New research commissioned by Insight UK and conducted by independent research company Censuswide, has found UK organisations face an unprecedented challenge in delivering quality customer services. The findings reveal 90% of organisational leaders face challenges in delivering in this area, but encouragingly 81% of respondents say they would be increasing their investment in improving customer experience next year.
Looking in more detail at the challenges around customer services, it becomes clear organisational leaders are struggling to address changing consumer expectations and the technology that supports modern customer services. This is despite the fact that almost 9-in-10 (86%) agree that digital has enabled the evolution of the organisation and creation of new services.
"In an increasingly digitalised world, we've seen the relationship between business and customer transform," said Emma de Sousa, Managing Director of Insight UK. "There is real pressure on businesses to deliver personalised, relevant and meaningful experiences. Technology may facilitate these relationships, but it starts with organisations adopting a customer-centric approach to business. By marrying this approach with transformative solutions, organisations can ensure they are best-placed to win the battle for the modern day customer."
In order to address the challenges before them, organisational leaders are turning to technology. Almost half (45%) of business leaders stated they hope to achieve enhanced customer experience through the implementation of new IT solutions. When asked to list the top three applications of technology that would benefit their customer relationships, data analytics (53%) came out on top, with mobile applications (47%) and Artificial Intelligence (37%) coming in second and third respectively. Looking to address a period of such rapid change, nearly two thirds (60%) of organisations have a business transformation team in place, with a fifth (22%) saying that, while they do not currently have such a team in place, they are looking to create one.
"Technology underpins the modern customer relationship, whether it be delivering services, checking the status of orders, or even making a complaint when something goes wrong," continued Emma. "However, there is work to be done when it comes to meeting customer expectations, with 90% of organisational leaders facing challenges in meeting the demands of the digital customer. It is vital organisations work with trusted partners who can help them make the most of transformative technology to better serve their customers."