Customer Experience Trends 2021: The Rise of Self Service

Posted On: March 11, 2020

You might have noticed last time when you went to the supermarket to buy groceries, there was an option to self check out. Instead of a market employee helping you, there’s an option for you to scan the items and get through the process. It is quicker and hassle free. Technological advancement is the future of self-service. Self-Service platforms allow customers to resolve their queries without contacting a customer support team. Customers want to be in control and they expect brands to be more proactive with their information as well as transparent regarding issues with their products or services.

In fact, a study cites that Gen Z (born between 1995-2009) is most amenable to using self service technologies to make their lives easier and to solve a concern. According to Gartner, 2020 will see 85% of customers manage their relationship with a brand without any human interaction.

Customers want accurate, relevant, and complete information to their questions upon first contact. And they are also likely to abandon their online purchase if they cannot find a quick answer to their query. Valuing the customer’s time is the most important that a company can provide with good customer service. Consistently delivering high-quality service means finding ways to help customers resolve their problems quickly and conveniently on their own. Therefore, contextually implementing the right self-service software, tools and processes has become vital to deliver delightful customer experience.

How does self-service improve customer experience? 

Stand out on customer expectation

The consumer always prefers to engage with a brand as per their convenience. Customers should be able to resolve the query by themself through a self-service portal, without having to put in too much effort. One way to do that is to implement tools and platforms where they can troubleshoot their issues, with the information at hand. Some tools that have been very effective in enabling self service for digital channels are FAQs, Decision Trees, Picture Guides, Knowledge Bases, Video Tutorials, etc.

From the customer’s search, a support team can detect regular customer problems, common roadblocks and share the resolutions with other customers as well. This proactive service builds trust between the brand and the consumer.

In the same vein, most countries in the world are installing kiosks at shopping complexes, metro stations, and high street lanes. These kiosks stand as Information Tellers and allow people to find their way through, without having a human guide them through. It efficiently helps the customer to be more specific with their choice. In addition, rescues them from standing in the long queue.

Build proactive product awareness

In the digital age, the customers are more cautious with every step, they want to know about the product or service before making up their mind. They get acquainted with the product or services while they are learning about it through an app or website. They go through detailed information and explanations about how the product functions, frequent issues. The customers also inquire about the benefits they will get in their workflow by using the product.

Using self service tools like knowledge bases, and FAQs on your website, will help customers answer their doubts. The issue will be resolved without even contacting the customer support team. This gives an extra window for the marketing team to promote the product or service directly from the horse’s mouth.

Enhance Customer Service Metrics

Its important to measure the right customer experience metrics to stay ahead of competition. From Customer Satisfaction Score (C-SAT), Net Promoter Score (NPS), Churn Rate, to First Call Resolution (FCR) Average Handle Time (AHT); ensuring healthy scores can become overwhelming.

With self service initiatives, a business can dramatically improve C-SAT scores by being deploying bots and knowledge bases.

On an average, over 77% of customers feel that it takes far too long to reach a support team when they have queries that need to be addressed.

With 24*7 support available for customers, FCR and AHT improve as customers are empowered to solve their own queries in real time. This not only enhances CX, but also improves customer loyalty and reduces churn rate.

Self-service is next-gen customer service

One of the most vital elements for a business to prosper economic growth is their customer service. Self-service technologies are readily catching up in the market, across industries, making support more precise, selective, easily accessible and convenient. It’s only profitable for a company to narrow down human labor and hop on to technological advancement. Businesses across the globe are looking to upping their stakes via cutting edge technology. The goal is to open a world to their customers that’s more viable for them to operate through.

The businesses are capable of entertaining customers anytime in the day are gaining customer attention. The organizations are playing smart by outsourcing an ecosystem that can help customers around the clock. This costs lower compared to Customer service agents. Therefore, companies are making self service a catalyst for revenue growth.

The future of self-service is to give the customer consistency, faster access to better information with less effort. It helps them to competitively increase their brand value and stay on top of the game.

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