CX has been (and continues to be) a tough nut to crack for brands and marketers, and its close cousin DX (digital experience) is proving to be even more of a head scratcher for B2B companies—and even though a solution seems straightforward and similar, the situation appears to be more complicated for DX professionals, a majority of whom say they still rely on guesswork and gut feeling to make critical digital decisions, according to new research from DX data and insights platform FullStory.
The firm’s new report, Digital Expectations vs. Realities, and How to Bridge the Gaps, reveals this guesswork to be the care despite the fact that nearly three-quarters (73 percent) of DX pros say their organization has a clear, consistent strategy for DX. Nevertheless, 58 percent believe they are lagging competitors in the use of AI in digital experience optimization.
At the core of this problem is poor data
The new study of 700 global DX professionals reveals that 43 percent do not have a clear view of customer preferences across their websites and apps. Half of DX professionals (50 percent) say they have no clear view of their customers’ behavior online, while 62 percent don’t have visibility of customers’ attitudes and beliefs—and this figure rises to 73 percent for those attempting to understand customer moods and mindsets.
This lack of visibility makes it difficult for companies to achieve their digital objectives and improve their customer experiences, with 81 percent of respondents saying they have no clear visibility of when their customers are frustrated in apps or online.
This disconnect is especially urgent as product, UX, CX, and marketing professionals find themselves in the hot seat heading into the holidays and new year. Eight in 10 survey respondents (79 percent) say their business targets have increased for the year ahead, even as 51 percent face budget cuts. As a result, 66 percent report that they’ll have to do more with less.
Bridge the DX data gap
The survey indicates that the biggest obstacle to customer understanding is the gap between the complete, comprehensive data that DX teams need and the data they’re able to gather. According to the study, a third (33 percent) say that they have no single, reliable “source of truth” to inform their strategies. And two-thirds (67 percent) report that they often have to re-tag their site or mobile app when new questions arise.
Data silos are adding to these challenges, with 28 percent agreeing that relevant team members can’t directly access the DX data they need to make decisions. Nearly a third (30 percent) also agree that teams end up replicating the same work without knowing it due to disjointed systems and unreliable tech.
To overcome these issues, 71 percent of DX professionals are investing in DX insights and analytics platforms, with 35 percent adopting “frustration signal analytics,” 27 percent investing in session replay technology, and 49 percent using a full-service DX analytics platform.
“Product and CX teams are under increasing pressure to deliver extraordinary experiences—effectively and efficiently. While most have clearly defined DX strategies, many still struggle to harness and use the data and insights required to bring these digital strategies to life,” said Lindsay Bayuk, FullStory CMO, in a news release.
“The good news is that DX pros who invest in complete data capture and actionable insights can gain a meaningful edge over their peers and the competition,” Bayuk added. “The platforms that bring these data and insights together into a single source of truth are the future of this market.”
