Customer Engagement Summit: The Key Highlights

“I’m looking to network, but mostly I’m looking to learn.”

This is what the majority of our delegates told us when we asked why they registered to attend the Customer Engagement Summit. This week, on November 28^th, they certainly had the opportunity to do so.

Taking place at The Brewery in London, our flagship event offered our delegates the chance to learn from speakers including NatWest, Heathrow, Ford, Tide, Harrods, Zendesk, BNP Paribas Real Estate, Formula E, OVO, Ipsos, Les Mills, and others. More specifically, the Customer Engagement Summit featured case studies, exclusive interviews, and panel discussions across 5 different halls. Bringing together more than 1,000 CX professionals, the event also presented numerous networking opportunities in the form of 1-2-1 meetings and roundtables.

WHAT IS THE CURRENT STATE OF CX?

The day began with a reveal of our ‘2023 Global Voices of Experience’ research, which we conducted in partnership with the multinational market research and consulting firm, Ipsos. Our research evaluates the recent experiences of 5,000 UK consumers, with 9,408 experience evaluations across 7 industries and 73 touchpoints.

The findings were stark, revealing that a whopping 47% of consumers describe their experiences as ‘nothing notable’ (or ‘meh’). What is more, 30% of CX professionals have admitted that their experience is worse than promised and only one-third of consumers strongly agree that their experience is clear or working as expected.

So, what should brands do to elevate their CX and deliver positive – and not just ‘meh’ – experiences? Take a human-centric approach focusing on the six forces of CX: Certainty, Fair Treatment, Control, Status, Belonging and Enjoyment.

Download the full UK CX report to learn more here.

ADDRESSING THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM

In 2023, it is impossible to hold a CX conference without addressing the rise of Artificial Intelligence. This topic was explored in depth by numerous speakers on the day, including Matthias Goehler, EMEA Chief Technology Officer at Zendesk.

Matthias presented several insightful findings and surprised the audience when he revealed that AI is estimated to have a $15.7 trillion contribution to the global economy; this is more than the current output of China and India combined. Increased productivity is expected to account for $6.6 trillion of this contribution, with the remaining $9.1 trillion stemming from increased consumer demand.

Zeroing in on what consumers want, Matthias shared that 67% of consumers predict AI will have a critical role in service. What is more, 71% want AI to create more personalised experiences.

“All services will be AI first,” Matthias claimed after sharing these findings.

INSPIRATIONAL HEADLINERS

Zendesk’s session was followed by an exclusive (and much anticipated) interview with the former Arsenal Captain, England Centurian and first female pundit for BBC and Sky Sports, Alex Scott MBE. Interviewed by the former World Badminton Champion Gail Emms MBE, Alex spoke about leadership and the qualities that make a good leader. She pointed out that while leaders are often perceived as being loud and assertive, it is those with the quietest voices that often have the most to say.

Alex also spoke about the importance of challenging yourself, learning from your ‘failures’, and changing your mindset to view your losses as lessons. These points were echoed by Gail, who noted that sports help teach you that losing does not equal failing.

Leaving the audience with a few tips for success, Alex advised turning your focus away from your weaknesses and working on turning your strengths into ‘super strengths’ that make you stand out.

“Once you are in a comfort zone, that’s when you stop achieving,” she stressed.

MEET OUR INDUSTRY LEADERS

At this event, we trialed our first ‘Meet our Industry Leaders’ interviews, putting the spotlight on the people instead of the organisations they work for. As part of these interviews, we wanted to share the career journeys of experienced professionals with the aim of inspiring our delegates.

One of the interviewees was Lindsay Mitchell, Head of Customer Service Experience at Harrods. Prior to joining Harrods, Lindsay spent over 20 years at Philips, where she worked her way up from Marketing Manager to Global Director of Customer Engagement and Care. Sharing her story, she said that when she left the marketing department to join customer care, her marketing director warned her that customer service was ‘an assignment, not a career’. Now, as the Head of Customer Service Experiences at Harrods, Lindsay advises:

“Don’t be afraid to jump in and try something different. You make your own luck.”

DIVE DEEPER

Over the coming days and weeks, we will delve deeper into the topics discussed at this event as we will be publishing post-event interviews, audio recordings of panel discussions and fireside chat sessions, as well as on-demand videos from case studies.

To engage with more content, download our November issue of the Engage Magazine here.