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Omnichannel Customer Service Stagnant Or Worse, According To New Consumer Survey

by eGain and Conducted by Forrester Consulting - September 30, 2015

Omnichannel customer service stagnant or worse, according to new consumer survey 

Customer service provided by businesses across touchpoints is worse or about the same as a year ago, according to 10,000 US consumers

Sunnyvale, CA: eGain (Nasdaq: EGAN), the leading provider of cloud customer engagement solutions, announced the findings of a survey of 10,000 consumers in the US. Sponsored by eGain and conducted by Forrester Consulting, the “State of Omnichannel Customer Service: 2015” survey assessed customer perceptions of omnichannel customer service, compared to a year ago.

Context

According to Accenture’s Global Consumer Pulse Research, 64% of consumers switched their business to another provider due to poor service in 2014. These defections created a “switching economy” worth $6.2 trillion dollars across 17 key markets, a 26% increase over 2010. In the same survey, only 11% of consumers strongly agreed that companies are effectively converging digital, mobile, social and traditional channels, widely referred to as “omnichannel customer service” today. To assess the current state of this vital imperative, which was at a low point in 2014, eGain commissioned Forrester Consulting to conduct a large-scale consumer survey.

Methodology

Note: Detailed information can be found at http://www.egain.com/resources/research/egain-forrester-socs-consumer-survey/.

10,000 US consumers were asked online if omnichannel customer service got better, stayed about the same or got worse, compared to a year ago. Specifically, they were asked to rate their experience in the following modes of service interaction: Multiple channels during the same interaction, multiple people (service personnel) in the same interaction, call center customer service, IVR self-service, web self-service, and agent-assisted web customer service.

Key findings

A majority of consumers rated customer service as “about the same” or “worse” in all the modes of customer service; the percentage for each mode is listed below:

  • Multiple channels in the same service interaction: 65%
  • Multiple people (service personnel) in the same service interaction: 70%
  • Call center customer service: 68%
  • IVR self-service: 67%
  • Web self-service: 63%
  • Agent-assisted web customer service: 61%

Viewpoints

“Disconnected point solutions and lack of knowledge, as evident from our previous consumer survey, disrupt customer journeys,” said Ashu Roy, eGain CEO. “An omnichannel customer engagement hub, powered by a smart knowledge engine, can help deliver easy, on-target service journeys, both for the customer and the agent.”

Ian Jacobs, et al. of Forrester Research write, “Today's consumers use many communication channels and touchpoints to request customer service. In addition, channel and touchpoint preferences change rapidly as new devices and modes of communication gain favor. Customers also expect contact center agents to be aware of any prior interactions they have had with a customer service organization. Make sure to build a well-integrated multichannel architecture, backed by a solid foundation of knowledge management, to support these consumer demands” in the report: “TechRadar™ For AD&D Pros: Contact Center Solutions For Customer Service, Q1 2015.”

About eGain

eGain customer engagement solutions power digital transformation for leading brands. Our top-rated cloud applications for social, mobile, web, and contact centers help clients deliver connected customer journeys in an omnichannel world. To find out more about eGain software, visit http://www.egain.com/products/

Headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, eGain has operating presence in North America, EMEA, and APAC. To learn more about us, visit www.eGain.com or call our offices: +1-800-821-4358 (US),
+44-(0)-1753-464646 (EMEA), or +91-(0)-20-6608-9200 (APAC).

eGain, the eGain logo, and all other eGain product names and slogans are trademarks or registered trademarks of eGain Corp. in the United States and/or other countries. All other company names and products mentioned in this release may be trademarks or registered trademarks of the respective companies.

 
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