A brief snapshot on what customer experience is.

Customer Experience (CX) is all about everything a business does to put customers first, managing their journeys, and addressing their needs in a meaningful way.

You’ve probably got a good sense of what makes for a great customer experience—imagine this: you walk into your favorite coffee shop and order a latte. Do the staff greet you with a smile, maybe even by name if you’re a regular? Is the store layout intuitive and easy to navigate? When you place your order, is it taken quickly, and do you get your drink promptly, with a cheerful handoff? And if there’s an issue, is it handled swiftly, with someone jumping in to help? Lastly, do they reach out to see how your overall experience was?

These are all important elements of CX. At its core, CX covers four key components: brand, product, price, and service.

In This Article, We’ll Dive Into:

• What does customer experience really mean.
• What customer journeys are and how they work.
• How to measure customer experience.
• What the consumer decision journey looks like.
• The role of customer care.
• How you can improve your company’s CX.

What Does Customer Experience Really Mean?

In simple terms, CX is everything an organization does to deliver superior experiences that drive customer satisfaction, value, and growth. Especially in today’s world, where how a business interacts with its customers is often just as important—if not more so—than the products or services they offer. With so much feedback shared openly on social media, businesses must connect with customers at an emotional level throughout their journeys. A great CX doesn’t just make customers happy, it also leads to bigger returns for shareholders.

The pandemic really put businesses to the test, pushing many to adapt quickly and offer new solutions, like contactless deliveries, to keep customers safe while still meeting their needs. This focus on customer care—especially in difficult times—has proven to build trust and lasting loyalty.

What Are Customer Journeys?

A customer journey is the full experience someone has with your brand, not just their satisfaction after a single interaction. It involves everything that happens before, during, and after they engage with your product or service. Customer journeys could involve things like onboarding a new client, solving a technical issue, or upgrading a service.

For example, consider the onboarding process for a new customer. One company’s process took three months, involving multiple phone calls, a technician visit, and online and mail interactions. Despite a high likelihood of success at each step, customer satisfaction fell by 40% as the journey progressed. This shows that focusing on the entire journey—not just individual touchpoints—can drive better outcomes.

Looking at industries like healthcare and hospitality, studies show that customer satisfaction improves when the entire journey is seamless. For example, customers of health insurance companies are 73% more likely to be satisfied when the whole journey is smooth.

To improve customer experience, consider these three steps to shift from focusing on touchpoints to the entire journey:

• Observe – Put yourself in your customers’ shoes. What do they experience at every step? This will help you better understand their needs and engage your team around a shared purpose.
• Shape – Rethink how your customer interactions are designed. Start small, but be prepared for it to expand into broader changes, such as digitizing processes and reshaping company culture.
• Perform – The transition to prioritizing journeys takes time and effort. This journey involves everyone in the company, from leadership to frontline staff.

How to Measure Customer Experience?

It might seem tricky to measure something as intangible as customer satisfaction, but it’s definitely possible! The key is to focus on three guiding principles:

• Measure at the journey level, not just at individual touchpoints or satisfaction surveys.
• Use technology to capture daily feedback from various channels and create a comprehensive view.
• Encourage a mindset of continuous improvement at all levels of the organization.

Predictive customer insights can also help you stay ahead of potential issues and improve the experience before problems arise.

What Is the Consumer Decision Journey (CDJ)?

The consumer decision journey is a modern take on the traditional marketing funnel. It’s a circular process that includes:

• Initial consideration
• Active evaluation (researching options)
• Closure (making a purchase)
• Post-purchase experience

In today’s world, brands need to not only react to customer decisions but also help shape the journey. To speed up customer loyalty, businesses can utilise four key strategies:

• Automation – Streamline the process, like mobile apps for banking or ordering.
• Proactive Personalization – Use customer data to instantly offer tailored experiences.
• Contextual Interaction – Understand where a customer is in their journey and guide them accordingly.
• Journey Innovation – Use insights to introduce new services or features that add value.

What Is Customer Care?

Customer care typically takes place in contact centers (or call centers). These teams help customers with their issues across different channels—whether in-store, online, or through mobile apps. In the future, customer care will likely become more personalised, offering a better experience with smarter technology.

How Did COVID-19 Change CX?

The pandemic required businesses to rethink how they interact with customers. Many shifted quickly to digital channels and found ways to maintain customer relationships through new, safe means. Trust and loyalty were heavily influenced by how brands responded with empathy and care during the crisis. More than 75% of consumers changed their buying habits, placing more value on convenience, safety, and purpose-driven brands.

What Is Digital Customer Experience?

Digital CX refers to experiences that happen online or with the help of digital tools. Think about how an airline used machine learning to track and prioritise customers who were unhappy due to delays. This quick action led to an 800% increase in customer satisfaction and reduced churn by 60%. Predictive CX platforms, which use customer data to predict needs and deliver personalised experiences, are the future of digital CX.

Customer Experience and Loyalty

Great CX often leads to customer loyalty, but it takes effort. Brands need to cut through the noise of the digital world to connect with customers in a meaningful way. Loyalty programs can play a big part in this, though many fail. To improve loyalty programs, businesses should:

• Offer incentives to redeem loyalty points.
• Address customer segments where points tend to expire.
• Use strategic partners to enhance rewards.
• Measure success by customer engagement.

Is CX Different in B2B vs. B2C?

Customer experience in B2B (business-to-business) is quite different from B2C (business-to-consumer). B2B relationships are deeper and often more complex, with longer sales cycles and higher stakes. However, B2B customers are increasingly expecting experiences that mirror the personalization and speed of B2C models.

How Different Industries Approach CX

Different industries have their own unique CX challenges. For example:

• Automotive: CX is now a differentiator, with brands focusing on innovation to enhance the customer journey.
• Travel: Post-pandemic, customers expect better, more responsive CX as the industry recovers.
• Retail: Omnichannel experiences are essential as customers move between physical and online shopping.
• Banking: Digital innovation in banking is making it easier for customers to interact with services.

CX vs. Employee Experience (EX)

CX and EX (employee experience) are closely linked. Happy employees provide better customer experiences, and improving EX can directly impact CX. Creating a customer-centric culture where employees feel empowered to ask for feedback or offer solutions can lead to lasting improvements in both areas.

How to Improve Customer Experience

If you want to improve your company’s CX, consider these three essential building blocks:

• Build Aspiration and Purpose – Create a clear CX vision that aligns with your brand’s purpose and goals.
• Transform the Business – Discover customer needs, design solutions, and drive impact across all areas of your company.
• Enable the Transformation – Ensure your company is ready to sustain change, from leadership down to front-line employees.

By focusing on these three areas, many businesses have seen a boost in sales, reduced service costs, and happier customers.

Ultimately, improving customer experience requires continuous attention, creativity, and collaboration across all departments. Stay focused on the big picture, avoid common pitfalls, and keep your customers at the heart of everything you do.