71% of consumers say most companies need to fix CX
Seven out of ten consumers say the majority of the brands they deal with have room to improve the quality of the customer experience (CX) they’re delivering, and that includes how they’re operating through digital channels, according to research produced by Broadridge Financial Solutions Inc.
The New York-based provider of power investing, governance, and communications solutions commissioned a survey of more than 4,000 people across the U.S. and Canada to produce its seventh annual CX and Communications Consumer Insights study.
Broadridge found some of the biggest opportunities to fix CX involve hand-offs across human and digital interactions. For example, 38 per cent of those surveyed said they would brands to make it easier to navigate to their online account. If they run into any issues, however, 41 per cent want brands to make it easier to talk to a real person, rather than an authomated assistant.
The fallout from poor CX clearly affects customer relationships: 59 per cent they had lost trust with a brand after a bad experience.
Broadridge found e-mail was consumers’ most preferred channel overall, with AI chatbots coming at the end of the list except for a segment the report defined as “engaged explorers.” For interactions like account updates, 44 per cent said they prefer e-mail, followed by a quarter who said text messages.
For more dynamic communications, 37 per cent said they like personalization, but 33 per cent said brands could do more to improve the relevance of the messages they send.
“A push further into the digital frontier requires multiple balancing acts,” the report’s authors wrote. “Personalization is powerful, but data and privacy must be protected. Efficiencies and automation are alluring, but costs cannot be ignored.”
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Broadridge has a vested interest in highlighting the importance of strong communications, though in this case the findings are open to interpretation.
For example, the report found 45 per cent of consumers receive all their bills, statements, and other important documents digitally today, and nearly half (49 per cent) said they would prefer a paperless experience.
Broadridge suggested this makes a strong case for further digitization, but there is clearly still strong consumer support for physical documentation. If good CX is about aligning with customer preferences, it may not be time to go online-only just yet.
The truth is that consumers trend towards omni-channel behavior. In sectors like banking, 85 per cent say they regularly check their institution’s website or mobile app. That doesn’t necessarily mean they don’t want a printed statement they can refer to and store in a physical location.
Amid the rush among brands to embrace AI, meanwhile, it’s worth noting that 80 per cent said they would like more transparency in how brands use their data. This could explain why little more than half (52 per cent) said they were willing to exchange their data in return for a better customer experience.
Many consumers simply don’t believer brands will act in their best interests, which could make AI adoption harder to pull off. This was reflected in the 91 per cent who said it’s important they can interact with the human. Thirty one per cent said they do not want to interact with AI at all.
There’s lots more in this gated 36-page report that is worth perusing, particularly if you’re a CX leader who wants to segment your digitization efforts among those most eager to try new channels and automated experiences.
