The vast majority of organizations state that they are trying to improve their customer experience (CX) using contact channels to resolve an inquiry or problem. However, SQM Group's experience shows that few organizations measure customer satisfaction using contact channels (e.g., IVR self-service, mobile self-service, email, and chat) or multiple contact channels to resolve the same inquiry or problem.

Interestingly, SQM research shows that 37% of customers use two or more contact channels simultaneously to resolve an inquiry or problem, and 20% of customers who used a call center did so because a self-service contact channel failed. As a result, SQM is often asked, "What are the customer experience differences between one contact resolution (OCR), multi-channel, and omni-channel from a customer satisfaction (Csat) and recommendation point of view?"

To answer those questions, SQM conducted a Contact Channel Customer Experience Study. We surveyed over 1 million customers who used a contact channel or multiple contact channels to resolve the same inquiry problem. At SQM, we define multi-channel as a non-seamless customer experience for a customer using two or more contact channels for resolving the same inquiry or problem.

In other words, the customer had to start their interaction from the beginning each time they used another channel to resolve the same inquiry or problem. Therefore, we define omni-channel as a seamless customer experience using two or more contact channels for resolving the same inquiry or problem. Put differently, when a customer used another channel to resolve the same inquiry or problem, they were able to pick up from where they left off in the previous channel and, as a result, did not have to start from the beginning.

One of the main findings of our contact channel customer experience research study is that the easier it is for a customer to resolve their inquiry or problem, the higher the customer satisfaction. That is why the OCR customer experience has the highest Csat (89%) by far of all the contact channel experiences (i.e., OCR, omni-channel, and multi-channel) a customer has for resolving an inquiry or problem.

SQM considers 85% or higher Csat (top box response) to be at the world class Csat level for contact channel experience for resolving an inquiry or problem. However, only 5% of SQM's clients can achieve that level of contact channel Csat experience performance for resolving an inquiry or problem.

For customers who use two or more channels to resolve the same inquiry, Csat is 39% higher when it is an omni-channel seamless experience than when it is a multi-channel non-seamless experience. Omni-channel seamless Csat is 67%, and multi-channel non-seamless Csat is 28%, which is by far the lowest of all the contact channel customer experiences.

Omni-channel Csat is at the 3rd quartile contact channel customer experience performance level for resolving an inquiry or problem. Even though omni-channel is a seamless experience for using two or more contact channels for resolving the same inquiry or problem, Csat is still mediocre.

The main reason why an omni-channel customer experience is mediocre is that most customers do not wake up in the morning and say they want to use two contact channels to resolve the same inquiry or problem. In other words, what most customers want is a One Contact Resolution for resolving an inquiry or problem. Simply put, one channel and one contact to resolve an inquiry or problem.

• Omni-channel - Defined as a customer who had a seamless experience across all contact channels to resolve the same inquiry or problem. Put differently, when a customer used another channel to resolve the same inquiry or problem, they were able to pick up from where they left off in the previous channel and, as a result, did not have to start from the beginning.
   
• Multi-channel - Defined as a customer who did not have a seamless experience when using multiple channels to resolve the same inquiry or problem. In other words, the customer had to start their interaction from the beginning each time they used another channel to resolve the same inquiry or problem.
   
• One contact resolution - Defined as a customer who resolved their inquiry or problem on the first interaction using only one contact channel. Simply put, one interaction and one contact channel are required.

Many organizations use a Net Promoter Score (NPS®), which is based on asking the question, "How likely are you to recommend XYZ Company to a friend or colleague?" The customers rank how likely they are to recommend the company using a scale of 0 to 10. Their responses are categorized into three groups: Promoters (those who answered 9 and 10), Passives (those who answered 7 and 8), and Detractors (those who answered 0 to 6).

The company's NPS® is then calculated as the percentage of Promoters minus the percentage of Detractors. Using this measurement allows organizations to track these groups and get a clear picture of their performance through the customers' eyes.
 
Many customers judge the organization and their willingness to recommend them based on their experience using a contact channel or multiple contact channels to resolve their inquiry or problem.

The below data shows the impact that an OCR and non-OCR customer experience has on NPS®. The data reveals that when customers experience OCR, the NPS® is 49%. In general, a good rule of thumb is that an NPS® of 50% or higher is considered to be excellent. However, when an inquiry or problem was a non-OCR contact resolution (e.g., took 2 or more contacts to resolve), the NPS® drops to 36%. Most alarming is the -29% NPS® when an inquiry or problem contact goes unresolved. Clearly, OCR is a driver for improving your NPS®.