In Primary Intelligence’s annual report on the State of Customer Experience (CX), global CX leaders provide their feedback on how they’re implementing and leveraging Customer Experience programs to increase buyer loyalty and drive long-term revenue growth. CX programs continue to be an essential ingredient for measuring customer loyalty, buyer satisfaction, and long-term customer and revenue retention.

http://www.primary-intel.com/product/state-of-customer-experience-2016/

The State ofCustomer Experience

The State ofCustomer Experience

2016

10 Strategies for Success10 Strategies for Success 1. Utilize bi-directional communication with customers 2. Ensure employees understand the goals of Customer Experience programs 3. Get organizational alignment around CX initiatives 4. Share success stories and best practices 5. Create small wins to build momentum 6. Identify and nurture brand advocates 7. Use metrics to demonstrate Customer Experience ROI 8. Incorporate customer comments, not just metrics 9. Make corporate decisions through the lens of Customer Experience 10. Iterate, and don’t expect perfection

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To learn more about the State of Customer Experience 2016 report, visit

http://www.primary-intel.com/product/state-of-customer-experience-2016/

© 2016 Primary Intelligence Inc.

USAGE OF CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE PROGRAMS REMAIN STRONGThis is roughly equivalent to the percentage of organizations with CX programs in place in 2015 (81 percent) and highlights the ongoing commitment to collecting customer feedback to improve products, support, and internal processes.

78%CX Program

in Place

3%Unsure

19%No CX Program

in Place

20%Less than a year

old

38%1-2 years old

MORE FIRMS OPTING TO START CX PROGRAMSAs more organizations realize the importance of Customer Experience initiatives, there’s a growing number of �rms adopting CX programs. One in �ve B2B organizations started a new CX program within the past year. Close to 40 percent have had Customer Experience programs in place for two years or less.

STRONG BELIEF THAT CX PROGRAMS HELP RETAIN CUSTOMERSCX managers believe most strongly that Customer Experience programs help improve organizations’ ability to retain customers. Of concern is the low con�dence in most CX leaders that they have a solid understanding of the overall customer experience of their clients. 9.0

7.7 8.4

8.76.7

CX helps us sell additional products

/ services

CX can help me perform more

e�ciently in my role

My organization has a good understanding of the

overall customer experience of our clients

CX improves an organization's ability to retain customers

Our organization should increase its investment in CX

0 = Strongly disagree, 10 = Strongly agree

Improved understanding of customer needs

91%

Improved customer support/service

69%

Improved customer communications

62%

IMPROVED UNDERSTANDING OF CUSTOMER NEEDS REMAINS TOP CX BENEFIT

Over 90 percent of CX managers believe the most signi�cant bene�t from Customer Experience programs is an improved understanding of customer needs. It’s likely that this will continue to be the most important bene�t in the coming years since improved understanding of customer needs was also the most important identi�ed bene�t in 2015. In both years, an improved understanding of customers was approximately 20 points higher than the #2 bene�t.

ONGOING CUSTOMER FEEDBACK PREFERRED BY MOST COMPANIESMore than three quarters of �rms collect customer feedback on an ongoing basis versus quarterly or annual collection. Ongoing feedback is considered a best practice at Primary Intelligence, as is un�ltered feedback from all customers.

78%ongoing CX feedback

with all customers

B2B FIRMS ORGANIZING DIFFERENTLY TO MEET NEEDS OF CUSTOMERS

Eighty percent of all organizations in 2016 have a dedicated Customer Experience team or department. This is a substantial increase from 2015, when 51 percent of organizations reported having a dedicated CX resource to collect, analyze, and act on customer feedback.

2015 2016

51% 80%Dedicated CXresource, team, dept.

SPENDING ON CX PROGRAMS EXPECTED TO INCREASENearly 60 percent of �rms plan to increase spending on CX programs in the next year. Of these, one in �ve will increase their CX investment by 1-10 percent and an additional 24 percent will increase spending by 11-20 percent. We view these investments as a positive indicator toward ongoing commitment to Customer Experience programs.

Plan to increase spending

57%

Will not changespending

24%

Unsure

10%

HIGHEST PERCENTAGE OF FIRMS SPENDING $100K-$500K ANNUALLY ON CX PROGRAMS

The largest percentage of organizations—approximately one-third—are spending between $100K and $500K annually on their CX initiatives, largely unchanged since 2015. Still, the best performance—in terms of revenue growth, pro�tability, and a deeper understanding of customers’ top challenges and priorities—is seen by �rms spending $500K to $1 million annually on CX programs.

$100K–$500K

31%$50K–$100K16%

$500K–$1M

7%

Bestresults