Forrester adds new touchless capabilities to its feedback gathering solution

Forrester yesterday launched a new touchless version of FeedbackNow – it is a real-time customer experience (CX) data collection solution at the point of experience to ensure the safety of customers and employees. As the economy reopens and travel normalizes, consumers expect comfort and control of their environment and how they interact with brands. With cleanliness and hygiene being top of mind for consumers, the contactless solution will help firms collect high volumes of authentic and unbiased feedback sentiment to remediate issues before they escalate.

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FeedbackNow helps businesses collect feedback at the point of experience through its antibacterial and antimicrobial, touchless smiley boxes. Organizations can now accrue and act on critical real-time CX feedback where and when it matters while also ensuring hygiene and safety.

According to data from Forrester’s Customer Experience Index (CX Index), how brands make customers feel – emotion – is the strongest driver of customer retention compared to effectiveness and ease. Annoyance, disappointment, and frustration, alienate customers. Because of the pandemic, it may not take much for a brand to elicit these highly damaging emotions from its customers. For example, when customers are disappointed, only 18% will keep their business with the brand, and a mere 15% will recommend that brand to their friends and family members.

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As brands adapt to changing consumer behaviors due to COVID-19, building experiences that evoke positive emotions such as confidence and trust will help them empathetically engage with their customers, and bolster customer loyalty. The pandemic requires organizations to communicate frequent updates on safety protocols and operational adjustments. Consumers need to know that interacting with a brand, especially in physical stores and branches, will be safe.

“To survive and succeed in the current environment, industries like retail, travel, and healthcare need to completely rehaul and redesign customer experiences,” said Steven Peltzman, Forrester’s chief business technology officer, at leading the development of its FeedbackNow solution. “Collecting feedback data and responding to customers’ needs in real time is crucial to making them feel safe and putting them at ease. The touchless version of FeedbackNow will enable businesses to be more responsive and make customer safety a priority in this new normal.”

Also read: Tech Can Help Put Customer Experience First As Businesses Reopen

What Does This Mean for Brands?

A significant part of the customer journey will still exist in physical channels even after COVID 19, so contactless options are a must-have for brands today. According to recent research, the US has witnessed a 20% increase in preference for contactless operations, with numerous industries adapting to this change. To this end, Forrester’s Touchless Smiley boxes will help retailers and brands collect critical CX feedback where it matters when it matters while offering consumers more comfort and peace of mind.