2018 has been a pivotal year for customer experience (CX). Industry wide, there is now a deeper understanding of CX as a multi-faceted, complex, incredibly important piece in the success (or failure) of any brand.
With this in mind, we’ve rounded up the most important and fascinating CX predictions for 2019, and provided our own thoughts on what they mean and how they will impact businesses in future. To stay at the top of your game in the year ahead, it’s essential to understand larger CX trends and how they are shaping our world and our industry. Read on as we detail five fascinating CX predictions to inform your 2019 CX strategy.
There is no question that customer service is changing quickly. From website FAQs, to live chat options, to social media platforms, there are an increasing amount of channels which consumers can use to reach out for help. 
Ford started out with a dream: Build a horseless carriage affordable enough for every American household. He wanted Ford Motors to be special, not just another giant, aloof institution in the marketplace. Ford dreamed of an inspired business built upon customer-first principles and propelled by innovation. As history shows us with the Ford legacy, forward-thinking businesses with inspiration as a core part of their mandates yield inspired workforce, higher employee productivity, and increased customer loyalty.
We deal with a lot of buzzwords and phrases that saturate the customer service industry, some of which have become a little bit tired. One in particular that we really detest here at Fonolo is “Delight your customer”. Personally, when I hear that phrase, I experience a range of emotions. It seems to be healthy balance between shock (Why in the world would one use that phrase?) and sheer irritation (sort of akin to nails on a chalkboard!).
The field of customer service is very close to my heart. As a young student I worked as a customer service representative, and as a “young” professional, I’ve dedicated myself to a solution that 
Serving the public comes with its own pros and cons. The cons: It can be super difficult to meet everyone’s expectations. The pros: When you do, it’s incredibly rewarding; nothing is more satisfying than a happy customer. If someone calls you, and you’re able to take them from angry to being pleasantly surprised and thankful, it’s certainly an accomplishing feeling.
Any career that involves working with the public can be tiresome since making customers feel happy isn’t always the easiest task. You’re often relieved when they’re satisfied, while feeling helpless when they’re not. Unfortunately, 66% of 
How long is too long? Standards like 80/20 for the call center industry help to guide average speed of answer but the truth is, acceptable hold-time varies from industry to industry and from customer to customer. Even a second or two can jeopardize the entire experience in your customer’s eyes, and risk the possibility of an abandoned call. Whether your hold times are longer than the prescribed average or you’re hitting the 80/20 mark, it’s important to provide callers with an accurate expectation of wait time and respectful alternatives to waiting on hold such as a call-back. 
Most businesses understand the value of exceptional service and how it can make-or-break customer retention. The truth is, people genuinely remember positive interactions, specifically when phoning into your contact center, and they use those experiences to guide their shopping decisions. Surprisingly though, many organizations still need to be convinced that excellent customer service is essential to their success. They’re clearly stuck in a time when the key to winning customers was solely based on the quality of your product and not particularly in the service you deliver.
The multi-channel customer experience has raised a number of questions about how call centers should effectively measure the customer journey. More than ever before customers are moving across channels and devices to find support and purchase products. Whether it’s the phone, chat, social media, web, messenger or any number of channels, customers are doing a lot of things, in a lot of different places. Are all these touch-points working in synchrony, or are your customers pulling their hair out when they navigate from one to the other? That’s where customer journey tracking comes in; businesses can begin to understand their customer’s behaviors and uncover details that they otherwise wouldn’t catch. It can also measure how well each of these channels are working both individually and holistically.
