Customer Experience

Over the last year, I’ve seen many people fall into the same trap: They launch an AI-powered agent (chatbot, assistant, support tool, etc.)… But only track surface-level KPIs — like response time or number of users. That’s not enough. To create AI systems that actually deliver value, we need 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗰, 𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻-𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰 𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘀 that reflect: • User trust • Task success • Business impact • Experience quality    This infographic highlights 15 𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘭 dimensions to consider: ↳ 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘆 — Are your AI answers actually useful and correct? ↳ 𝗧𝗮𝘀𝗸 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗲 — Can the agent complete full workflows, not just answer trivia? ↳ 𝗟𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 — Response speed still matters, especially in production. ↳ 𝗨𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 — How often are users returning or interacting meaningfully? ↳ 𝗦𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗲 — Did the user achieve their goal? This is your north star. ↳ 𝗘𝗿𝗿𝗼𝗿 𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗲 — Irrelevant or wrong responses? That’s friction. ↳ 𝗦𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗗𝘂𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 — Longer isn’t always better — it depends on the goal. ↳ 𝗨𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 — Are users coming back 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 the first experience? ↳ 𝗖𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗽𝗲𝗿 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 — Especially critical at scale. Budget-wise agents win. ↳ 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗗𝗲𝗽𝘁𝗵 — Can the agent handle follow-ups and multi-turn dialogue? ↳ 𝗨𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝗦𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘀𝗳𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗦𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗲 — Feedback from actual users is gold. ↳ 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗲𝘅𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗨𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 — Can your AI 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘦𝘳 to earlier inputs? ↳ 𝗦𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 — Can it handle volume 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 degrading performance? ↳ 𝗞𝗻𝗼𝘄𝗹𝗲𝗱𝗴𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗮𝗹 𝗘𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 — This is key for RAG-based agents. ↳ 𝗔𝗱𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗦𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗲 — Is your AI learning and improving over time? If you're building or managing AI agents — bookmark this. Whether it's a support bot, GenAI assistant, or a multi-agent system — these are the metrics that will shape real-world success. 𝗗𝗶𝗱 𝗜 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗰𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀? Let’s make this list even stronger — drop your thoughts 👇

A prospect tells you: "We’re also looking at [Competitor]." Most reps make one of two mistakes: - They panic and start discounting before the customer even asks. - They attack the competitor, thinking that will win trust. The best reps? They guide the conversation...without badmouthing or getting defensive. Here’s how we teach folks to do it at Sales Assembly: 1) Find the gap. Instead of “We’re better because…” ask: “What made you start looking in the first place? What’s missing today?” This gets them to focus on their pain, not a feature battle. 2) Understand their criteria. Instead of “Why are you considering them?” ask: “What’s most important to you in a solution?” You want them defining success in your playing field. 3) Focus on fit, not features. Instead of “We’re better at X,” ask: “What’s been standing out to you in each option so far?” If they highlight something critical you do better, that’s your opening. 4) Help them think ahead. Instead of “They don’t do [X] like we do,” say: “A lot of teams in your space have prioritized [X] because it impacts [Y]. How are you thinking about that?” This frames the conversation around outcomes - not a feature war. 5) Guide the decision process. Instead of “Who’s your front-runner?” ask: “What’s your process for narrowing down options?” If they don’t have a clear decision path, they’re likely to stall. 6) Make the decision feel easy. Instead of “How can we win this deal?” ask: “If you had to make a decision today, what would give you confidence?” This surfaces final concerns...so you can remove them. The goal isn’t to beat competitors. It’s to help buyers feel confident that choosing you is the right move.

CX Should Be Measured Like a P&L—Not a Sentiment Score We keep measuring Customer Experience with smiley faces, stars, and survey scores. But here’s the reality: If you can’t tie CX to revenue, retention, or cost savings—it’s not strategic. Too many CX teams report on sentiment. Fewer can show the business impact of improving the experience. Want a seat at the executive table? Start thinking like a P&L owner: ✅ Reduce onboarding friction → Faster time-to-revenue ✅ Improve digital containment → Lower cost-to-serve ✅ Decrease churn triggers → Higher customer lifetime value This is how you move from “nice to have” to business critical. Sentiment is a signal. Value is the outcome. 💬 How are you measuring CX in your org? Can you show the CFO how experience drives ROI?

While traditional metrics like CSAT and NPS have long been staples in measuring customer experiences, we’re in the post-survey era and companies need to adapt. Here’s what is changing: In the next 2-3 years, we’re set to witness surveys transform into more conversational interfaces. Imagine feedback mechanisms that feel like chatting with a knowledgeable friend, rather than ticking boxes on a form. This approach not only enhances engagement but also captures the depth of customer or employee sentiment more effectively. The future is also about contextual feedback - gathering insights at multiple touchpoints throughout the journey. Moving away from transactional surveys to a journey-based approach allows for a more nuanced understanding of the experiences, identifying specific moments that matter and that have the biggest impact on your business. Moreover, the focus is increasingly on outcome-driven data. Business leaders are seeking actionable insights, not just numbers and graphs. Generative AI specifically will play a pivotal role in transforming surveys. By delivering deeper, more accurate insights and automating the process of turning data into actionable strategies, and at scale, businesses will take a broader perspective on experience-led data. As a result, survey data becomes less relevant. As you embrace these changes - or, perhaps, this new reality - one thing remains clear: The future of surveys is about making every customer feel heard and understood, turning feedback into meaningful conversations that drive business growth. #customerexperience #employeeexperience #artificialintelligence #surveys #csat #nps

It takes 7 seconds to lose a client's trust. (Sometimes with words that seemed perfectly reasonable.) I've watched smart professionals lose deals they deserved to win. Strong relationships. Perfect fit solutions. Gone in seconds. Because here's what nobody tells you about client conversations: Your words can either open doors or close them. After training 50,000+ client-facing professionals… I've heard every phrase that makes clients pull back. The pushy questions. The tone-deaf assumptions. The pressure that breaks trust instantly. 10 phrases that push clients away: ❌ "Do you have a price range in mind?" ❌ "When can we close this deal?" ❌ "Let me tell you why we're the best." ❌ "Are you ready to buy today?" ❌ "Who else are you talking to?" ❌ "I just wanted to check in.” ❌ "You really need what we offer." ❌ "Let me know if you have any questions." ❌ "This is a limited-time offer." ❌ "Can you introduce me to your boss?" Each one risks sounding like: "I care more about my quota than your success." Now 10 that build partnerships instead: ✅ "What outcomes are most important to you?" ✅ "What would success look like for you?" ✅ "Would it help if I shared how we've helped others?" ✅ "What's your timeline for making progress?" ✅ "What's most important when choosing a partner?" ✅ "I had an idea about your goals. Want to hear it?" ✅ "What challenges are you facing that we might help with?" ✅ "Would it help if we scheduled time to dive deeper?" ✅ "What priorities are driving your timeline?" ✅ "Who else should be part of this conversation?" Notice the pattern? Every better phrase puts the client's agenda first. Not yours. Because when you stop selling and start solving, everything shifts. Clients lean in instead of pulling back. Conversations flow instead of stalling. Trust builds instead of breaking. You don't need a personality transplant. You don't need to become "salesy." You just need to change your questions. Because the truth is: Your next client conversation is either strengthening a partnership or weakening one. Your words decide which. ♻️ Valuable? Repost to help someone in your network. 📌 Follow Mo Bunnell for client-growth strategies that don’t feel like selling. Want the full cheat sheet? Sign up here: https://lnkd.in/e3qRVJRf

What if your biggest competitive advantage is hiding in plain sight in your competitors' customer complaints? While most B2B executives chase the latest growth tactics, strategic leaders are systematically mining competitor trust gaps to win enterprise deals. In today's procurement environment, trust isn't just a vendor evaluation criterion—it's become the decisive factor in contract decisions worth millions. The reality of enterprise buying is stark: procurement teams have stopped believing vendor promises. They demand transparency in pricing models, proof of service delivery capabilities, and verification of product claims. Most vendors fake this transparency with polished sales decks and case study theater. The winners convert their competitors' credibility deficits into contract wins. Here's how B2B growth leaders are operationalizing trust to capture enterprise market share: Audit Competitor Credibility Gaps. Deploy systematic analysis of competitor RFP losses, customer churn patterns, and service delivery failures. Every trust breakdown in their client base represents a qualified prospect for your pipeline. Engineer transparency into your sales process. Move beyond vendor presentations. Provide independent verification of ROI claims. Offer transparent pricing with no hidden implementation costs. Make radical honesty your competitive differentiation in the procurement process. Align revenue operations around building trust. Tie sales comp, customer success KPIs, and product delivery SLAs directly to trust-building behaviors. When trust becomes measurable in your CRM and tied to quota attainment, it becomes operationalized. Build enterprise trust intelligence. Create account-level dashboards tracking trust indicators across your target prospect base. Monitor competitor service failures, contract disputes, and client satisfaction scores to time your outreach perfectly. The enterprise opportunity is massive: procurement teams are actively seeking vendors they can trust with mission-critical initiatives. While competitors struggle with credibility issues, you capture their displaced enterprise accounts. Ready to transform competitor weaknesses into enterprise wins? Start with a systematic audit of trust vulnerabilities among your top 50 target accounts. The pipeline impact could be transformational. Read more: https://lnkd.in/eRV9sWAK __________ For more on growth and building trust, check out my previous posts. Join me on my journey, and let's build a more trustworthy world together. Christine Alemany #Fintech #Strategy #Growth

Here's a discovery question that gives me the ick (+ what I ask instead). "What's at risk if you do nothing?". "Doing nothing" implies the prospect is doing jack sh*t about a known problem. Here's an example. No CRO is "doing nothing" to address a pipeline generation problem. Instead, they might be: - Retraining the team on their sales tech stack - Hiring more reps - Facilitating in-house training - Asking Marketing to run demand gen campaigns - Rolling out a new, homegrown sales process - Sponsoring events, trade shows - Revising comp plans - Asking reps to hit the phones harder - Etc. It's why I seek to understand (early) the alternative categories of spend the prospect is considering to solve that known problem. Here's one way I ask about it: "Other than a team workshop with me, what other categories of spend or DIY solutions are you considering to address that problem?" Sometimes, I'll hear responses like: "We might ask Bob in L&D to run more of his prospecting sessions with the team." Now, I seek to understand what they like about the Bob option. Listen for belief/assumption statements. Ex: "Bob has been training the team for years. Plus, he knows our business." This answer gives me a clue to concerns that might become deal blockers later. Ex: the belief that an external trainer won't tailor the training to their business as well as Bob could. Now, I can tease out those concerns BEFORE talking about my solution. Trying to defeat an alternative solution we don't fully understand is kinda like trying to win a boxing match, blindfolded. If it's known problem, our prospect is doing SOMETHING. It's our job to uncover the real competition in the deal. Often, that real competition is how they're currently solving the problem today (aka status quo). It's not "doing nothing", as much as it's "changing nothing".

When we dissect discovery calls, we hear this same motion almost every time - the buyer opens up about what they need, which prompts the seller to meet them with exactly how they can help. Perfect, right? Nope. We are SO eager to hear something that we can solve that we don't pause to ask the critical question - why? ***We know what you need, we don't know why you need it.*** What's the business pain? What's the cost of inaction? How much does this one issue impact dozens of people, dozens of times/day? How does this impact your goals for the year ahead? Is this enough of pain point that it's worth the trouble of changing? What's the monetization associated with the pain? Why is it important to change now? Have you tried to tackle this change before? And so on... Toss a sticky on your laptop and simply pause when you hear what they want. This is your moment to... differentiate significantly better qualify this opp get a host of details that will help you figure out how to best solve their challenges understand if you're talking to the right team ...and up your odds of advancing this opportunity #samsales

#Customerexperience scores find a new low. Are you surprised? I'm not. I explain why this is a golden opportunity in a #CX Patterns Podcast episode. Forrester CX analyst Pete Jacques, Ph.D. was featured in the Wall Street Journal this week highlighting the new low (at least since 2017) that scores had reached in #Forrester's CX Index rankings (See the chart from the article below) I'm not surprised because this has been a multi-year trend, and the trend has a clear explanation: 💠 Companies have been cutting back on their investments in customer experience. 💠 At the same time, customers's expectations for great experiences haven't declined. If anything they've gone up. 💠 And the vast majority of customers are willing to give their business to companies who give them great experiences, so they're frustrated that they can't get those great experiences. ❓ So wouldn't that suggest that now is a better time than ever to be focused on improving the experience you deliver to your customers? 😒 Well not if you are most companies. 🏊♀️ But if you want to swim against the tide, then now is your time. 💲 Warren Buffett is famous for saying that in investing he is fearful when others are greedy, and greedy when others are fearful. 💡 That is the equation right now - Companies are fearful of investing in CX. So by Warren Buffett's logic, it's time to be greedy: 💠Double down on customer-centricity 💠Create positive experience memories for your customers whenever and wherever you can 💡 It's been years since companies had as much opportunity to stand out from the competition on the basis of customer experience.

Here are 5 *slightly-awkward* discovery questions I like, that signal you're different than the typical AE who's never thinking post-sales. That you're up to dig into what happens after the contract's inked. (Especially key if you're selling complex / enterprise deals.) 1. Unexpected Outcomes "Obviously, [ your main product benefit ] is the goal. But if your biggest win came in a totally different area we didn't initially expect, where would a win like that show up?" → Start it off with a win scenario, and get them thinking past the first use case into (potential) expansion areas. 2. Past Failures "Could you walk me through a time your team invested in something that technically worked, but didn't deliver the outcome? What happened?" → Finds their real definition of success, internal change management / political dynamics, and what metrics actually matter. 3. Resource Check "If this gets approved, what's one resource your team will have to 'borrow' from another team to make it successful—and how comfortable are you having that conversation?" → Cross-department dependencies are very real. Best to call out delivery roadblocks now, they haven't planned for later. 4. Executive Sponsorship "When you show this to [ exec sponsor ], what's 1 question they might ask, that you're hoping they don't... and what would your honest answer be?" → Often, what someone's telling you and what they know internally about an exec's concerns / skepticism are different things. 5. Six Months Later: "Let's say it's 6 months from now and you're in a QBR. Someone asks, 'Was this worth it?' What do you pull up on your screen to prove it was? And what would make you nervous about showing that?" → Helps you define real success metrics, and how they'll be tracked. Okay okay, I said 5 questions... but here's one more: 6. Plan B "What's your Plan B if this doesn't get approved?" → What's funny is I've found that my deals tend to be less "real" if there's no Plan B. Not the other way around. If something's truly important, there's always another option they're looking at. Could you see yourself testing one of these? PS, Olli the AI Agent we built is crazy good at crafting disco questions. If you'd want to put him to work on some of your toughest deals, drop a note & I can get you access.