A newly published Playbook by global research and advisory company Ecosystm in partnership with Verint underscores the challenges businesses face while transforming Customer Experience (CX). The study reveals that too many organisations are fixated on solely revamping their telephony-based contact centres. Interestingly, the report highlights that in the Asia Pacific region, 70% of interactions are initiated via asynchronous tools and social media apps rather than calls to contact centres. This points to the necessity of a broader CX strategy that extends beyond just upgrading telephony-based systems.

Data collated from the 2023 Ecosystm Future of CX Study shows that traditional Contact Centre solutions (40%) are not the prime source of customer data within organisations. On the contrary, Customer Service systems (62%), Feedback forms and surveys (45%), and Marketing automation systems/tools (44%) take precedence. With Web/social channels (40%) ranking equal with traditional Contact Centres, these findings underscore the need for businesses to consolidate and centralise data from all these sources for broader organisational access.

Audrey William, Principal Advisor at Ecosystm states that "it's crucial to understand the context of each interaction, regardless of the channel used." She adds that as telephony services have become commoditised, it is pivotal for organisations to consider wider CX strategies extending beyond these services. According to William, organisations should shift from just cloud migration to an all-encompassing Open CX approach, which centralises data from multiple sources, integrates Artificial Intelligence (AI) solutions, implements smart automation, and maps out the customer journey.

The Playbook suggests a four-point strategy for successful CX transformation. This strategy encompasses choosing an open platform approach connecting all CX workflows, bringing any infrastructure such as telephony/UC and carriers to the platform, incorporating necessary AI solutions, tools, and services, and focusing on making data the core of CX engagement to reduce friction points for customers across Marketing, Contact Centre, Digital, and Sales.

Martyn Riddle, VP Marketing, Asia Pacific, at Verint points out that while all businesses may not be ready for a comprehensive CX strategy, it is important to set up open systems ready for wider integration. He emphasises that impactful customer engagement extends beyond the contact centre and necessitates a rethink of service design and delivery. Riddle argues that considering aspects such as hyper-connectivity, AI, and consumer autonomy, a holistic CX strategy that mixes 'product' and 'experience' is needed.