With the world gradually limping towards normalcy, businesses are adjusting themselves to align with the needs and expectations of the post-pandemic consumers. 

Re-imagining customer experience (CX) is one of the most vital aspects of calibrating their operations. 

After all, according to research by Amazon AWS, 88% of online consumers are less likely to return to a site after a single bad experience. I’d agree that the window of opportunity is small but highly disruptive if managed effectively. 

With 2022 around the corner, what should businesses focus upon in terms of CX? Here are a few tips that can help-

1. Understand the Changing Demand Patterns

The pandemic changed the demand patterns overnight. Digital adoption has increased and is only expected to rise in popularity even when the COVID-19 is quelled. As we step into a new year, it’ll be increasingly important for businesses to be present where the customers are. Here’s what business leaders can do to keep up with this seismic shift in demand patterns-

  • Accelerate digital adoption across the organization to improve reach and keep up with the changing customer preferences.
  • Every digital channel should treat customer privacy with utmost importance.
  • Innovate and re-invent. For instance, take your business to your customers’ homes through services like home delivery, free trial, online KYC, pick-up and drop-off, etc. 
  • Be prepared for the worst. While COVID restrictions may have eased out for now, there is no surety on what it’s going to look like a few months down the line. For instance, if physical channels cannot be eliminated, make them contactless with solutions like drive-through checkouts and click-and-collect.

2. Show That You Care

The pandemic was a difficult period for everyone. It’d not be wrong to say that the catastrophe has made us more caring towards each other. Consumers now expect the same treatment from businesses they engage with. They want brands to humanize themselves and showcase a spirit of unity and harmony. Here’s how leaders can cope with this change-

  • Show off your employees or turn them into brand promoters.
  • Create and establish your values and mission. You are remembered for what you stand for. 
  • Work on people happiness from within. You cannot have happy customers without a team of happy employees. 

(You can also check out this post on Employee Happiness to know more about how it can help your organization.)

3. Focus on Building Agile Capabilities

Only businesses with an agile approach to understanding the quickly-changing dynamics and adopting themselves accordingly can thrive during a crisis. While it was COVID-19 now, the crisis could be technological disruption, inflation, or hyper-competition in the future. Agile businesses can provide value to the customers in every scenario. Here’s how companies can be more agile-

  • Use channels like social media to understand customer preferences better and work on new ideas.
  • As the employees directly deal with the customers in several industries, their inputs can be highly valuable in understanding consumer sentiment.
  • Use advanced technologies like AI and analytics for improved decision-making.
  • Build accessible and unambiguous channels for internal communication.

(Want to know more about business agility? Read my LinkedIn article on Agility Quotient (AQ) here)

Elevating CX in 2022

While CX trends change faster than businesses are comfortable with, nothing comes close to how things have changed since the beginning of the pandemic. Businesses can no longer continue with the traditional customer experience approaches or strategies if they want to remain relevant in the future. 

At M2M, our training programs are carefully designed to help brands cope with the CX challenges that the pandemic has introduced across the world. 

Let’s talk to better understand the CX challenges your organization faces and whatcan be done to use the crisis as an opportunity to grow your business. 

Let’s Keep Growing.