The CX representative is the new Maven of this decade

Every profession goes through its gradient, the current decade has given a new meaning to the customer service representative. Across the globe, with the advent of technology, internet, IoT, etc. a substantial shift has happened towards the online purchase of goods & services, be it B2C or B2B. To add fuel to the fire, the current pandemic & environmental challenge has shifted the entire goalpost of expectations. Today’s CX representative is expected to be the maven advisor and not just a support mechanism.

There is a massive shift in customer expectation for Gen X, Millennial (Gen Y) and Gen Z as seen below:

• Be my emotionally connected buddy while I make my purchases, through whichever channel I select; be it self-service, non-voice, voice but guide me as a trusted advisor during my impulse purchases
• Know me, my whims & fancies, through my interactions across social media platforms, etc. and allow me to be in control of my actions
• In the current pandemic even the B2B world has undergone a complete 180-degree shift moving away from physical meetings for rapport building towards a virtual relationship manager concept on virtual platforms
• This decade & generation firmly believes in knowledge equivalence and are happy to share & learn from each other. For them, a CX representative is a knowledge bank and their expectations are whichever mode /channel of communication they interact with, should offer value.
• Loyalty especially for Gen Y & Z has a different connotation. They want you to be there on all mediums and allow me to be better informed to address my needs. Let it be a pull-based service or sale, not push based, as that switches me off.
• The more you tailor the information to my specific need, the more connected I will feel with the brand

How does the definition of customer experience change for today & tomorrow!

Customer experience representative must be the Maven

• For B2B clients the virtual CX representative, not only has to be an expert on his or her organizations products & services but is also expected to be a domain expert of the industry serving globally. The Virtual representative replaces the sales expert and must be very high on Emotional Quotient (EQ) & Social Intelligence (SI) to make the customer feel that they are interacting with one among them. The concept of having L1, L2, and L3 support in B2B is getting blurred. In today’s hyperconnected world, the expectation is that whosoever is my Virtual Relationship Manager (VRM), should be backed with technology & knowledge to address my needs then and there itself or as a corporate client I should be so well equipped with self-service options backed with data, knowledge & a cloud based platform for me to address my buying & service needs through a single click. Any product or service enhancement should be co-created between the consumer & service provider as a synergized team.
• For B2C customers, especially when addressing Gen Y & Z, one needs to have a very high EQ (emotional quotient) and this must be ingrained. Gone are the days when you just serve and be happy, now you have to connect with this generation to understand and capture both their said & unsaid needs and give them the solution again as if you are one of them and not by pushing your products or services. This generation likes to control their destiny and are very clear, that they do not want to be part of the herd mentality, but the dichotomy is they still need help to stand out. Here, the smart advisor’s role is truly evolving every few months as this segment of consumers like to try new avenues and are not scared to fail and are trying new exciting paths. Rather they don’t like the hierarchy culture as such, because they need emotionally connected customer service representatives who can think like them.

Why do service providers need to give heed to this new breed of consumers?

• At least for the current decade this community of consumers will be the dominant spenders, they have minimum tolerance level but a sharp business acumen
• They cannot be pushed into using channels of service like voice, email etc. instead they want pull-based i.e., their channel of choice. Non voice app-based self-service through AI/ML based Voice /Chat BOT etc. but if they reach out to the CX rep they need a Maven for sure to feel emotionally connected or else they will churn for no specific reason ( Loyalty for them is instant and not created through long term association)
• CX service providers need to wake up!! Gone are the days where one could differentiate through services. Today y you feel the turmoil due to this pandemic and how it is changing the industry. Every industry is yearning for new business & revenue and in this world of social distancing Customer Experience is the biggest bang for the buck. While serving customers & through Virtual relationship managers every CX service provider must co-create a model to generate new revenue for their existing & new clients. This needs a start-up mindset and willingness to invest in an earning culture which is just not training but deploying the same on every interaction.
• Jump out of the bandwagon and focus on the end customer. Being large has no meaning, so rather be nimble, be niche and you can fail with me but keep thinking aloud to suggest me how my customer is thinking and through emotional intelligence keep feeding me whenever there is a need to course correct. Expectation is to be my customers advisor and just don’t be happy by measuring NPS, CSAT, but rather invest with me wearing a true consultant’s hat. Don’t follow the age-old definition of L1, L2. Just kill it through knowledge-based customer experience representatives. Let them be the maven for my end customers.