CINNOX: COVID-19 accelerates demand for digital interactions in Asia Pacific, yet less than 1 in 5 consumers experience CX that exceeds expectations

SINGAPORE, Oct. 11, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- CINNOX, a pioneering total customer and employee experience SaaS platform that offers intelligent omnichannel engagement and analytics solutions, has announced the findings of a Forrester Opportunity Snapshot called Infuse Digital Experiences with the Right Dose of Human Touch. The study, conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of CINNOX, reveals that although Customer Experience (CX) is becoming more imperative for competitive differentiation, organisations often fail in exceeding customer expectations.

Key findings:

• Only 16% of all surveyed consumers experienced interactions that exceeded their expectations. In more developed markets like Hong Kong and Singapore, customer experience sentiments were the lowest.
• While COVID-19 led to a surge in consumer demand towards digital interactions, customers still attach a high emotional value to human touch in CX.
• Five unique customer personas have emerged post-pandemic and organisations require a tailored approach in enhancing CX for each one.
• Customer expectations on great CX are prioritised in terms of first-time resolution (50%), short response times (36%), and knowledgeable representatives (35%).

Commissioned by CINNOX, Forrester surveyed 1,200 customers across Australia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Singapore and is the first study focused on identifying customer behavioural changes and trends in post-pandemic Asia Pacific region. Only 16% of all surveyed customers recently experienced interactions that exceeded their expectations. It indicates that although organisations are committed to becoming more customer focused, they have insufficient understanding of customers' expectations and are failing to deliver quality experiences. In more developed markets like Hong Kong and Singapore, customer experience sentiments were the lowest, with only 7% and 9% experiencing interactions that exceeded their expectations, respectively.

Across all markets, three critical attributes emerged as the top expectations for good customer experience: first-time resolution (50%), short response times (36%), and knowledgeable representatives (35%). Singapore consumers mirror the same expectations for good customer experience, with more than half of the respondents (53%) indicating first time resolution as the top attribute, followed by short response times (44%), and knowledgeable representatives (42%). To meet these expectations, the study identified five customer personas that have emerged post-pandemic, each of which exhibits different preferences and require bespoke customer journeys.

Five post-pandemic customer personas:

• Omni-shoppers: Nearly half (44%) of respondents 20 to 49 years old find both human and digital touchpoints important. Omni-shoppers feel safe with digital interactions and want omnichannel experiences that seamlessly transition between touchpoints. They have engaged in online activities pre-pandemic, but started doing more online activities since the pandemic started.
• Multichannel enthusiasts: 15% of respondents in the 20 to 49 age group use multiple channels for customer service and support, but want their issues resolved end-to-end within a single touchpoint during an interaction without needing to switch channels. They were already engaged in mostly online activities pre-pandemic, and increased engagement since pandemic.
• Reserved digital immigrants: 15% of respondents 50 years old and above prefer offline touchpoints or online touchpoints with live human support, without having to switch communication across touchpoints. They feel less safe with digital interactions, and have not yet started to do more online activities since the pandemic.
• Affluent high touch seekers: 15% of respondents 50 years old and above and mostly high-income holders, prefer offline touchpoints but are also comfortable with digital. They want high personal touch both offline and online to establish greater trust and rapport. They had already engaged in some online activities pre-pandemic, and have increased engagement since.
• Low-touch digital natives: 12% of respondents below 30 years old are happy with self-service digital touchpoints across the customer journey, with little or no human intervention required such as chatbots. They have already been engaged in mostly online activities pre-pandemic, and increased engagement since pandemic.

While the pandemic led to a shift in demand towards digital interactions, a high emotional value for live human support in customer experience remains strong. The study suggests that organisations must redefine and tailor their approach to enhancing experiences throughout the customer journey for each of the five personas – encompassing all offline and online touchpoints augmented with live human support.

"Customer experience is the battleground that organisations compete on," said Patsy Wong, Chief Strategy Officer at CINNOX. "The study shows organisations lack the methodologies and insights to truly curate delightful customer experiences for different newly emergent personas, based on their preferences and intents. At CINNOX, we are able to solve this and improve both customer and employee experiences alike with one customer engagement and analytics platform."

CINNOX, a total experience SaaS platform, helps organisations to reduce wait times, and resolve enquiries at the first instance, with their knowledgeable call centre agents. This is achieved through the three key pillars of customer service, where organisations can enjoy one continuous loop of customer experience improvement that humanises every interaction: CONNECT, ORCHESTRATE, EVALUATE.

• CONNECT: All telephony and digital channels unified, with full customer context and seamless transition between touchpoints to adapt responses.
• ORCHESTRATE: Automated workflows and the most flexible range of intelligent routing to match customers with expertise.
• EVALUATE: Extensive Customer 360, interaction analysis, and sentiment data to improve experiences, track improvements, and monitor staff performance.
• The study, Infuse Digital Experiences with the Right Dose of Human Touch, was conducted by Forrester Consulting, read more or download the study here.

About CINNOX  

CINNOX is a total experience SaaS platform that elevates customer and staff experiences with innovative omnichannel engagement and analytics solutions. It helps businesses to CONNECT, ORCHESTRATE, and securely EVALUATE all of their customers' conversational interactions to deliver seamless humanised customer engagement that delights and exceeds expectations.

In the post-pandemic world, customer experience is the battleground and businesses need a partner not just to help them navigate the new normal, but to lead the way. So we built CINNOX – by putting the "INNO" in "CX" to help our partners compete and stay on top. Learn more at cinnox.com