• Technologies
    • Networking
    • Cybersecurity
    • Collaboration
    • Edge Cloud
    • Managed & Professional Services
    • SASE
  • Customer Stories
  • Insights
    • Business Continuity & Disaster Recovery (BCDR)
    • Customer Experience
    • Data-Driven Business
    • Operational Efficiency
    • Tech Trends
  • Industries
    • Financial Services
    • Gaming
    • Healthcare
    • Manufacturing
    • Media & Entertainment
    • Public Sector
    • Higher Education
    • Retail
    • Technology
  • About Lumen
    • Black Lotus Labs
    • Leadership Perspectives
    • Newsroom
    • News Spotlights
  • Technologies
    • Networking
    • Cybersecurity
    • Collaboration
    • Edge Cloud
    • Managed & Professional Services
    • SASE
  • Customer Stories
  • Insights
    • Business Continuity & Disaster Recovery (BCDR)
    • Customer Experience
    • Data-Driven Business
    • Operational Efficiency
    • Tech Trends
  • Industries
    • Financial Services
    • Gaming
    • Healthcare
    • Manufacturing
    • Media & Entertainment
    • Public Sector
    • Higher Education
    • Retail
    • Technology
  • About Lumen
    • Black Lotus Labs
    • Leadership Perspectives
    • Newsroom
    • News Spotlights

Reinvent Your Customer Experience with Emerging Technologies

Bryan Reusser Posted On July 9, 2024
0
22.3K Views


0
Shares
  • Share On Facebook
  • Tweet It

A person sitting on the edge of a desk holding a closed laptop in a bright office setting with plants and desks in the background

As technologies rapidly evolve, how can you adapt them to create new customer experiences and differentiated employee experiences that make you stand out? In just five minutes, this article will provide an overview of customer experience (CX) issues, the technologies that can help address them and a look at how one Lumen customer has applied these tools successfully.

3 Barriers to Implementing Customer Experience Technologies

Fifty-three percent (53%) of consumers say that the experience a company offers matters as much as the product or service it provides.1 Emerging technologies are essential to delivering outstanding experiences that attract customers and keep them coming back. Yet many businesses are challenged with adapting these tools and struggle with aligning their technology strategies to drive ROI and stay ahead of their competitors.

Here are three common barriers to implementing next-gen technologies.

Data collection and analysis

The success of any business depends on the ability to draw in new customers and satisfy existing ones. Predictive analytics can help your organization break down data silos, learn from historical data, spot trends and make smarter choices with real-time insights to help create a connected and smooth experience. But to do that, you need a complete, connected data strategy that brings together customer insights and makes them available to every employee who affects the customer experience.

Sixty-six percent (66%) of respondents in an IDC survey reported they were investing in new digital infrastructure to help improve interactions and engagement with customers through enhanced data analysis.2

Network and security

Companies often encounter network problems such as slow speed, frequent downtime, poor coverage, congestion or interference, resulting in lost productivity, revenue and customer satisfaction. Ninety-one percent (91%) of global businesses experience at least one outage quarterly, pointing to the need for improved network resilience.3

Poor quality or connectivity can affect your customer loyalty numbers, with 49% of consumers saying that website speed and 53% saying app availability impacts their loyalty to a single company.1 Not to mention that protecting your customer’s data (and your own) is top of mind. The biggest threat arises from ransomware, which was on track to extort over $900 million from U.S. businesses in 2023.4

Technology integration

Getting new technology integrated with existing systems also plays a role. One example of emerging technologies is artificial intelligence (AI), which can drive business value when leveraged strategically and intentionally.

A recent PwC survey found that 74% of companies used emerging technologies like AI to expand into new markets and 64% used it to transform business models.5 Identifying specific business problems that AI can solve for, mapping its ROI and TCO, and picking small-scale projects to test against are important.

Let’s look at how one company overcame these challenges by implementing secure and scalable networking designed to deliver an outstanding customer experience while providing a foundation for future innovation.

How Crowley Maritime Corporation Adapts to Changing Customer Needs

Consumers have more choice than ever and the cost of switching to a new brand has never been lower. Failing to stay relevant could come at a great cost to your business. Sixty percent (60%) of companies believe they need every data point possible to achieve a 360-degree view of their customer, but nearly 50% did not have alignment on what that means.6 Working with a technology provider that can help connect you with customers in an all-in-one solution is imperative.

Crowley, a private U.S-based logistics, marine and energy solutions company, wanted to provide a fast, secure and reliable global network to customers and stakeholders in different locations. This meant the company had to adapt to customers across industries who are transforming to a digital environment and changing the CX experience.

By implementing technology that has near zero latency, integrated software and seamless employee connectivity, Crowley provides an omnichannel interactive experience that allows customers to connect across various platforms quickly and securely.

 

Personalization, automation and efficiency through AI

“Transformation doesn’t just come from your internal change management, but it comes from observing how your clients are transforming, how your partners are transforming,” said Crowley CIO Erika Graziuso.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a key transformational technology that helps businesses deliver personalized experiences at scale. AI’s ability to use data and implement more personalized experiences for customers is fundamental to predicting what, when and where shoppers will buy and can drive both new and repeat business. Improving customer experience hyper-personalization was identified by 42% of AI decision-makers as the top AI use case.7

AI can also improve efficiency by automating routine processes. Removing redundant or repetitive human involvement needed to protect systems or mine CRM data can help keep prospective shoppers and customers happy. Eliminating the tedious task of mining and evaluating data is a key AI advantage that can provide significant time and cost savings.

Crowley realizes the need to build toward each new wave of technology, including AI, to better connect with their market. “Lumen is investing significantly in the digital inclusiveness of their network to make sure that it is available everywhere at a very high speed,” Graziuso said. ”The next solution we are looking to address is AI—while it is powerful, it is unfortunately still a machine. We are working with Lumen on how we use AI and data intelligence to prevent cyberattacks.”

These innovative strategies can empower your business to make new connections and deliver applications that delight your customers regardless of location or background. Mastering those interconnections will start you on the transformational journey toward accomplishing that goal.

Explore powerful solutions designed to better connect you to your customers.

Learn More

1Forbes, “Top Customer Experience Trends In 2024,” May 2, 2024.
2IDC, Modernizing the Network with Performance Enabled Digital Infrastructure, November 2023.
3Businesswire, “Only 9% of Global Organizations Avoid Network Outages in an Average Quarter,” June 20, 2023.
4Forbes, “The New Era Of Ransomware—And What It Means For Businesses,” Nov 30, 2023.
5PwC, 2023 Emerging Technology Survey, November 2023.
6Gartner, “Gartner Marketing Survey Finds Only 14% of Organizations Have Achieved a 360-Degree View of their Customer,” January 19, 2022.
7Forrester, “Predictions 2024: CX Teams Should Buckle Up For A Fun Ride,” October 25, 2023.

This content is provided for informational purposes only and may require additional research and substantiation by the end user. In addition, the information is provided “as is” without any warranty or condition of any kind, either express or implied. Use of this information is at the end user’s own risk. Lumen does not warrant that the information will meet the end user’s requirements or that the implementation or usage of this information will result in the desired outcome of the end user. All third-party company and product or service names referenced in this article are for identification purposes only and do not imply endorsement or affiliation with Lumen. ©2024 Lumen Technologies. All Rights Reserved.

Post Views: 22,262

Related posts:

  1. Transforming Healthcare: The Role Of AI In Enhancing The Patient Experience
  2. Tech View: Reimagining Customer Experiences On and Off the Field
  3. Security enables bank branch digital innovation
  4. The Digital Frontier: The Lumen Journey to Connect the World As One
0
Shares
  • Share On Facebook
  • Tweet It


Artificial Intelligence (AI)Digital TransformationNetwork Security


Author

Bryan Reusser

Bryan Reusser serves as Lead Solutions Marketing Manager for the Lumen Cloud Voice, UC&C and Contact Center portfolios where he works directly with product management, sales and product development. In addition to his telecommunications background, he has experience in technology and SaaS deployments for financial services, manufacturing and energy industries.

Trending Now
Beyond the Finish Line: How Churchill Downs Racetrack Harnesses Advanced Network Solutions for Seamless Kentucky Derby® Operations
Lumen Customer Stories Team April 23, 2025
Announcing the Lumen strategic partnership with Google Cloud: Transforming the future of cloud and network solutions
Lumen April 9, 2025
You may also like
Modernizing IT Operations with AIOPS: A Comprehensive Guide
May 5, 2025
Say Goodbye to Communication Barriers: How DIPS is Transforming the DOD
May 1, 2025
Beyond the Finish Line: How Churchill Downs Racetrack Harnesses Advanced Network Solutions for Seamless Kentucky Derby® Operations
April 23, 2025
The Future of Patient Care: 4 Technology Trends Shaping Public Health
Read Next

The Future of Patient Care: 4 Technology Trends Shaping Public Health

  • Categories

    Adaptive Networking

    Connected Security

    Hybrid Cloud

    Communications and Collaboration

    Edge Computing

    SASE


  • Lumen is unleashing the world’s digital potential. We ignite business growth by connecting people, data, and applications – quickly, securely, and effortlessly. As the trusted network for AI, Lumen uses the scale of our network to help companies realize AI’s full potential. From metro connectivity to long-haul data transport to our edge cloud, security, managed service, and digital platform capabilities, we meet our customers’ needs today and as they build for tomorrow.

Services not available everywhere. ©2025 Lumen Technologies. All Rights Reserved.
Press enter/return to begin your search