right person to make the pitch
4. Using big data knowledge to enhance customer relationships

To understand them in detail, visit the following link:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/centurylink/2015/04/14/4-ways-financial-institutions-can-bank-on-big-data-in-2015/

Technology had an impact on customer service. Social media have augmented the voice of the customer and created a space for dialogue and discussion among consumers. The key to win customer service in this landscape is intelligently using the technologies. Forrester Customer Index, which was published last year showed that companies with a strong focus on the customer experience has gained in performance accounts to 43 percent, while those that did not focus on outcomes had a drop in performance by 33.9 percent. Read more at: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/insidecrm/seven-ways-technology-is-changing-customer-service-in-2015-66154

The most important thing for a company is dealing with customers and their experiences. Companies need to be more customer centric and must have a modern approach towards creating a global customer experience across all channels. There are three things which marketers can do to ensure modernization: utilize cloud technology, leverage customer data effectively and make language and culture a priority. Cloud technology enables organizations to optimize multi-channel customer experiences from any device, understand brand health and product perception in real-time and is easy to implement and also improves ROI. Organizations can predict buying  pattern by understanding and analyzing customer data. To know more, follow Paige O'Neill (Chief Marketing Officer at SDL)’s article link at: http://digitalmarketingmagazine.co.uk/customer-experience/three-steps-for-modernising-enterprise-customer-experience/1696

Nowadays, people shop mostly on online and therefore it is easier for companies to connect with customers through websites, social media channels, and blogs so that they keep the attention of their target groups. Oliver Jaeger (Vice President of Global Marketing & Communications at e-Spirit Inc), writes in his article link about some steps to make 2015 the year of exceptional customer experience: http://digitalmarketingmagazine.co.uk/articles/how-to-attract-and-keep-customers/1594

Nowadays retailers are utilizing big data to improve price, product, and placement effectiveness to new in-store experiences that influence social media. But, still there is a partial connection between these innovative ideas and the real time experience in each store. So, retailers need to get real-time data from the shop floor and pass it to the decision makers and in turn can make a real difference to both profitability and customer experience. In an era where consumer behavior is changing rapidly, retailers also need to change fast by empowering those on the shop floor to respond in real time. Retailers need to ensure right products are at the right price, on the right shelf and at the right time with the help of operational analytics. Read more at: http://digitalmarketingmagazine.co.uk/customer-experience/big-data-in-a-mobile-world-shop-floor-decision-making/1460

Speech analytics or audio mining is used to analyze spoken words that reveal information when an interaction takes place between the contact centers and organizations and it optimizes workers performance and enhances customer experience. Speech analytics technology is used mostly in call centers to extract valuable business intelligence. North America is the strongest initial market for speech analytics and this market is expected to grow from $241.8 million in 2014 to $696.2 million by 2019, at a CAGR of 23.6% from 2014 to 2019. Read more at: http://www.sys-con.com/node/3287613

AdvaTel, an Australian software company, developed BestTime, a product which improves productivity and also enhances customer experience. With the help of BestTime, potential callers can choose to receive a reminder via SMS or web page notification when the call waiting time is lower and it also helps in better management of a call center. Read more at: http://www.contactcenterworld.com/view/contact-center-news/totally-new-concept-in-call-center-management.aspx

Interactive Voice Response is important for any call center. But, what is an Interactive Voice response or IVR? It is a technology that makes customer interactions efficient and streamlined. Some IVR’s are complex in design. Some companies don’t use IVR, and others have such a poor design. Richard Manulkin (Connect First), writes in this article some tips on how an IVR design can help in improving customer service.Read more at: http://www.callcentertimes.com/Home/tabid/37/ctl/NewsArticle/mid/395/CategoryID/1/NewsID/861/Default.aspx

It’s the customer service and experience the customer that help businesses to retain customers and grow.  The companies which deliver a good customer service and experience are customer-centric putting the customer in the centre of decisions, ideas, marketing, system design and more. Companies like apple manufacture products that people don't even realise they need, and the packaging of their products adds to the customer’s experience, which makes them the leader in customer service. A company that delivers only a great customer experience won’t survive if the product or service the company sells doesn’t work or do what it’s supposed to do, so they have to manufacture high quality products as well as provide a great customer service. It’s the combination of the two, a great product and an amazing customer service experience, that can meet the expectations of the customers and make a company grow to the top of their industry. To know more go to: http://www.hyken.com/customer-experience-2/product-experience/#more-5264

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