The term ‘customer experience’ is now ubiquitous and used in so many different contexts that it means everything yet nothing at the same time. The term has become useless in describing a particular thing, action, strategy, or whatever. Can this term that is being touted across every boardroom in Australia, be rescued from sinking into a cesspit of meaninglessness confusion?
When talking about ‘customer experience’ we’re referring to an ever changing multi-verse of concepts, strategies, terms and ideas. When you feel you have it pegged and understand what is actually going on, the sand starts shifting beneath your feet and before you know it you’re stuck in a pool of quick sand.
To remain on solid ground, the best strategy is to come up with your own definition of the term. Define what it means for you and your organisation and the different aspects it entails. It can be an all-encompassing term, referring to many different things within your business, or it can be as simple as you want. But make it meaningful. Make it useful.
Everybody is selling ‘The Customer Experience”
Many businesses seem to have forgotten what they sell or what their unique value proposition may happen to be. In their marketing, they use ‘customer experience’ and a range of other buzzwords and phrases which inadequately convey what it is they actually do.
PR companies, software companies, web design companies, interior designers, systems integrators, marketing and advertising agencies, and a host of others are all out there selling their services around the term of ‘customer experience’.
It can be confusing about what a company is actually selling and its unique selling proposition. Despite all the new marketing catchphrases, terms and buzzwords thrown up in recent years, understanding the unique value proposition of your brand, products and services and communicating that effectively to your market is still vitally important.
The bandwagon is leaving the station
Customer Experience may soon go down the path of customer relationship management, omni-channel marketing, contextual marketing and a host of other terms which have emerged, had their time in the sun, and now languish in forgotten powerpoint presentations.
Until that time we need to extract as much meaning as possible from it.
