With every year, it feels as though the business world becomes more competitive. Marketing is more imaginative, budgets are higher, and customer satisfaction is better. Of course, in reality, it’s always been challenging to make your name in any industry. But if you feel extra oomph at the beginning of the year to step up your game and make your mark, that’s definitely not a bad thing! One method for improving your business in 2023 is by keeping an eye on trends, starting with customer experience.


Self-Service to Reduce Customer Wait Times

In the UK in particular, many industries are struggling with staff. From customer service call centres to sales assistants, 32% of companies with over ten employees reported shortages towards the end of 2022, and this isn’t an issue that’ll be fixed overnight.

To maintain customer experience without as many staff members, more brands are turning to self-service and automation technologies. These can include FAQ sections with voice memos and videos to answer questions, allowing the client to solve their issue without direct contact with an employee. AI sales assistants are also becoming increasingly popular, helping customers find the correct products using a formulaic, question-based process.

Continuing Focus on Personalisation

Personalised experiences have always been important when it comes to customer satisfaction. But with the rise of information and digital content, they’ve become increasingly vital to business success. In fact, 60% of consumers surveyed agreed that a lack of personalised experiences could reduce their loyalty to a brand, showing just how crucial this strategy is.

Personalisation in business can mean many things, including:

  • Using cookies and AI to recommend products related to those the customer has already bought
  • Only emailing them content that’s relevant to their interests
  • Offering discounts and promotions on relevant products/services

In a nutshell, personalisation ensures that everything a customer receives from your brand is tailored to their needs and desires. If they’ve been buying printers, for example, you may email them to let them know that printer ink is on sale, but not when golf clubs are discounted. Consumers want content that’s useful to them, and personalisation ensures you deliver.

Client Events Must Make an Impression

As the cost of living crisis continues and inflation tightens our purse strings, every penny counts in business. However, you can’t stop investing money into customer experiences. Instead, you need to ensure that what you do spend counts.

This is particularly true when it comes to customer events. Treating top clients to days out is a fantastic way to build relationships, gain trust, and nudge out competitors. In 2023, your focus should be on hosting events that maintain an impeccable standard, ensuring your funds are appropriately used to maximise your ROI and avoid wasted money. Explore corporate hospitality and VIP packages such as The Green Room experience, where your client has the opportunity to meet some of the most recognisable faces in sports — usually only seen on the big screen.

The Consumer Is In Charge

If you’re still forcing your clients to go through an Interactive Voice Response system when they call you, stop! In 2023, customers want to control their own narratives, not be forced to follow yours. Rather than wasting time talking to a robot that’s trying to solve their problems, give your clients options at the beginning of the call. They can either:

  • Talk to an AI chatbot
  • Access a knowledge base
  • Talk to a member of your customer service team

This applies to online communications, too. By asking your customers how they want to interact with you, you enhance their experience and make solving problems a breeze.

Brands Are Becoming Phygital

In 2023, ‘phygital’ is going to become an important buzzword. Brands and consumers alike are used to digital customer experiences, such as websites and social media profiles, but the phygital is something completely new.

Phygital blends the physical and the digital for seamless, omnichannel interactions. For example, you may have QR codes on marketing posters in-store that your audience can scan to shop for products online. Or perhaps you use touch-screen tablets to make it easy for customers to find what they need or to order food in your restaurant.

In a world that’s becoming increasingly digital, phygital meets the tech demands of modern consumers without losing in-person charm. All of your marketing touchpoints can blend, too, creating a multi-faceted, cohesive way that clients interact with your brand.

Don’t Forget the Human Connection

We live in an increasingly digital world, but one of many things that the pandemic taught businesses is never to forget the human side of things.

After lockdowns, consumers value human connection more than ever. As we move into 2023, we can expect to see brands re-focusing to improve this aspect of their experience.

This could entail improving customer service and ensuring it’s easy for clients to reach a member of staff through any channel. But it could also dive deeper into emphasising human connection through digital experiences. For example, you may start hosting live videos on your social platforms, allowing you to interact directly with your audience and create a more human business persona.

There are more subtle forms of increasing human connection, too, such as through incorporating Natural Language Processing and Machine Learning within your chatbots. This will improve their linguistics and make them feel more human during interactions.

Final Words

Making your name in the business world can feel overwhelming, but by keeping up with trends, it becomes a whole lot easier! Stay ahead of the game and understand what your clients want with these predictions for customer experience trends.

Hopefully, this article was just what you needed to make 2023 the year of success.