2020 went down in history as the year of the pandemic. For 2021, there are three different scenarios: things return to normal, continue as in 2020, or get worse. We need to look to the future with what we have learned and the experience we have gained during the pandemic. Priorities have changed in customer experience. Let’s take a look at 7 topics that businesses aiming for the perfect customer experience should focus on in 2021.
1- Digital Transformation
We saw that the pandemic created a catalyst effect in the digital transformation that started with the introduction of the internet in the 90s. Traditional businesses that kept their distance from the digital world turned to digital transformation in a hurry. They tried to turn the crisis into an opportunity with template e-commerce sites and mobile applications launched overnight. The pandemic has shown that it is possible to move many things that are said to be un-digitalizable to digital.
The digital experience offered by some brands, the creators of great customer experience in the traditional world, in the pandemic was a complete disappointment. In digital transformation, integrating technology into our business as a sales channel is not enough to become a valuable brand for the customer and to increase loyalty. It is necessary to understand the digital age correctly and transform all processes according to these dynamics. In 2021, businesses should put their digital transformation processes back on the table and evaluate them by putting the customer experience at the center. If software is at the centre of your business, you should create a software team with agile software development discipline.
2- Hygienic products and services
Social distancing and hygiene have been the most important topics in the pandemic. With the coronavirus pandemic, many things have changed and will continue to change in our lives. You can divide the customer experience you offer into two as before and after the Coronavirus. A new world where hygienic products and services and customer experience are shaped awaits us.
Is your business ready for the new world?
Have you reviewed your products and services at the centre of the customer experience you offer?
With the Covid-19 virus, which can be transmitted through close contact with people and contact with objects, hygiene has become more important than ever. Your value propositions such as speed, quality, price and innovation may have stood out for your brand so far. Now, no matter which sector you are in, it is inevitable to put hygiene in the first place among your value propositions.
3- Employee experience
During the pandemic, it has once again become clear that employee experience is of critical importance. It is not possible for a business whose employees are not happy to make its customers happy. We cannot ignore the problems experienced by white-collar workers who have switched to working from home and blue-collar workers who have to go to work under pandemic conditions.
It would be a big mistake for a business to take refuge in the excuse that we are in an extraordinary period and we do not have the resources to allocate to employee experience. The experience you offer can be as strong as the weakest link in the employee chain that extends from your employees who are in direct contact with your customers to those in the background.
4- Omni-Channel experience
Omni-channel, which appears as a marketing approach where all channels are centrally managed, is an accepted method for customer experience today. With the pandemic, omni-channel experience has gained more importance. In the digital environment, businesses can communicate with their customers through channels such as mobile applications, social media, e-mail, chatbot, whatsapp as well as the web. Businesses that want to offer a richer customer experience tend to communicate with their customers through all digital channels. If you do not have an omni-channel structure, your multi-channel structure can turn into a nightmare. You should allocate the necessary resources for an omni-channel structure and choose the right channels for your business instead of all channels.
5- People orientation and transparency
In the digital age, consumers also have the opportunity to evaluate the services they receive from brands and share these evaluations on social networks. Information has been democratised with the freedom to access information from anywhere. Along with this, transparency emerges as a new value. It is not an element of differentiation, but rather a necessity for brands to be aware of these new elements and to keep up with this transformation culturally and organizationally.
As a result of this change, the culture that should transform in the way of doing business should be to position the consumer as a human being, not as a “consumer”, and to instil this culture in the entire organisation. Therefore, all other processes need to evolve in a people-oriented way. All processes should be transparent and sincere, including communication with “human”, the new value of the digital age. In 2021, make sure that your business’ customer experience processes are people-oriented and transparent.
6- Protection of personal data
Law No. 6698 on the Protection of Personal Data (KVKK) entered into force on April 07, 2016. The process continues for some transitional provisions in the law. Have you harmonised your business processes with the LPPD? Have you protected customer and employee data? Do you follow the announcements published by the Personal Data Protection Authority? Although KVKK seems to be a legal issue, it is an issue that affects all processes starting from technological infrastructure. In addition to your company’s role as data controller, your business partners who are data processors are also part of the process. If you have customers in European Union countries, you should also work on GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) and harmonise your processes. Be sure to publish the policies you have implemented to protect their personal data.
7- Cyber security
Cybersecurity and customer experience may seem completely opposed to each other. But if you take a closer look from an experience perspective, you’ll see that cybersecurity is an essential element of the customer experience. All your customers in the digital environment are potential targets of cyber attacks. You should offer cybersecurity not only within the boundaries of your own business, but across the entire end-to-end customer experience. You should guide your customers on the personal precautions they should take. Show them that you are serious about providing a seamless experience by explaining your cybersecurity efforts. Tell them in simple language what precautions you’ve taken.
If your business can guarantee a secure online environment for its customers, it will be easier to deliver an experience that stands out from the competition.
You can’t manage without measuring!
A business that sets out with the goal of a perfect customer experience needs to measure regularly at all touchpoints from day one. Customer experience should be handled and managed rationally with methods such as NPS, Likert, etc. Businesses that manage end-to-end customer experiences will achieve success under all circumstances.
Contact us to easily manage customer experiences end-to-end with integration, automation and additional development options.
