Businesses are working to redefine the customer experience from start to finish. They are recognizing that customers' ideas about what constitutes a good experience are changing dramatically. In today’s digital world there is the expectation that everything should be handled immediately through online interactions via social media, text messages, chat, email and more. To keep pace, businesses are digitally transforming themselves to engage better with customers - and in the process winning their loyalty.

Here are some of the trends that are moving businesses to digital transformation...

• People don't pick up the phone and call each other the way they used to. More often, they interact through social media, text messages, chat and email.

• People switch devices within a single conversation, with seamless handover from their laptop to their smart phone to their tablet. And they expect all of these conveniences to be available when they do business with your company.

• When customers communicate with a support person directly, they want their service level tailored accordingly from the moment they make contact.

• When a customer fills in a web form and starts a chat session, they expect the support person to know they've already done that so the issues do not have to be explained again.

• If they do pick up the phone and call, they expect the next customer support person to know the contact history, regardless of previous media used.

With 25% of the world's population now equipped with active social media accounts, good and bad customer experiences are shared almost instantly, so it pays to respond faster, more effectively and more comprehensively when addressing pre-sales and support issues.

Here are some of the ways in which these improved customer engagements are being accomplished:

Two-way social media conversations: When customers interact with a business online via social media, they expect a personalized and immediate response. More importantly, the two-way conversation is public, so others will be watching to see how the business addresses the problem.

Omni-channel communications: While a customer journey may begin on one channel, valuable insight and feedback may be taking place on a completely different channel. Unifying customer communications across channels gives businesses better context for their customers, helps resolve issues faster, and assists agents in identifying opportunities for future sales.

Better contact center analytics: Sophisticated analytics turn data – like call and screen recordings, chats, SMS messages and more – into useful feedback for agents. Analytics programs are being used to build statistical dashboards so agents and managers can get real-time updates on customer experiences.

More remote call center agents: With constantly improving and unified cloud communications, remote workers have become a permanent and beneficial part of the contact center environment. With collaboration tools, contact center agents can take their work mobile, with access to real-time analytics and customer context.

Delivering a good customer experience with seamless digital interactions is good business. It not only helps meet customer expectations, it wins customer loyalty – and that’s what is setting smart businesses apart from their competition.

Jeff Nolte is President and CEO of CTS, a leading voice and IT services provider based in Millersville, Maryland. He may be reached at (800) 787-4848 or jnolte@ctsmd.us.