OvationCXM Definitive Guide to Customer Journey Analytics User Guide
- June 1, 2024
- OvationCXM
Table of Contents
OvationCXM Definitive Guide to Customer Journey Analytics User Guide
Introduction
Rapid advancements in technology, coupled with the rise of social media and the proliferation of digital channels, is empowering customers like never before. In this world of dynamic customer engagement, traditional business approaches focused solely on products and services are no longer sufficient – the experience itself holds equal if not more importance.
Recent research shows that a significant majority of customers expect to have cohesive, less complicated journeys that tell them exactly how they are doing, what’s the next step, and where and how to quickly find help when they need it. By creating positive experiences for customers and employees, organizations are more likely to edge out their competitors and improve their bottom line.
Businesses must ask themselves two crucial questions to set themselves up for long-term success: “What do our customers want, and how can we fulfill their needs?” Answering these questions requires a robust customer journey analytics framework that empowers agile actions that allow teams to swiftly respond to ever-changing scenarios with intelligent insights. In this eBook, we outline the transformative power of customer journey analytics and how it can help your organization with insights, connectivity, and efficiency. We outline key functionalities to look for when examining customer journey analytics platforms, including AI-powered capabilities, that drive tangible business value and enhance customer experience. Whether you’re a C-suite executive, support team lead, product manager or operations-focused team member, you’ll learn how a datadriven focus on customer journeys is not only attainable but also a remarkable competitive advantage for those who master it.
Customer Journeys Are Often Frustrating and Complex
A customer’s lifecycle spans a customer’s total engagement with an organization, starting from their initial interaction and continuing until they become an active, paying user of its products and services. This overarching journey is made up of smaller journeys that are overseen and orchestrated by different organizational departments.
In today’s world, customer interactions are increasingly multi-channel, multi- event and multitouchpoint endeavors.
Unfortunately, many companies fail to deliver a compelling experience based on the customer journey. Some businesses excel in individual customer interactions but overlook the broader customer lifecycle, especially their post-purchase journeys. Others concentrate on internal operations based on their functional silos without considering the customer’s perspective. Neither of these approaches will lead to long-term success as customers ultimately evaluate their experience with a brand based on the entirety of their relationship with the business, not just individual touchpoints.
Failure to connect every touchpoint and identify where, when and how journeys may be breaking will inevitably lead to subpar experiences.
And the implications of these poor experiences are very real, especially since most companies today are not able to adequately track journeys from start to finish.
According to OvationCXM’s 2022
Financial Services CXM Report:
To understand why customer journeys are often a source of frustration for both customers and employees, let’s walk through an example of applying for an auto loan.
Securing an auto loan often involves multiple parties in a journey that could span several weeks, if not months. In this example, Jane initiates an auto loan application with her preferred bank, providing the necessary documentation requested to start the process. Soon, third-party providers like vehicle appraisers and insurance companies become involved and Jane soon struggles to understand which additional documents she must submit and where, resulting in frustration and confusion. Several calls, chats and emails later, Jane submits all the required documentation to the bank. The bank then coordinates with the involved third-party providers to complete the loan approval process. Jane, who is eager to get her loan approved and is following up with several very courteous bank employees, has no view into her application’s progress. When her loan is eventually approved, Jane experiences delays in the disbursement of the loan amount because of confusion and miscommunication between the bank and involved partners. This disconnected, opaque experience leaves Jane rightfully dissatisfied and actively open to moving her business elsewhere despite the polite and prompt service she received during each stage of her journey. When Jane eventually walks away from her bank, they are left wondering why – after all, she had excellent service at every touchpoint!
Complex and Frustrating Auto Loan Journey
What is Customer Journey Analytics, and Why is it Important?
A strong customer journey analytics framework would have allowed the bank to understand exactly where they were failing Jane.
Customer journey analytics refers to the process of collecting and analyzing customer data across their end-to-end journeys to identify trends and patterns that can contribute to improved experiences. With journey analytics, businesses can track the data associated with any and all of their individual interactions across cross-functional stages, ideally including stages that involve third-party providers.
In this way, customer journey analytics is more than simply aggregating customer data in a business intelligence (BI) tool or Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software for basic analysis. It’s all about connecting event- based, time-series data for a single journey from multiple sources across multiple systems instantaneously, and leveling it up to identify trends and patterns across all journeys. The result? You build the best possible experience for every customer; intervene at the exact right time they need you to in their journey and facilitate unified touchpoints that improve customer retention, reduce revenue leakage and drive growth.
Customer journey analytics play a vital role in navigating complex business environments shaped by customer preferences. A 2023 report found that a whopping 76% of customers now expect companies to understand their needs and expectations – an upper-range statistic that is echoed across every industry.
Research shows that a significant majority of customers expect to have cohesive, less complicated journeys that tell them exactly how they are doing, what’s the next step, and where and how to quickly find help when they need it. Unsurprisingly then, McKinsey found that “companies that make extensive use of customer analytics are more likely to report outperforming their-kl competitors on key performance metrics, whether profit, sales, sales growth, or return on investment.”
Businesses that use a dedicated customer analytics platform often report the following results:
Customer Journey Analytics in Action
Let’s stick with Jane’s auto-example to see how a powerful customer journey analytics platform could have helped.
When Jane initiates an auto loan application with her preferred bank, the bank’s connected and powerful AI-powered customer journey analytics platform analyzes Jane’s interactions and detects her struggle in understanding the additional documents required and their submission process. Bank employees engage in real-time conversations with Jane, clarifying the requirements, and providing step-by-step guidance on where and how to submit the necessary documents. Through this conversational assistance, Jane’s frustration and confusion are alleviated, ensuring she has a clear understanding of the application process. As the process continues, the bank tracks Jane’s interactions with third-party providers, identifying any bottlenecks or delays in communication. When bank employees see a stalled journey with their partners, they can intervene and facilitate smoother collaboration between all parties which helps to minimize confusion and miscommunication. Jane can see her journey progress easily and receives regular updates from the bank, allowing her to track the status of her loan application in real-time. This transparency reduces her anxiety and frustration, as she always knows where she stands in the process. When her loan is eventually approved, the bank uses the insights from the analytics platform to streamline the disbursement process. They identify potential areas of confusion and miscommunication between the bank and its partners, taking proactive steps to address them. As a result, the disbursement of the loan amount is expedited, minimizing delays and ensuring a smoother experience for Jane.
Thanks to the real-time insights provided by the customer journey analytics platform, Jane’s overall experience with the bank is significantly improved. She no longer feels disconnected or dissatisfied due to the bank’s proactive approach in addressing her pain points and providing a transparent and seamless journey. As a result, Jane remains a loyal customer, appreciating the excellent service she received at every touchpoint, and the bank avoids losing her business.
With the right platform, the bank should also be able to gain a comprehensive view of journeys that are similar to Jane’s, including a snapshot of the precise points of friction or areas where customers may be stuck. This 30,000 foot view will provide quick insight into how well journeys are flowing, allowing business teams to design, build and deliver future journeys without the kinds of bottlenecks Jane experienced.
Support CX across the Full Customer Lifecycle with Customer Journey Analytics
“Even though customer experience (CX) leaders are becoming increasingly focused on optimizing their firms’ customer journeys, they face a clear challenge: Which touchpoints along the journey should they invest in? That is, which moments when the customer interacts with their brand are most impactful to their overall experience?”
– Harvard Business Review, 2023
Comprehensive customer journey analytics can help provide businesses with insights into complex queries that across the most important touch points across their lifecycle. For instance, some of the key questions across pre- purchase, purchase, product experience and post-purchase experiences you may solve for include:
- How do customers discover your business?
- What paths do customers take before making a purchase?
- Where do customers experience friction or obstacles in the purchasing journey?
- How do different customer segments interact with our business?
- What are the common customer drop-off points?
- What are the most common customer behaviors and actions throughout the customer journey?
- What are all the products this customer has?
- Does the customer have any outstanding issues with my partner/vendors?
- Does the customer have multiple relationships with us (E.g. personal and business)?
- What is the average duration of the customer journey, from initial contact to conversion?
- What is the impact of customer support interactions on the overall customer journey?
- How does customer sentiment change throughout the customer journey?
- What are the cross-sell or upsell opportunities?
- How can businesses proactively address potential customer churn points in the journey?
- How can we improve customer retention and loyalty?
- How can we optimize the overall customer experience?
8 Essential Functionalities of Customer Journey Analytics Platforms
Today, most businesses have not invested in customer experience management (CXM) platforms that include dedicated customer journey analytics.
Instead, they attempt to address the questions we described in the last section with either their BI tools, CRM platforms, core platforms, website and app analysis, customer behavior analysis and/or heatmaps. While each of these tools were built for a specific analytical purpose, they do not provide the cohesive insight required to offer more comprehensive and automated analysis capabilities across multiple sources. Furthermore, with the explosion of customer journey analytics and intelligence tools over the past year, it can be confusing to vet available solutions against precise needs.
With that said, here are key functionalities to look for when looking for a customer journey analytics solution to meet your needs:
AI-powered Journey Summarization
AI-powered Journey Optimization
Visibility on Customer Experience and Sentiment Analysis
Customer Health and Churn Prediction
Journey Health and Performance Evaluation
Visibility into Partner Journeys
Support Agent Productivity and Customer-Facing Tasks
CX Experience Automation and Workflow Optimization
8 Essential Functionalities of Customer Journey Analytics Platforms
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AI-powered Journey Summarization
A cutting-edge customer journey analytics platform should integrate with the power of Generative AI to summarize both individual and collective customer journeys concisely. AI-powered journey summarization capabilities enable businesses to extract key insights, identify patterns in customers behavior and understand the customer journey in as little as three to five lines. Additionally, strong AI-powered journey summarization capabilities can identify any blockers that hinder smooth progression throughout the journey. By providing concise summaries and identifying potential obstacles, organizations can quickly intervene, communicate and collaborate directly with the customer and across internal teams and third-party providers. -
AI-powered Journey Optimization
AI-powered customer journey analytics platform should provide metrics and actionable insights to optimize customer journeys. AI-powered solutions should demonstrate the ability to analyze vast amounts of data and identify areas for improvement. These insights enable businesses to automate certain steps, modify processes, and progress customer journeys more efficiently. -
Visibility on Customer Experience and Sentiment Analysis
Understanding customer sentiment and monitoring the overall customer experience are crucial for businesses striving to improve satisfaction and retention rates. A comprehensive analytics platform should offer the ability to track customer sentiment throughout the entire customer experience journey lifecycle. -
Customer Health and Churn Prediction
Look for solutions that give you a good sense of customer health, which refers to a holistic view of customer interactions across different touchpoints. Doing so can allow your business to predict churn and identify at-risk customers, allowing you to take proactive retention measures. Understanding long-term customer value and retention patterns helps organizations tailor their strategies and deliver personalized experiences that foster loyalty and drive growth – an incredibly important requirement in today’s hyper- competitive environment. -
Journey Health and Performance Evaluation
In addition to individual customer health, it is crucial to evaluate the overall health and performance of customer journeys.
A robust analytics platform should provide a comprehensive overview of journey metrics, including the ability to pinpoint bottlenecks, optimize processes, and ensure smooth transitions between journey stages. -
Visibility into Partner Journeys
For businesses operating within an ecosystem of third-party providers, understanding partner journeys and seeing whether customers are progressing in these journey stages is essential. Investing in a platform that gives you visibility into journeys that span multiple organizations is critical as it allows you to view exactly where your customer is on their journey even when the next action is owned by an external organization. -
Support Agent Productivity and Customer-Facing Tasks
Efficient support agent productivity is vital for delivering exceptional customer service. A comprehensive analytics platform should provide insights into both internal and customer-facing tasks. By analyzing the number and complexity of internal tasks, organizations can streamline workflows and identify areas for improvement. Additionally, understanding customer-facing tasks helps businesses assess the need for knowledge libraries, notifications, or other resources to empower support agents and enhance the overall customer experience. -
CX Experience Automation and Workflow Optimization
To improve both internal workflows and customer experiences, a customer journey analytics platform should facilitate CX experience automation. By identifying the duration customers spend on specific activities within the journey, the platform can prompt suggestions for areas that can be automated. This analysis not only aids in optimizing customer experiences but also provides insights into building automation for continuous workflow improvement.
Conclusion
A comprehensive and powerful customer journey analytics platform is no longer a nice-to-have tool for businesses striving to deliver exceptional experiences. and drive sustainable growth in today’s dynamic marketplace.
CXMEngineⓇ is OvationCXM’s enterprise-ready no/low-code SaaS platform that empowers companies to manage their customer experience from end-to-end with precise control. It’s the first of its kind to bolt onto an organization’s legacy systems, extending their value and acting as a central hub that aggregates all customer interaction data across systems, technologies and partner platforms into one screen. It is also the most powerful platform on the market that connects both front-end and back-office functions to improve the total experience for customers and employees.
CXMEngine offers powerful real-time Reports & Dashboards, including powerful
journey-specific analytics that help businesses analyze customer data in real-
time to uncover valuable patterns and insights. Armed with these insights,
companies can effortlessly measure and report on the effectiveness of their
journey orchestration initiatives, all in real-time. Moreover,
our platform empowers businesses to identify areas of customer frustration and
friction and continuous improvement and optimization over time.
With OvationCXM, executives, senior management and team managers get a 10,000 foot view of all customer journeys in action, including how many customers are in each journey; what stages they may be stuck in, and for how long. Leaders can take actions to keep customers moving through their journeys and manage exceptions as needed.
Unlike other offerings, CXMEngine supports real-time, interactive customer journey analytics that includes a view into ecosystem partner journey and journey health. Our powerful AI capabilities excel in organizing and aggregating vast amounts of data so that businesses can make data-driven decisions instantly and enhance their customer journeys for superior results.
Want to see OvationCXM’s how customer journey analytics capabilities can take your CX delivery to the next level?
Visit ovationcxm.com today and see CXMEngine in action.
OvationCXM is the market-leading customer experience management
(CXM) provider that helps organizations identify friction in the customer
experience. It’s an all-in-one platform to build, manage, and track customer
journeys across every digital, internal back-office, and partner ecosystem
touchpoint. Clients have significantly decreased customer churn, tripled NPS
and ENPS scores, improved partner collaboration, and increased revenue.
OvationCXM’s expansive aggregation of operational and experience analytics,
generative and conversational AI, and knowledge management adds fuel to
customer journeys and deepens the comprehensive view of the customer’s total
engagement with organizations and their internal systems and partners
throughout the customer journey, so transformation happens in real-time.
Customer journeys are complex, but building and managing them doesn’t have to
be. To learn more, visit ovationcxm.com.
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