Using ECM to Provide a Superior Customer Experience

Every business needs to ensure that customers are happy and that they keep coming back for more. Indeed, customer satisfaction and loyalty are critical success factors for every organization regardless of the size and or type of business. And how customers perceive your company and what they say about their experience in social and mobile media can have a direct effect on your brand in the marketplace. As a result, there’s a new mantra pervading business today: deliver the optimal customer experience.

C-suite decision-makers recognize the mounting need to keep and retain customers for a lifetime, but it can be an uphill battle. According to Ernst & Young, the world’s third largest professional advisory firm, just 25 percent of U.S. consumers consider brand loyalty as something that impacts their buying behavior. Research from Nielsen found that 78 percent of consumers are not loyal to any particular brand whatsoever. And according to McKinsey & Company, 70 percent of customers cite poor service response as a reason for leaving. As a result, companies are searching for new techniques and technologies to help them optimize customer experience, lifetime value and loyalty.

Next-Gen ECM and Customer Experience

One important way to improve customer experience is to improve how you use customer information to support that experience. The next generation of Enterprise Content Management solutions work to do just that by enabling organizations to eliminate antiquated paper-bound processes, automate when possible, and use customer information in more agile, connected and relevant ways. As a result, organizations in all industries find that they can put more thoughtful customer experience strategies into place that make a difference. Indeed, with superior customer service quickly becoming a C-level strategic objective, ECM technologies surface as a valuable platform to provide a more a captivating customer experience overall.

Real-World ECM

How are organizations using ECM to improve customer experience in the real world? In financial services it might mean easing the stacks of paperwork needed for a new loan application or for new customer onboarding. In healthcare it might mean connecting the various documents and information in ways that provide better and more seamless patient access to medical and case information. In the insurance industry it might involve speeding the processing of claims for payment during a disaster or personal tragedy. Many other industry segments like logistics, manufacturing, government, and more, all benefit from establishing more dynamic business workflows that link together people, processes and information in new and more agile ways.

Profitable Results

Where is the ROI? Studies show that the results can be profitable for organizations that get a grip on customer experience and loyalty. According BIA/Kelsey, a repeat customer spends 67 percent more than a new one, and 94 percent of customers who have had a great service experience will buy from that same company again. The data indicates that even small improvements in customer experience can pay big. Research from InfoQuest found that a “totally satisfied” customer contributes nearly three times as much revenue as a standard “satisfied” customer. The bottom line: There is clearly a great deal of upside revenue potential for organizations that use next-gen ECM to provide consistently superior customer experience. Look for providers and partners.