Hello Reader,

Over the last few weeks, I have been working with a well-established business to strengthen its customer experience capabilities. While the business has built a strong presence over time, its approach to customer experience was no longer fully aligned with changing customer behaviours and expectations.

Before recommending training, new processes or other improvements, we conducted a detailed, week-long CX readiness diagnostic to understand how prepared the organisation was for transformation.

The process helped us identify the most important service, communication and operational gaps, assess the current state, and begin charting a practical way forward.

It was also a reminder that what worked a few years ago may no longer be enough to meet today’s customer expectations.

Here are five customer experience trends businesses should be paying attention to.

Unhappy customers are becoming quieter

Many businesses assume customers will complain when something goes wrong. Increasingly, they do not.

Qualtrics found that fewer than one-third of consumers provide feedback directly to a business. Its more recent research also found that 30% of customers tell no one about a poor experience, they simply switch brands.

Silence should therefore not automatically be interpreted as satisfaction. Businesses need to create simple ways to request feedback, monitor recurring service issues and follow up with customers before they disappear.

AI-supported service must still feel human

AI is quickly becoming part of everyday customer service. Businesses are using it to respond to common questions, provide after-hours support, summarise conversations and help employees work more efficiently.

Customers welcome this convenience, but they do not want to feel trapped inside an automated system. PwC found that 86% of consumers still consider human interaction important to their brand experience.

The goal should not be to automate every interaction. Use AI for speed and efficiency, but make it easy for customers to reach a person when they need empathy, judgment or real problem-solving.

Customers expect resolution, not just a quick reply

Customers increasingly expect businesses to be available and responsive. Zendesk reports that 74% of consumers expect customer service to be available around the clock, while 88% expect faster responses than they did just one year ago.

But a quick acknowledgement is not the same as a resolution.

Responding with “We have received your message” may improve your response time, but it does not improve the experience if the customer must continue following up. Businesses should pay attention to how long it takes to resolve the issue, how many times the customer contacts them and whether promised actions are completed.

Personalisation now means remembering the customer

Adding a customer’s name to a message is no longer enough. Customers expect businesses to remember their previous conversations, purchases, preferences and unresolved concerns.

Zendesk found that 74% of customers become frustrated when they have to repeat their story to different representatives. They want the next person they speak with to understand what has already happened and continue from there.

Even without expensive technology, businesses can improve this experience. A shared customer record, properly updated CRM or simple interaction log can prevent customers from having to explain the same situation repeatedly.

Customers see one business not separate departments and channels

A customer may discover your business on Instagram, make an enquiry through WhatsApp, speak to someone by phone and later visit your physical location. To the customer, these are not separate interactions. They are one journey with your business.

Problems arise when the information, tone or promises change between channels. Customers should not receive one price on social media, another through WhatsApp and a completely different explanation when they arrive in person.

Your channels may be managed by different people, but the experience should still feel connected.

What does this mean for your business?

They want to move between channels without starting again. Most importantly, they want their issues resolved without repeatedly chasing the business.

This week, review your customer journey and ask:

Where are we making customers wait, repeat themselves, follow up or work harder than they should?

You do not need to implement every new technology immediately. But you do need to understand how expectations are changing and decide what your business must improve to remain competitive.

Customer experience is not only changing, the standard customers use to evaluate your business is changing too.

Until next Sunday...Remember, memorable customer experiences happen by design, not default.

— Maureen

P.S. Know a business that needs to rethink how it serves today’s customer? Share this with them.