As we method the tip of 2021, I’ve been reflecting on how firms have managed to maintain their customer-first method regardless of the difficulties of working throughout a pandemic.
Final yr, when the pandemic hit, companies around the globe shortly realized the significance of being extremely digital, and people that have been digital-first actually had a head begin in responding to prospects’ altering wants.
Companies that had arrange their construction with all customer-facing groups carefully aligned have been capable of make well-informed and quick choices. The mixture of digital instruments and processes, and well-aligned groups set firms as much as shortly feed knowledge into advertising, communications, schooling, product and digital responses to prospects.
Small companies are embracing digital instruments
In 2020, being extremely digital was thought of a ‘new method of working’. In 2021, it’s merely what number of companies now function and can proceed to take action nicely into the long run.
The advantages of this transfer to extra versatile, remote-style working was evident in latest analysis carried out by Xero. It revealed that digitally-enabled small companies have been considerably extra resilient all through the COVID-19 disaster, and outperformed their friends in most efficiency metrics. The analysis additionally revealed that the pandemic considerably boosted expertise uptake.
From a buyer expertise perspective, I’ve all the time believed that buyer assist was transferring in the direction of a brand new age of specializing in digital content material and self-service data. The pandemic merely accelerated this timeline.
A proactive assist expertise
Small enterprise homeowners typically do all of it – customer support, social media, accounts, logistics – on prime of their day-to-day enterprise. They’re more and more time-poor and increasingly are counting on expertise to assist remedy their issues. It’s faster, extra personalised, and is out there at any time of the day or night time.
With this in thoughts, we’re beginning to see a shift from quaint reactive buyer assist to a mannequin that predicts what prospects’ wants are. Companies like Xero are empowered to evolve their buyer assist frameworks. As an alternative of offering solely reactive one-on-one assist, extremely advanced buyer assist platforms not solely have practically each reply obtainable with the press of a mouse, however they harness expertise reminiscent of machine studying to assist reply their prospects’ questions, earlier than they even know they’ve them.
Training outdoors our core enterprise
The pressures and stresses of the pandemic prompted many customer-facing organisations to delve extra deeply into what different areas their prospects wanted assist. Further paperwork, grant purposes, and determining authorities restrictions all added to the day-to-day load that small enterprise homeowners consistently carry.
For us, this implies creating new assets to assist enterprise homeowners navigate fully new hurdles, together with understanding and making use of for presidency assist schemes, creating enterprise continuity plans, and taking care of their wellbeing. Clients and companions can select from programs, programmes, stay webinars and classroom occasions.
Xero buyer expertise in 2021
2021 has actually seen its share of challenges for the shopper expertise crew, together with a whole lot of our assist employees working from bedrooms, garages and eating tables around the globe for greater than 12 months. However I’m pleased with our crew and the way they’ve overcome the challenges of working by the pandemic. Some highlights within the buyer expertise area this yr embody:
- Xero prospects visited our digital buyer assist platform, Xero Central, greater than 20 million instances.
- Not each question will probably be resolved on-line, and for the 5 p.c who had extra complicated questions in 2021, our crew gave skilled and personalised recommendation to those prospects.
- Our crew continues to make 1000’s of outbound calls to prospects that want cellphone assist.
- Xero prospects and companions accomplished greater than three million on-line schooling experiences.
As we glance in the direction of 2022, I’m excited concerning the alternatives we now have to proceed to evolve our buyer assist mannequin, and supply much more worth to our prospects and companions. Within the meantime, I’d wish to want you all a really glad holidays.