Getting omni channel customer experience right

The UK continues to be extremely demanding in its needs for digital maturity with customers expecting a great deal from companies when it comes to digital interaction. Websites need to be responsive and we expect email and SMS as standard alongside conventional phone interaction. We also increasingly want webchat alongside our web usage with options to sign on and communicate through social media with authentication from our Facebook account. This multi-channel universe creates huge issues for companies as they try to keep pace with communications between channels and safe guard the customer from having to authenticate each time they switch through channels, e.g. Proving who they are in webchat but electing to switch to the phone and not expecting to have to go through this all over again. Getting this right and creating real omni-channel engagement means building this into the system architecture from the ground up and considering how you will move customer information between channels real time so you know that it is Jim Brown on the phone and he has been browsing for a new iPhone but has previously looked at Samsung and has been asking questions of the webchat team on 4G compatibility. Omni-channel means all this information is effortlessly moving between channels and the customer golden record is key and moves between them picking up fresh details at each step to help make the experience as epic as possible for our customer who is blissfully unaware of the complexity behind their omni channel euphoria. 

The British national health service - still something to be proud of?

In the uk we enjoy a national health service that provides healthcare for all irrespective of wealth or status. A cornerstone of British culture for decades which is the envy of many other parts of the world. This "free" healthcare is funded from the state through taxes that allows you to receive treatment without first providing any proof of payment. But is this still such a pillar of wonder or is starting to fade around the edges. Using public healthcare over the past year has seen it glowing as a marvel and grovelling as a disappointment. Yes we provide healthcare for all but the empathy and compassion seems to be lacking in a number of areas where you feel bad news would not be handled in the most delicate way and fail. The customer experience of the NHS varies wildly and it needs better support to ensure the right people are available in all aspects of the job not just the critical areas. 

iPod touch 5th generation customer review

The 5th generation Apple iPod touch (www.apple.com) continues to dominate the personal mp3 market with a device that goes well beyond being a music player. The device is available in three formats. A 16gb size that has stripped back the forward facing camera and available in black or silver. A 32gb device with a forward facing camera in a range of colours or the mighty 64gb device that is the same as the 32gb spec but with increased memory. The 5th gen all use the lightning bolt adapter with increased capacity allowing faster connectivity. This however is of less value than the wireless capabilities with the iPod touch more frequently connected via a wireless network than hard wired to a computer. They are incredibly slim and near weightless meaning a case is a must to preserve the integrity of something so beautifully crafted but delicate. The speed of the processing effectively means you have a mini computer in the palm of your hand capable of multi tasking handling even complex video editing functionality while simultaneously streaming music wirelessly and polling your email provider for updates. Battery life is relatively poor due to the perfect resolution screen and processing demands so don't stray too far from a power source. Wireless charging would be a nice addition but currently not available. Airplay and full access to the App Store are all fully featured on the touch opening the gateway to millions of applications. Favoured by kids this marvel should not be discounted as a toy but a powerful iPhone equivalent minus the 3G phone functionality. Epic in every sense and too good for the kids! 

Sports physio's - medical science or modern day witchcraft?

The human body is a hugely complicated system of parts that is beyond most of us to understand. Regularly pushed beyond its limits by modern life we generally take most of it for granted. That is until it stops us in our tracks and those grand plans for your next sporting milestone have to go on hols while you struggle with an ache, pain, pull or tear. When these moments strike us it is often the job of the sports physio to put us back together and get us going again. These qualified professionals with certificates on their walls decipher these signals from our bodies and translate them into fixes with little help from us. They watch us move and probe at muscles quickly able to identify that some previously unknown body part is now misbehaving and needs some attention. How they do this is either the amazing world of science or their sixth sense witchcraft skills coming to the fore as they bend us back into shape and highlight how we have been abusing our bodies for the past decade. Epic. 

Bicycle servicing - more expensive than your car

My early days of car ownership were a delicate balancing act to manage enough cash to keep my car on the road with thoughts of how to buy enough petrol next week at the forefront of my thinking. As a result car servicing and repairs was generally conducted with a lowest cost wins evaluation. Anything I could do myself was done and any garage that undercut the rest irrespective of quality was the winner. As a result car expenditure was minimal although even with this Scrooge like approach on more than one occasion I had to concede and give up my motorised transport. Nowadays I seem to be the same process with my road bike, the pedal variety!  My road bike is used for training through the winter and then for triathlon races through the summer where I curse my lack of prowess on the bike and wish for lighter and faster kit. My bike now needs looking after which means a regular trip for a service which is becoming an increasingly expensive encounter. General service = check. Cable replacement = check. Group set replacement = really???!  What I had in my mind as a £50 check up quickly spirals into something approaching £500. When did my bike start costing more than my car.  Epic in its ability to empty my wallet! 

Vivanta by Taj hotels across India

Travelling in India is a unique experience. The sights, sounds and smells are quintessentially Indian that are ever present from the moment you arrive at the airport and move through security. The road networks in Southern India are to the uninitiated traveller utter chaos with five lanes of traffic negotiating a single track road with minimal incident although maximum use of the horn. The surrounding buildings place beautifully ornate three story homes next to dust bowls with only a shack present.  Setting the scene for a stay in India makes it potentially a nervous decision when choosing a hotel where the local landscape appears a completely different world. Enter a chain of luxury hotels appealing to business and holiday travellers alike with Vivanta by Taj (www.vivantabytaj.com) that is a chain of hotels owned no surprises by the Tata group who see to have a stake in most of  India's infrastructure. The hotels are generally 5 star and seeking to cater for all needs with well appointed rooms with catering accommodating local and international cuisine. With pools, gym and wifi available it is easy for a business traveller to forget where they are and maximise the value in any stay. Security on face value is tight with walled perimeters and guards checking the underside of cars and metal detectors for bags and guests. This is the result of a bombing previously on the chain where they now take this more seriously. That said it is only a token effort and in six days of staying I set the metal detector off daily without any enquiry. The hotel is what you need though with quality rooms and all the facilities you would expect. Epic?  It is certainly enough. 

DPD failing to deliver

DPD ( dynamic parcel distribution - www.dpd.co.uk ) are a courier service owned by Geopost providing parcel delivery services for commercial and direct customers. A recent experience of DPD has shown their customer journey handling has some major holes in it. A parcel was due to be delivered and the day prior to delivery I received an SMS and email asking how and where I would like the parcel delivered allowing me to respond by SMS or log into a customer portal for more options. So far so good. Excellent to be given notice of a delivery and excellent to be given choices in terms of where to have the delivery made complete with a reference number to use. Selecting to have the parcel held at their local depot I chose an evening collection time when I would retrieve the parcel. All good and meeting customer needs. On the day of delivery I received an email alerting me that the parcel was in the depot for collection as requested. Superb customer contact and building confidence in the delivery. Upon reaching the depot I was informed that the parcel was flagged as damaged on the system and what would I like to do. Upon asking when it was damaged was told it was updated as damaged when it reached the depot first thing this morning. Taking a look at the parcel it was in no shape to be accepted with half the box torn off and missing with the interior showing sign of serious damage and some of the contents missing. Clearly not acceptable for a customer collection. When asked why I hadn't been notify received the generic "it's the computer" that someone absolved them of responsibility. Why not notify the customer straight away of the problem and save them time and travel to come and find out late when the end outcome is fairly likely. For epic customer experience the customer needs to be kept informed and given control of the journey. DPD. Epic fail.