customer

CustomerZone360 NEWS

Free eNews Subscription

More Than Half of Executives Seek to Protect Customer Care from Cost-Cutting

By Tracey E. Schelmetic May 01, 2023

Companies today engage in a lot of ongoing cost optimization, for good reason. Costs can quickly spiral out of control and eat into profits if they’re not well controlled. But should customer engagement efforts be on the cost-cutting block? According to a new study, the answer is “no.”

Research by Information Services Group (ISG) found that a majority of executives worldwide consider customer experience a top strategic priority that is off limits to cost optimization efforts. The global ISG Buyer Behavior Study, which surveyed more than 250 senior executives in February 2023, found 48 percent of respondents cite customer experience as extremely important to their organization’s strategic direction, and 53 percent say they intend to “completely protect” customer experience from cost optimization programs. The findings will be detailed at the ISG Xperience Summit, May 15–16, at the San Francisco Marriott Union Square in San Francisco. The event will also feature corporate leaders who will discuss strategies for driving customer loyalty and leveraging data to create differentiating experiences.

Experts suggest that it’s not enough to calculate what companies can save by trimming customer support efforts. Companies also need to calculate the value of missed opportunities that result from poor customer care.

“Enterprises have successfully created friction-free experiences that are consistent across physical and digital platforms. Now they’re challenged by their customers to not only maintain but exceed that experience,” said Sush Apshankar, practice lead, ISG Data Analytics and AI/ML, and co-host of the ISG Xperience Summit. “In an uncertain economy when cost-cutting is the norm, the fact that enterprises are protecting customer experience programs from cost optimization shows they understand that solid, long-term customer relationships are truly foundational for growth and success.”

The study also noted that 33 percent of respondents to the ISG study said they will protect environmental, social, and governance (ESG) programs from cost optimization, reinforcing the importance of corporate values.


Edited by Greg Tavarez
Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. [Free eNews Subscription]

CustomerZone360 Contributor

SHARE THIS ARTICLE
Related Articles

Picture-Perfect Posts: Hookle's New Feature Redefines Social Media Creativity for Small Businesses

By: Greg Tavarez    12/5/2023

Hookle launched its latest feature: smart image suggestions based on AI and high-quality image stocks.

Read More

Cyara Acquires AI Testing Company QBox

By: Tracey E. Schelmetic    12/5/2023

AI-powered customer experience assurance solutions provider Cyara recently announced its acquisition of AI testing company QBox. The acquisition is ex…

Read More

Future of CX Expo Speaker Verint Recognizes Excellence in Customer and Employee Engagement

By: Greg Tavarez    12/4/2023

The Verint EMEA Innovate Awards recognized 28 organizations across eight categories for excellence in customer experience, employee engagement and dig…

Read More

Cisco's App Attention Index Finds Companies Aren't Meeting Customers' Digital Expectations

By: Tracey E. Schelmetic    12/4/2023

Cisco's latest report in its App Attention Index research series has uncovered escalating consumer expectations for the digital experience and increas…

Read More

Operata Introduces New Suite of Tools to Further Customer Experience Observability

By: Tracey E. Schelmetic    12/4/2023

Recently, Operata announced the general availability of its Harmony release, which introduces Tenor AI, a new suite of CX Observability tools for user…

Read More