Terms

Customer Experience

Customer experience is the overall perception a customer has of a company, shaped by every interaction throughout their journey with the brand. This perception is formed across all touchpoints, encompassing everything from marketing and sales to the product itself and customer service. It represents the cumulative feeling a customer has about the business, not just a single transaction.

Importance of Customer Experience

A strong customer experience is a powerful driver for business growth and a key competitive advantage. Companies that prioritize CX often see significant boosts in sales and revenue. In today's market, how a business delivers for its customers is as crucial as the products it sells.

Beyond financial gains, a positive CX builds lasting customer loyalty and strengthens brand reputation. Every interaction shapes perception, influencing a customer's decision to return and recommend the brand. This fosters trust and creates a resilient customer base.

Strategies to Enhance Customer Experience

Enhancing the customer experience requires a holistic approach that goes beyond single interactions. Companies should focus on creating a seamless and valuable journey for every customer. Key strategies involve understanding customer needs deeply and leveraging technology to deliver personalized, proactive support.

  • Journeys: Focus on the entire end-to-end customer path, not just individual touchpoints.
  • Personalization: Use data to tailor interactions, making each customer feel uniquely valued.
  • Omnichannel: Create a seamless and consistent experience across all digital and physical channels.
  • Feedback: Establish systems to collect, analyze, and act on customer input for continuous improvement.

Customer Experience vs. User Experience

While often used interchangeably, customer experience and user experience represent different scopes of a customer's interaction with a brand.

  • Customer Experience is the holistic perception of your brand, covering all touchpoints from advertising to support. A strong CX drives loyalty and revenue but can be complex to manage. It's a key focus for enterprises and mid-market companies aiming to build long-term relationships and differentiate on service, not just product.
  • User Experience focuses specifically on a person's interaction with a product, like a website or app. Good UX improves usability and satisfaction for that touchpoint. While more targeted, a poor UX can harm the broader customer perception. It's crucial for companies whose primary customer interaction is through a digital product.

Measuring Customer Experience Success

Measuring customer experience success requires a mix of qualitative and quantitative data to get a full picture. Companies use specific metrics to gauge loyalty, satisfaction, and the ease of customer interactions. This data helps identify pain points and areas for improvement.

  • NPS: Gauges customer loyalty by asking how likely customers are to recommend your company.
  • CSAT: Measures short-term happiness with a specific product, service, or interaction.
  • CES: Assesses how easy it was for a customer to get their issue resolved or need met.

Trends in Customer Experience Management

The landscape of customer experience is rapidly evolving, driven by technology and rising customer expectations.

  • AI: Integrating artificial intelligence for predictive insights and automated, personalized service.
  • Personalization: Delivering hyper-relevant experiences tailored to individual customer needs and context.
  • Journeys: Shifting focus from isolated touchpoints to managing the entire end-to-end customer path.

Frequently Asked Questions about Customer Experience

How is customer experience different from customer service?

Customer service is a single touchpoint, while CX is the sum of all interactions a customer has with your brand. CX is a proactive, company-wide strategy, whereas customer service is often a reactive function focused on resolving specific issues.

Who is responsible for customer experience in an organization?

While a dedicated team may lead the initiative, CX is a shared responsibility. Every department, from marketing and sales to product and support, plays a role in shaping the customer's overall perception and journey with the company.

What is the business impact of investing in CX?

A strong CX drives significant ROI by increasing customer retention, lifetime value, and referrals. It creates a powerful competitive advantage, leading to higher revenue growth and a more resilient brand reputation in the market.

Other terms

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Revenue Operations KPIs

Revenue Operations KPIs are quantifiable metrics that track the performance, efficiency, and health of a company's revenue-generating engine.

Revenue Operations KPIs

Customer Centricity

Customer centricity is a business approach that puts the customer at the heart of every decision, aiming to build loyalty and long-term value.

Customer Centricity

Sales Team Management

Sales team management is the process of leading, coaching, and motivating a sales team to achieve its sales goals and drive revenue growth.

Sales Team Management

AppExchange

AppExchange is Salesforce's cloud marketplace, offering a vast ecosystem of apps and expert services to extend Salesforce functionality.

AppExchange

Customer Acquisition Cost

Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) is the total cost a business spends to gain a new customer. It includes all sales and marketing expenses.

Customer Acquisition Cost

Business Continuity

Learn about business continuity, including understanding key components, steps to ensure continuity, common challenges, & best practices.

Business Continuity

SDK

A Software Development Kit (SDK) is a set of tools that allows developers to create applications for a specific software package or platform.

SDK

FAB Technique

The FAB technique is a sales framework connecting product features to advantages and then to the specific benefits for the customer.

FAB Technique

Sentiment Analysis

Sentiment analysis, or opinion mining, automatically determines the emotional tone behind text—whether it's positive, negative, or neutral.

Sentiment Analysis

Spiff

A spiff is a short-term sales incentive, often a cash bonus, paid directly to a salesperson for selling a specific product or service.

Spiff

DMP

A Data Management Platform (DMP) is a tech platform used to collect and manage data, mainly for digital marketing and advertising campaigns.

DMP

Robotic Process Automation

Robotic Process Automation (RPA) uses software bots to mimic human actions and automate repetitive, rules-based tasks on digital systems.

Robotic Process Automation

Contact Discovery

Contact discovery is the process of finding accurate contact details for potential leads, including names, emails, phone numbers, and job titles.

Contact Discovery

Sales Velocity

Sales velocity is a key metric measuring the speed at which your company makes money. It shows how fast deals move through your sales pipeline.

Sales Velocity

CI/CD

CI/CD, or Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery, automates software builds, tests, and deployments for faster, more reliable releases.

CI/CD

Territory Management

Territory management is the process of segmenting customers into groups by geography or other factors to optimize sales efforts and resources.

Territory Management

SPIN Selling

SPIN selling is a sales technique using a sequence of questions—Situation, Problem, Implication, Need-Payoff—to uncover a buyer's needs.

SPIN Selling

Applicant Tracking System

An Applicant Tracking System (ATS) is a software application that manages your entire hiring and recruitment process from a single dashboard.

Applicant Tracking System

Buying Cycle

The buying cycle is the journey a customer takes from first realizing they have a need to making the final purchase decision.

Buying Cycle

Cross-Site Scripting

Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) is a web security vulnerability that allows attackers to inject malicious scripts into trusted websites.

Cross-Site Scripting

Accounts Payable

Accounts Payable (AP) is the money a company owes its suppliers for goods or services bought on credit. It's listed as a current liability.

Accounts Payable

Data Privacy

Data privacy is an individual's right to control their personal information, including how it's collected, processed, stored, and shared.

Data Privacy

Sales Key Performance Indicators

Sales Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are quantifiable metrics used to measure how effectively a sales team is achieving its key objectives.

Sales Key Performance Indicators

Sales Automation

Sales automation uses software to streamline and automate repetitive, manual sales tasks, freeing up reps to focus on selling.

Sales Automation

Event Marketing

Event marketing is a strategy where brands engage directly with target audiences through live events like trade shows, conferences, or webinars.

Event Marketing

Buying Process

The buying process is the journey a customer takes from first realizing a need to making a final purchase decision and evaluating it afterward.

Buying Process

Canary Releases

A canary release is a deployment strategy where new software is rolled out to a small user group first, minimizing risk before a full release.

Canary Releases

Request for Quotation

A Request for Quotation (RFQ) is a document that a company sends to one or more suppliers to get a quote for specific products or services.

Request for Quotation

API

An API (Application Programming Interface) is a software intermediary that allows two applications to talk to each other and exchange information.

API

Content Management System

A Content Management System (CMS) is software for creating, managing, and modifying website content without needing specialized technical skills.

Content Management System

Network Monitoring

Network monitoring is the continuous process of tracking a computer network's performance and health to detect and resolve issues proactively.

Network Monitoring

CPQ software

CPQ (Configure, Price, Quote) software is a sales tool for creating accurate, configurable quotes for complex products and services.

CPQ software

Drupal

Drupal is a free, open-source content management system (CMS) for building websites and applications. It's known for its robust flexibility.

Drupal

Custom API integration

A custom API integration is a bespoke connection between software, enabling them to communicate and share data to meet unique business requirements.

Custom API integration

Net New Business

Net new business is revenue from customers who have never purchased from your company before. It’s a crucial indicator of sustainable growth.

Net New Business

Sales Methodology

A sales methodology is the framework that guides how your sales team approaches the entire sales process, from prospecting to closing deals.

Sales Methodology

Freemium Models

A freemium model offers a product's basic features for free, enticing users to upgrade to a paid version for more advanced capabilities.

Freemium Models

Use Case

A use case is a detailed description of how a user interacts with a system to achieve a specific goal, outlining the steps from start to finish.

Use Case

Sales Engineer

Sales Engineers blend deep technical knowledge with sales acumen, demonstrating a product's value and solving customer problems to drive revenue.

Sales Engineer

B2B Data Solutions

Learn about B2B data solutions, including unlocking the power of B2B data, & key components of effective B2B data solutions.

B2B Data Solutions

Account Mapping

Account mapping is comparing your customer list with a partner's to find common prospects and unlock new sales opportunities.

Account Mapping

Generic Keywords

Generic keywords are broad search terms that lack specific details like brand or location. They attract a wide audience with less specific intent.

Generic Keywords

Inbound Lead Generation

Inbound lead generation is the process of attracting potential customers to your business with valuable content and tailored experiences.

Inbound Lead Generation

Hybrid Sales Model

A hybrid sales model blends traditional and digital sales methods to engage customers across multiple channels and buying preferences.

Hybrid Sales Model

Consultative Selling

Consultative selling is an approach where salespeople act as expert advisors, diagnosing customer needs to provide the most suitable solutions.

Consultative Selling

Private Labeling

Private labeling is when a company rebrands a product made by a third-party manufacturer and sells it as their own.

Private Labeling

Salesforce Administrator

A Salesforce Administrator is a certified professional who manages and customizes the Salesforce platform to meet a company's specific business needs.

Salesforce Administrator

User-generated Content

User-generated content (UGC) refers to any form of content, like images, videos, or text, created and shared by users on online platforms.

User-generated Content

B2B Marketing Channels

Learn about B2B marketing channels, including maximizing B2B channel effectiveness, & exploring digital vs. traditional channels.

B2B Marketing Channels

AI-Powered Marketing

AI marketing uses artificial intelligence to analyze data, automate decisions, and deliver personalized customer experiences at scale.

AI-Powered Marketing

Sales Training

Sales training is the process of honing a salesperson's skills and knowledge to enhance their effectiveness and drive sales success.

Sales Training

Hadoop

Hadoop is an open-source framework designed for the distributed storage and processing of extremely large data sets across clusters of computers.

Hadoop

Sales Presentation

A sales presentation is a formal pitch by a salesperson to a prospective customer, showcasing a product or service to secure a sale.

Sales Presentation

Logo Retention

Logo retention is a key B2B metric that measures a company's ability to retain its customers, or 'logos,' over a specific period.

Logo Retention

Business Intelligence

Learn about business intelligence, including key components of business intelligence, the role of BI in decision making, business intelligence tools and techniques.

Business Intelligence

Page Views

Page views count the total number of times a page on your website is loaded. This metric is a key indicator of your site's overall traffic.

Page Views

SEO

SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is increasing the quantity and quality of traffic to your website through organic search results.

SEO

Customer Loyalty

Customer loyalty is a customer’s devotion to a brand, shown by their repeat purchases and engagement, driven by positive experiences and trust.

Customer Loyalty

Enrichment

Enrichment is the process of adding third-party data to your existing customer profiles to get a more complete picture of your leads.

Enrichment

B2B2C

Learn about B2B2C, including benefits of B2B2C model, key strategies for B2B2C success, & B2B2C vs. B2C vs. B2B: understanding the differences.

B2B2C

Channel Marketing

Channel marketing is a strategy where a company sells its products or services through third-party partners, like resellers or affiliates.

Channel Marketing

Consumer Relationship Management

Consumer Relationship Management (CRM) is a strategy for managing all of a company's relationships and interactions with its customers.

Consumer Relationship Management

Retargeting Marketing

Retargeting marketing is a digital advertising strategy that targets users who have previously interacted with your website or brand online.

Retargeting Marketing

Feature Flags

Feature flags let you remotely control features in your app without new code. This enables safe testing, gradual rollouts, and quick rollbacks.

Feature Flags

SEM

Search Engine Marketing (SEM) is a digital marketing strategy that uses paid tactics to increase a website's visibility in search engine results.

SEM

Buying Intent

Buying intent is the collection of online cues and behaviors that signal a prospect is actively researching and moving toward a purchase decision.

Buying Intent

Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR)

Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) is the predictable, recurring income a business expects to receive each month from all active subscriptions.

Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR)

Buyer's Journey

The buyer's journey maps the path a potential customer takes, from first becoming aware of a problem to making a final purchase decision.

Buyer's Journey

Customer Journey Mapping

Customer journey mapping is the process of creating a visual story of your customers' interactions with your brand across all touchpoints.

Customer Journey Mapping

Artificial Intelligence in Sales

AI in sales uses smart technology to automate repetitive tasks, analyze customer data, and help sales reps close deals more efficiently.

Artificial Intelligence in Sales

Pay-per-Click (PPC)

Pay-per-click (PPC) is an ad model where you pay a fee each time your ad is clicked. It's a method of buying targeted visits to your website.

Pay-per-Click (PPC)

Account Management

Account management is the post-sales practice of building and nurturing long-term relationships with a company's most valuable clients.

Account Management

Cold Calling

Cold calling is a sales tactic where reps contact potential customers by phone who haven't previously expressed interest in their product or service.

Cold Calling

Employee Engagement

Employee engagement is the emotional commitment an employee has to their organization, motivating them to contribute to the company's success.

Employee Engagement

Incident Response

Incident response is an organization's systematic approach to managing and mitigating the aftermath of a security breach or cyberattack.

Incident Response

Value-Added Reseller

A Value-Added Reseller (VAR) is a company that adds features or services to an existing product, then resells it as an integrated solution.

Value-Added Reseller

Ransomware

Ransomware is a type of malicious software that encrypts a victim's files, holding them hostage until a ransom is paid for the decryption key.

Ransomware

Jobs to Be Done Framework

The Jobs to Be Done (JTBD) framework focuses on understanding customer needs by identifying the specific 'job' they are trying to accomplish.

Jobs to Be Done Framework

Purchase Buying Stage

The purchase stage is when a buyer has decided on a solution and is ready to buy. They're comparing vendors to make a final choice.

Purchase Buying Stage

Account-Based Sales

Account-Based Sales (ABS) is a focused B2B strategy where sales and marketing teams treat high-value accounts as individual markets of one.

Account-Based Sales

Marketing Attribution

Marketing attribution is the process of identifying which touchpoints contribute to a conversion and assigning value to each of them.

Marketing Attribution

Social Proof

Social proof is a psychological phenomenon where people assume the actions of others reflect correct behavior for a given situation.

Social Proof

Account-Based Marketing

Account-Based Marketing (ABM) is a focused B2B strategy where marketing and sales collaborate to target and convert high-value accounts.

Account-Based Marketing

Customer Lifetime Value

Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) is the total revenue a business expects from a customer throughout their entire relationship with the company.

Customer Lifetime Value

Nurture Campaign

A nurture campaign is a series of automated messages designed to build relationships with potential customers and guide them toward a purchase.

Nurture Campaign

Outbound Sales

Outbound sales is when reps proactively contact potential customers through cold calls or emails to generate leads and build a sales pipeline.

Outbound Sales

Product Qualified Lead

A Product Qualified Lead (PQL) is a user who has experienced a product's value, signaling a strong potential to convert to a paid customer.

Product Qualified Lead

Serviceable Obtainable Market

Serviceable Obtainable Market (SOM) is the portion of the market you can realistically capture with your current resources, sales, and marketing.

Serviceable Obtainable Market

Inside Sales Metrics

Inside sales metrics are quantifiable measures used to track the performance, activities, and effectiveness of an internal sales team.

Inside Sales Metrics

Customer Success

Customer Success is a business strategy focused on proactively helping customers achieve their goals with your product or service.

Customer Success

Tire-Kicker

A tire-kicker is a prospect who shows interest in a product but has no intention of buying, wasting a salesperson's time and resources.

Tire-Kicker

Sales Workflows

Sales workflows are a set of automated actions that streamline the sales process, helping teams engage leads consistently and close deals faster.

Sales Workflows

Digital Analytics

Digital analytics is the analysis of data from digital channels to understand user behavior and optimize online experiences for business goals.

Digital Analytics

Economic Order Quantity

Economic Order Quantity (EOQ) is the ideal order quantity a company should purchase to minimize its total inventory-related costs.

Economic Order Quantity

Always Be Closing

“Always Be Closing” (ABC) is a sales mantra meaning every action a salesperson takes should be with the ultimate goal of closing the sale.

Always Be Closing

Video Prospecting

Video prospecting is the sales technique of sending personalized videos to potential customers to grab their attention and secure more meetings.

Video Prospecting

Employee Advocacy

Employee advocacy is the promotion of an organization by its staff members, who share positive messages and content through their personal networks.

Employee Advocacy

Data Hygiene

Data hygiene is the practice of ensuring your customer data is clean, accurate, and up-to-date by removing duplicates and correcting errors.

Data Hygiene

Sales Prospecting

Sales prospecting is the process of identifying potential customers, or prospects, and initiating contact to convert them into paying customers.

Sales Prospecting

Load Balancing

Load balancing is the practice of distributing incoming network traffic across a group of backend servers, ensuring no single server is overworked.

Load Balancing