Total Experience strategies drive engagement, loyalty, growth and profitability.

Today's consumers are more demanding than ever before. They expect quick access to information, seamless experiences across channels and an easy-to-use interface to prevent anything from interfering with their busy lives. In short, they demand great Customer Experience (CX)

On the other hand, employment dynamics are also changing, with many companies adopting hybrid work models (various combinations of home & office), distributed workforces and employment forms (full-time, part-time, freelance). Providing a superior Employee Experience (EX) has become an increasingly important factor in attracting and retaining staff and driving productivity. 

Traditionally many companies have underestimated the importance of the latter and viewed CX and EX as two separate siloes. 

There is a better way. 

Welcome to Total Experience (TX)

What if CX and EX were two inseparable parts of the overall Total Experience (TX)?

Organisations that seamlessly connect CX and EX into Total Experience will gain a competitive edge over others because it allows customers and employees alike to feel like they're being taken care of, leading people to want loyalty from brands that provide these services.

The shift toward Total Experiences

Company departments such as marketing and customer support are faced with creating a single, cohesive consumer experience. To do so effectively, they must bring together all aspects - from transactions to communications - under one roof so that customers can receive an unforgettable digital interaction spanning every aspect possible of your company's goods or services.

The customer experience is becoming more critical than ever before. Customer satisfaction levels have never been lower, and companies are now competing based on how well they treat their customers. If your business doesn't improve this aspect, someone else will step up to take care of those needs while avoiding costly mistakes like losing money or resources due to unprofitability.

According to Gartner, ‘The top two reasons for pursuing digital initiatives are to enhance customer experience (58%) and improve employee productivity (57%), which should not be followed in silos, spurring a move towards unified systems. Organisations need to automate and optimise operations, reduce costs and increase loyalty and retention with a total experience (TX) strategy for creating shared customer and employee experiences.’

A recent survey by Gartner Group showed that 65% of consumers say most businesses need improved experiences; only 11% were satisfied at best. With such high expectations set by society today - it's no wonder executives want nothing less either.

Let’s take a look at telehealth.

The covid pandemic has flipped the provision of medical services in many countries. Before that, the ratio between virtual and face-to-face consultations was about 10/90 in the UK; overnight, it shifted to 90/10. Many doctors (GPs) have embraced telehealth, allowing them to have portfolio careers and achieve better work-life balance. Several telehealth companies are competing for GPs. 

Having worked with one of the leading telehealth companies, we know how important the quality and UX of the doctor-facing applications and their ability to remove a large chunk of admin from doctors has been to attracting and retaining them. Happier doctors (EX) mean better service for patients (CX), better retention leading to the accumulation of expertise within the company, and better margins and cost control. 

For companies where both the staff (in this case, doctors), and patients are mostly remote, and interactions are decentralised, TX becomes critical to the smooth functioning of the whole machinery.

From multichannel to omnichannel to drive faster revenue growth.

Integrated campaigns: In an omnichannel world, traditional marketing campaign silos are no longer effective. Instead, businesses need to take an integrated approach that coordinates messaging and strategies across all channels to reach customers where they are.

Data-driven decision-making: To create seamless customer experiences, businesses must clearly understand customer behaviour and preferences. This can only be achieved through data-driven decision-making, which relies on customer data from all channels to inform marketing decisions.

Personalisation: In an age where customers expect a customised experience, businesses need to be able to personalise their products and their messages for each customer. Omnichannel data can create highly targeted messages relevant to each cust’ needs and interests.

Omni-experience: A truly omnichannel approach requires a consistent and enjoyable customer experience regardless of which channel they use. This can only be achieved through tight coordination between all departments within the organisation, from sales and service to marketing and IT. 

In conclusion

To stay ahead of the curve, organisations need to move from Customer Experience to Total Experience and from multichannel to an omnichannel approach to drive faster revenue growth. By focusing on integrated campaigns, data-driven decision-making, personalisation and Omni-experience, businesses can keep pace with the ever-changing needs of today’s consumers and deliver a seamless customer experience across all channels.

Thanks for reading!

By Carl Engelmark

Carl Engelmark