Inflation in Britain is at its highest in 30 years, having risen to 5.4% in the 12 months to December 2021 and it is expected to reach 7% by the spring, according to the Bank of England.

One of the things that caught my eye in the Institute of Customer Services UK’s (UKSCI) most recent report on customer satisfaction was the suggestion that a growing number of customers are prepared to pay more for improved service.

It’s that time of year again, when retailers slash their prices for Black Friday, as eager customers seek out the best deals ahead of Christmas.

Companies today are dealing with an increasing range of vulnerable customers and should remember that seemingly small changes can have a significant impact.

It doesn’t seem too long ago that the introduction of interactive voice response (IVR) received a rocky reception with many customers citing that they preferred to speak to a ‘real human’.

The second year of the pandemic has seen more people in the UK slide further into debt and organisations need to recalibrate their response through empathetic collections.

Treating customers with empathy has been an increasingly important area of focus within the customer experience industry.

You have a problem. Someone else has been talking to your customer. The likes of Amazon, Apple, Nordstorm – and the other gods of customer service have been educating your customer in what excellent looks and feels like.

Customer loyalty is the holy grail of brand. Less than a decade ago, consumers told marketing research company IPSOS MORI that they trusted certain household brands (Heinz, John Lewis, Walmart) more than the Government.

A popular online brokerage prided itself on building a customer experience that made trading stocks as easy as swiping right or left to purchase a book online.