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Trend 3

Emphasis on agility

Facing continued volatility, teams must find ways to quickly adapt to the changing needs of their customers.

Section 1

In uncertain times, agility is key

The only constant is change, and with 2020 being the most volatile year in recent memory, companies are looking to build greater flexibility into their support teams. CX leaders cited the ability to quickly adapt to the evolving needs of customers as their biggest pain point in 2020 and the highest priority going forward.

2020 sees unprecedented volatility in support requests

0015001500
From 1/5/2020 to 9/13/2020
From 1/5/2020 to 9/13/2020
20192020
Moving avg of weekly ticket volume
0015001500
Moving avg of weekly ticket volume
From 1/5/2020 to 9/13/2020
From 1/5/2020 to 9/13/2020
20192020
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Agility tops the post-COVID priority list

0%20%
Percentage of respondents who said it is a priority
40%60%80%
Adapt quickly and easily
Customer satisfaction
Customer retention
Cost savings
Conversion or acquisition
Processing tickets efficiently
Product adoption
Agent
Manager
80%60%40%20% 0%
Percentage of respondents who said it is a priority
Adapt quickly and easily
Customer satisfaction
Customer retention
Cost savings
Conversion or acquisition
Processing tickets efficiently
Product adoption
Agent
Manager
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Section 2

Boosting efficiency from within

To become more agile, support teams need to be able to quickly scale their operations, streamline workflows across teams, and find opportunities to reduce the demand on agents. More agents are now working across channels, which means they need to be able to easily shift between them to meet any changes in demand from customers. In fact, the number of so-called blended agents has jumped 30 percent compared to the previous year.

Companies, especially smaller ones, are also adding features to help boost collaboration and promote greater efficiency across teams. And support teams with the best track records in terms of speed, efficiency, and happy customers use more than twice as many of these workflow management tools as their lower performing peers.

Most agents use multiple channels

Percentage of surveyed CX agents
0%20%40%60%80%100%
How many communication channels (such as phone, email, chat, social media) do you use to engage with customers in a typical day?
One channel
Two channels
Three or more channels
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Percentage of surveyed CX agents
0%20%40%60%80%100%
How many communication channels (such as phone, email, chat, social media) do you use to engage with customers in a typical day?
One channel
Two channels
Three or more channels
Australia
Benelux
Brazil
France
Germany
India
Italy
Japan
Korea
Mexico
Nordics
Singapore
Spain
United Kingdom
United States
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How many communication channels (such as phone, email, chat, social media) do you use to engage with customers in a typical day?
One channel
Two channels
Three or more channels
Percentage of surveyed CX agents
0%20%40%60%80%100%
B2B
B2C
B2E
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Filter by:

Overall
80%100%60%40%20%0%
Percentage of surveyed CX agents
How many communication channels (such as phone, email, chat, social media) do you use to engage with customers in a typical day?
Two channels
One channels
Three or more channels
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Country
80% 100%60%40%20%0%
Percentage of surveyed CX agents
How many communication channels (such as phone, email, chat, social media) do you use to engage with customers in a typical day?
Two channels
One channels
Three or more channels
Australia
Benelux
Brazil
France
Germany
India
Italy
Japan
Korea
Mexico
Nordics
Singapore
Spain
United Kingdom
United States
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Use case
80%100%60%40%20%0%
Percentage of surveyed CX agents
How many communication channels (such as phone, email, chat, social media) do you use to engage with customers in a typical day?
Two channels
One channels
Three or more channels
B2BB2CB2E
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High performing support teams boost efficiency by using more workflow management tools

0%20604080
Median number of workflow tools companies are using
High performer
Average performer
Low performer
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Median number of workflow tools companies are using
High performer
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Low performer
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Section 3

Missed opportunities

Companies are seeking greater flexibility within their teams, but most are missing key opportunities to help them succeed. Self-service resources, like help centers, can intercept would-be tickets by directing customers to answers online. Though more companies are turning to AI-powered chatbots to help customers with common questions, usage rates are still low—particularly for smaller companies. And data access remains a persistent challenge for many, with less than half of agents able to access any kind of customer data that can help them better assist customers when they reach out.

AI remains an underutilized tool, despite adoption boost among larger firms

Percent of companies using AI
0%20%2020202140%60%
Enterprise
Overall
Midsize
SMB
0%20%60%40%
Percentage of companies using AI
20202021
Enterprise
Midsize
SMB
Overall
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Most agents don’t have access to the most common types of customer data

0%20%10%30%50%40%
Percentage of surveyed agents who do or don't have access
Can’t see customer data
Personal health information or data
Credit card used from last purchase
Recommended items
Information about customer’s device
Plan or subscription details
How a customer has used a product or service
Recent order status
Personal details (address, DOB, gender, etc)
Order and chat history
Enterprise
Midsize
SMB
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0%20%10%30%50%40%
Percentage of surveyed agents who do or don't have access
Can’t see customer data
Personal health information or data
Credit card used from last purchase
Recommended items
Information about customer’s device
Plan or subscription details
How a customer has used a product or service
Recent order status
Personal details (address, DOB, gender, etc)
Order and chat history
B2B
B2C
B2E
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Filter by:

Company size
50%40%30%20%10%0%
Percentage of surveyed agents who do or don't have access
Can’t see customer data
Personal health information or data
Credit card used from last purchase
Recommended items
Information about customer’s device
Plan or subscription details
How a customer has used a product or service
Recent order status
Personal details (address, DOB, gender, etc)
Order and chat history
Enterprise
Midsize
SMB
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Use case
50%40%30%20%10%0%
Percentage of surveyed agents who do or don't have access
Can’t see customer data
Personal health information or data
Credit card used from last purchase
Recommended items
Information about customer’s device
Plan or subscription details
How a customer has used a product or service
Recent order status
Personal details (address, DOB, gender, etc)
Order and chat history
B2B
B2C
B2E
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“We saw a 1,200 percent increase in parents contacting us and over a 750 percent increase in contacts from teachers…The ability to customize and set up complex rules to allow a truly seamless and well-organized user and agent experience is something that I really value, as well as the ability to track and report on all of those aspects.”

Laurie LeDuc

Head of Community Support, Khan Academy

NEXT CX TREND

The future of work is now

Explore Trends

  • 01

    Spotlight on CX

  • 02

    A more conversational world

  • 03

    Emphasis on agility

  • 04

    The future of work is now

  • 05

    The digital tipping point

  • Best practices

    Make the most of this year's trends

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