11 ways to improve customer experience (CX)

Improving customer experience (CX) isn’t just about making customers happy; it’s a proven business accelerator.

Customer experience weaves through every aspect of a business’s offering, shaping customer perceptions and driving loyalty. From the insightful process of customer journey mapping, which provides a deep dive into customer interactions and touchpoints, to creating a customer-first culture within contact centers, every strategy aims at one goal: elevating the customer’s journey to exceptional heights.

A great customer experience strategy drives higher retention, reduces churn, boosts customer lifetime value (CLV), and lowers acquisition costs thanks to word-of-mouth. Businesses that lead in customer experience also tend to outperform their competitors’ growth and profitability. In fact, businesses that excel in CX achieved 190% higher three-year revenue growth compared to their peers.

In this article, we’ll explore 11 actionable ways to improve customer experience by shifting from transactions to relationships that build lasting trust.

What is customer experience?

Customer experience (CX) is the holistic impression an organization leaves on its customers, shaped by every interaction across the entire relationship lifecycle. It includes direct touchpoints—like onboarding, support, or product use—as well as indirect signals such as brand perception, communication style, and the ease or difficulty of getting things done.

More than just a series of moments, CX is also about how people feel when they engage with an organization: Is it intuitive? Respectful? Empowering? Frustrating? Whether someone is signing up for a service, requesting technical help, attending a training session, or simply reading an email, each interaction contributes to their overall judgment of the organization.

A positive CX translates to a seamless, personalized, and memorable experience that resonates with customers. When businesses prioritize CX, they not only meet customer expectations but often exceed them, fostering deeper loyalty.

11 ways to improve customer experience.

Improving customer experience starts with understanding what customers want, then delivering consistently at every part of their journey. Here are 11 ways to do just that.

1. Map the customer journey to better understand buyer needs.

Understanding customer interactions is vital for businesses that aim to deliver exceptional customer service. Each interaction is an opportunity to either strengthen customer relationships or push them away. By analyzing customer engagement across touchpoints—from initial contact to continued support—organizations can uncover opportunities to enhance the overall experience.

Customer journey mapping is more than a tool; it’s a strategic asset, a powerful technique to gain insights into customer touchpoints. It involves creating a visual representation of every stage and interaction in the customer lifecycle, which allows businesses to track the customer’s experience from start to finish.

Through mapping, companies can visualize the customer’s path, note where they are delighted or face obstacles, and understand the context behind their behaviors. This strategic visualization aids in pinpointing critical moments where targeted actions can optimize the customer experience. By regularly updating the journey map with new data and customer feedback, businesses ensure that their strategies remain aligned with customer needs, helping to cultivate an environment of continuous improvement.

2. Embrace an omnichannel customer experience.

In today’s interconnected world, providing omnichannel support is no longer a luxury; it’s a necessity to optimize customer experience and nurture loyalty. Implementing an omnichannel support solution means customers can seamlessly transition between communication channels—be it social media, email, voice, chat, or others—without any disruption in service or quality. This strategy ensures that the context of customer inquiries is retained across channels, delivering a cohesive experience that acknowledges their preferences and history with the business.

Seamless omnichannel experiences empower customers with the flexibility to choose their preferred mode of interaction, fostering a sense of control and personalization. By offering a unified customer service front, businesses show that they value their customers’ time and convenience, which translates to increased customer satisfaction and loyalty. An omnichannel approach also paves the way for collecting comprehensive customer insights, enabling businesses to fine-tune services and anticipate needs.

3. Take time to understand your customers.

A great customer experience starts with a deep understanding of who the customers are—what they value, what frustrates them, and what keeps them coming back. Businesses that take the time to truly know their customers are far better equipped to meet and exceed their expectations.

One of the most effective ways to build this understanding is by analyzing customer experience metrics. These data points offer a window into how people feel at different stages of their journey. Among the most powerful tools is sentiment analysis, which uses AI to scan interactions like emails, chat transcripts, or calls to detect the emotional tone behind the words. It helps surface what customers may not say directly, like underlying frustration or delight, and provides a clearer view of intent.

Customer feedback surveys are another vital tool, but their impact depends on how thoughtfully they’re designed. Rather than relying solely on generic ratings, the most useful surveys ask meaningful, open-ended questions that invite customers to share their real thoughts, such as:

• What nearly stopped you from completing your purchase?

• What could we have done better today?

• What stood out to you in a positive way?

Keeping surveys short and focused—ideally under five minutes—also increases completion rates. When businesses follow up on that feedback or make visible changes, they build trust and show customers that their voices matter.

4. Route customers straight to the agent best suited for their inquiry.

Few things frustrate customers more than having to repeat themselves to multiple agents. When someone reaches out with a problem or question, they expect to be connected quickly to someone who can help, without bouncing around departments or re-explaining their issue.

Intelligent routing is the process of matching a customer with the most appropriate agent or resource based on their specific need, channel, and context. Instead of relying on static call queues or generic routing rules, intelligent systems use real-time data—like a customer’s past interactions, purchase history, or sentiment—to make smarter, faster decisions about where to send the inquiry.

AI-powered routing takes this a step further by continuously learning and adapting. These systems can evaluate the urgency and nature of a customer’s message, whether it comes in via voice, chat, or another digital channel, and instantly route it to the best-fit agent. For example, a high-value customer expressing frustration might be escalated to a senior agent immediately, while a technical question could be routed to someone with specialized product knowledge.

5. Automate easy-to-handle customer outreach.

Customers don’t always want to talk to an agent, especially when their question is simple. Whether it’s checking an order status, updating an account detail, or getting quick product info, people increasingly expect fast, hassle-free answers. Empowering them to find those answers on their own is a smart way to improve the experience without adding strain to support teams.

AI-powered self-service options, like chatbots, can handle routine inquiries around the clock, offering instant responses across channels. They use natural language processing (NLP) to understand what customers are asking, and machine learning to improve over time, so they can resolve common questions without escalation.

The benefit for customers is speed and convenience. They get the help they need in seconds, without waiting on hold or navigating a phone tree. For businesses, it frees up human agents to focus on more complex or sensitive issues, improving both efficiency and overall satisfaction.

6. Track the right customer experience KPIs.

Companies can’t fix what they can’t see, so identifying and tracking the right customer experience KPIs is essential for spotting trends, uncovering pain points, and understanding what’s working. Once those metrics are in place, the real value comes from analyzing them regularly and turning insights into action.

Some of the most important CX metrics to track include:

• Customer satisfaction score (CSAT). Measures how satisfied customers are with a specific interaction. It is often collected immediately after a service or support experience.

• Customer effort score (CES). Tracks how easy it was for a customer to complete an action, such as resolving an issue or finding information.

• Customer service level (CSL). Evaluates the percentage of customer inquiries answered within a set timeframe, helping gauge responsiveness.

• Customer lifetime value (CLV). Estimates the total revenue a business can expect from a customer over the duration of the relationship.

Many businesses also look to net promoter score (NPS) to understand how likely customers are to recommend their brand to others. While not a standalone measure of CX, NPS can signal shifts in customer sentiment and loyalty.