Brand loyalty is becoming increasingly complicated because it is driven by more than just the product or service it sells. It is a relationship of reciprocity in which the consumer seeks preferential treatment and to feel included in the community to which they want to belong. And the pandemic is largely to blame in this aspect, since it was in the context of confinement that the significant impact on the brand-customer relationship began.
The lack of face-to-face contact meant that many consumers were forced to become less personal and moved from face-to-face to embrace the digital format. But now customers have returned to engaging with brands in a more holistic way and are looking to return to that close contact they missed so much.
Many reports reveal that 53% of Generation Z consumers have started using a company’s services or products specifically because of the diversity of its customer service. Meanwhile, 46% of Gen Z consumers would stop buying from a company because of its corporate stance on social issues, well above the 35% of general consumers.
The contact center as key to the experience
The study results shed light on the challenges faced by companies when trying to engage customers from different demographics and cultures. To show empathy and establish a better relationship, brands not only have to meet the expectations of these different cohorts from a customer experience perspective, but also demonstrate that they are aligned with their environmental and social values.
This is where the role of the contact center comes in, as agents are charged with playing an increasingly important role in promoting a brand’s ethics. And they do so in defense of their brand’s values.
Thus, the contact center has managed to transcend basic customer support and agents have turned their role from answering calls to becoming the trusted advisors who guide customers through their customer journey. In fact, younger consumers are the ones who have become more aware of companies’ policies and actions within a broader social context. In addition, issues such as sustainability are among the top priorities for these younger consumers.
Agents have also become a new concept of brand ambassador. The people in charge of this position will need to understand and proactively respond to consumer needs. And while contact center agents are increasingly important in driving business growth, agent burnout remains a challenge for contact centers.
Faced with this reality, many companies have begun to take steps to better engage and retain agents as their strategic importance to business performance increases. And to keep them, they are investing in new technologies, with 78% of professionals saying that investing in digital tools is a priority for the organization.
Better agent conditions equal better customer experience.
These types of strategies are also done with the goal of boosting the company’s potential and seeing the company’s revenue grow. And it’s not subjective – more than 67% of organizations say their contact center is transforming or has already transformed into a profit center as a result of creating and maintaining more holistic strategies. This paradigm shift will require greater investment and new strategies. But today, the values associated with diversity, equity, sustainability and inclusion are crucial parts of a business strategy that can drive business performance as well as inspire customer loyalty. So creating a culture of transparency and mutual support that nurtures employees and facilitates innovation is one of the best ways to engage your workforce and, in the process, ensure that teams strive to deliver the best possible customer experience, as well as improve their image of your company.