In today’s evolving marketplace customer experience software is not just a “nice to have,” but a “must-have,” and forms a critical part of every company’s engagement strategy. For the customer experience to positively impact an organisation’s bottom line, buy-in from all internal stakeholders is required to enable the delivery of a holistic client experience, achieved through the implementation of a relevant engagement strategy.
Convincing your CFO to invest in customer experience initiatives will require a demonstration of value to the bottom line and will, ultimately, make you a happier sales person which, in turn, will make your company more profitable. As you put together your case, make sure to include these four realities that your CFO can’t ignore.
The facts and figures about CRM software
1. Customer Experience Increases Sales
According to a report published by Temkin Group, customer experience and sales go hand-in-hand. The report reflected that 92 percent of customers who enjoyed a positive client-service experience were likely to repurchase from that company, compared to only 9 percent of customers who rated their experience as very poor. Furthermore, a Harvard Business Review study found that customers who had positive past experiences with a brand spend 140% more, compared to those who had negative past experiences.
2. Customer Experience is More Valued Than Price
Using only product price to differentiate your business from the competition is no longer enough. According to Gartner, 64 percent of people think that customer experience is more important than price when it comes to their choice of brand.
A report by Walker, titled ‘Customers 2020’, states that customers’ higher reliance upon technology and expectation of innovation has empowered them like never before. The report explains that by 2020, due to the changing way that consumers interact with a business, the customer experience will become the main product differentiator, replacing price.
3. Customer Experience Correlates to Higher Customer Loyalty
Temkin Group examined data from 66 United Kingdom firms across six industries and found that customers who enjoyed a positive brand experience were more likely to recommend that brand, more reluctant to switch to another brand, and more willing to make future purchases.
These findings were supported by Forrester who surveyed 7500 consumers, across 150 US firms spanning 14 industries, on the correlation between customer experiences and loyalty and reported similar results.
4. Customer Experience Increases Revenue
Customer experience and revenue are intrinsically linked. According to Forbes, 86 percent of buyers will pay more for a better customer experience. Research by McKinsey & Co has also found that brands that improve customer experience see revenue increase by as much as 10 to 15 percent while also lowering the cost to serve by 15 to 20 percent.
An area of great concern, however, is that only 1 percent of customers feel vendors consistently meet their expectations.
As an organisation, are you meeting your customer’s expectations?
As a consumer, would you pay more for a better customer experience?