Organisations around the world are failing to implement effective digital strategies. As a result their customer experience (CX) solutions are becoming disjointed, and digital is not displacing traditional phone interactions at the speed that their customers are demanding.
That’s according to new research published today by Dimension Data in the 20th anniversary edition of its ¹Global Customer Experience Benchmarking Report. This year, 1,351 organisations across 80 countries in Asia Pacific, Australia, the Americas, Middle East & Africa, and Europe contributed to the research. 237 out of the polled organisations were from Asia Pacific.
Less than 14% of Asia Pacific organisations polled said that they had an optimised strategy for digital business in place, while over 44% of Asia Pacific organisations reported they don’t have a plan at all, or are at best, in the process of developing one.
What’s driving digital transformation?
The top factor driving digital transformation is improving CX, followed by customer demands for digital. In Asia Pacific, over 88% of organisations report an uplift in revenue as a result of improved CX, while 85% report cost savings.
Yet, just 40% have appointed a board level executive who is responsible for customer experiences, and organisational disconnects mean digital solution functionality is not meeting customer requirements.
Instead, high performing companies that have committed to the opportunity created by the digital revolution are outpacing established market leaders. The research shows top quartile organisations are performing up to ten times better than their counterparts.
Joe Manuele, Dimension Data’s Group Executive, CX and Collaboration, said: “The world has formed a digital skin and business, service, technology and commercial models have changed forever. However, organisations are strategically challenged to keep pace with customer behaviour.”
Manuele adds that the absence of a connected digital strategy means that even when digital solutions are available, the customer is frequently not even aware of their existence. “The digital dilemma is deepening, and organisations need to choose a path between digital crisis or redemption.”
A new reality
Meanwhile, emerging CX robotics is also creating a new reality. Virtual assistant (chat bots) was voted the top channel growth focus for 2017, and IoT deployments are set to double. It demands a new approach.
Harold Thng, Director – Customer Experience, Dimension Data Asia Pacific, says, “Pioneers of the digital age have reimagined business models and processes that have changed customer behavior, and the choices organisations make with their CX and digital strategies will define the future success of their organisation.”
The study also highlighted that CX was voted by 83% of participants as a competitive differentiator, and is the number one most important strategic indicator of performance.
In Asia Pacific, 76% of research participants forecast increases in assisted-service volumes; 76% expect a rise in fully automated digital contacts; and 69% anticipate overall interactions to grow.
Customers have a choice of nine channels with which to engage with organisations - now the norm in organisations. This number will rise to 14 by 2018.
Connected customer journeys via omnichannel (integrated) solutions is the top technology trend for 2017. Omnichannel solutions, alongside customer analytics, was listed as the top factors to reshape CX capability in the next five years.