How Customer Service Outsourcing Companies Can Move the Needle From ‘CX’ To ‘Customer Empathy’

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Over the past decade, a lot has been written about CX – that critical KPI ‘customer experience’. It has become its own science, with research, surveys and a wide range of data dedicated to deconstructing the psychology around this compelling business strategy. Yes, entire back-office systems have been built around CX with front-office apps and CX designers to support them.

But what about ‘customer empathy’ – that less touted principle, rooted in ‘empathetic business’ – which itself has been described as “the next competitive consumer battleground”. Empathy has emerged as a topic of importance, and many questions have been raised about how we can better empathize with each other as a society. Factor in a global pandemic that created deep pockets of human isolation, increased reliance on social media and the emergence of the digital realm as a bona fide business model, and we have to ask whether organizations can truly be empathetic towards their customers. And if so, how?

The thinking of the future is that in order to remain competitive, businesses must develop digital empathy as a strategy to supersede even that of being a customer experience-driven business. In other words, CX needs to encompass more than listening to customers or designing efficient journeys. Significant value needs to be added to the consumer exchange, and one way of achieving this is to understand and meet the emotional needs of your customers. Research shows that empathetic responses of customer service and help desk employees have a direct impact on brand perception. And in the volatile world of customer acquisition and retention – that’s everything.

In spite of this, there seems to be an empathy gap within many brands. In fact, although 70% of consumers believe empathy is a critical component of customer service, 39% feel their emotional state is not particularly understood by brands during those interactions. Further research states that “it is imperative that brands are able to understand the importance of being empathetic with customers at the right time, on the right channels, while ensuring that the human touch remains”.

Now that many of the customer interactions have become ‘transactional’, either as a result of self-serve, automation or touch technology, it has never been more important that when customers do speak to someone, the exchange is personal, personable and connective. More and more businesses are turning to highly specialized customer service outsourcing companies like Anexa, for CX and customer empathy expertise.

Anexa agents are trained to represent all brands with authenticity, and our initiative – “get to know what your audience is looking for” – is literally founded on our core customer service principles of emotional intelligence and customer empathy. As a twenty-year veteran in the customer service industry, Anexa was awarded prestigious gold and bronze Stevie Awards in the 2021 Customer Service Department of the Year and Company of the Year; and was named a finalist in the 2021 Customer Centricity World Series. Yes, when it comes to CX, we know our stuff. Factor in that we specialize in bilingual services, with highly trained English and Spanish speaking agents, and it makes sense to consider this option.

Reach out to Anexa for more information.