5 Top Customer Service Articles for the Week of February 18, 2019

Each week I read a number of customer service and customer experience articles from various resources. Here are my top five picks from last week. I have added my comment about each article and would like to hear what you think too.

Top Technology Trends That Will Reshape The Customer Experience In 2019 by Puru Govind

(Forbes) As the CTO of a company that streamlines customer care operations, I’ve seen firsthand how fast access to products and services, combined with seamless processes without media disruptions and channel changes, is at the top of the list of priorities for customers.

My Comment: What does the future of CX look like? According to the author of this article, three big technologies will impact CX; conversational bots, the Internet of Things (IoT) and analytics through machine learning (AI). I agree that they are all getting better, and at a rapid pace. I’m looking forward to seeing how much better.

3 Customer Loyalty Trends for 2019 by SmarterCX Team

(SmarterCX) From the continued growth of ecommerce to the rise of experiential retail, 2018 saw a number of changes within the retail industry. And as retail trends continue to evolve in 2019, so do customer loyalty trends and programs.

My Comment: As long as we’re talking trends for the year, here are three trends that focus on loyalty programs. The one that intrigues me most is the first one, which covers how loyalty will have a focus on not just repeat visits and purchases, but advocacy. Are you willing to recommend the business to a friend? If so, you may be rewarded.

Pioneers: Who’s really going to drive a new retail perspective? by Mimi Lettunich

(Retail Customer Experience) With nearly 3.8 million retail establishments currently operating in the U.S. alone, today’s retail environment has never been more competitive.

My Comment: I found this article very interesting. It has several excellent examples of how companies (retailers) are taking advantage of in-store customer experiences and separating themselves from online competition. It’s hard to try out a bed on a website.

What is CX? The Experts Weigh In With 3 Ways to Conceptualize It by Erin Ollila

(SmarterCX) We asked three experts what they’d compare CX too, and here is what they said.

My Comment: What is CX? My basic definition is the end-to-end experience that the customer has with every interaction with anything related to the brand. That said, three experts share their takes; it’s like a party, it’s like a romance, and it’s like a well-oiled machine.

Customer Experience & Customer Service Stats from 2018 and Predictions for 2019 by Jake Michaels

(GreenRope) For our second post in the series of statistics, let’s talk customer service trends for 2018, and how companies are changing the way they manage their customer’s experience for 2019.

My Comment: There’s plenty of stats and facts to get you thinking in this article that recaps some findings from last year and predictions for this year.

Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops at www.Hyken.com. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.