For modern CX leaders, delivering a seamless and personalized customer experience is the key to competitive advantage. However, this is easier said than done. It requires a well-integrated customer experience (CX) technology stack that can provide a single view of the customer and that can enable you to deliver a consistent and personalized experience across all channels. This article provides a guide for how to build a modern CX technology stack, from the foundational systems of record to the engagement and analytics layers.
The first step in building a modern CX stack is to have a clear understanding of your customer journey. You need to map out all of the touchpoints that a customer has with your brand, from their first visit to your website to their post-purchase support interactions. This will help you to identify the key moments of truth where you can make a difference and to choose the right technologies to support those moments. For a deeper dive into the importance of the customer journey, see our article on omnichannel vs. multichannel.
1. The Foundational Layer: Systems of Record
The foundation of any modern CX stack is a set of systems of record that provide a single source of truth for your customer data. This includes:
- Customer Relationship Management (CRM): Your CRM is the heart of your CX stack. It’s where you store all of your customer data, including their contact information, their purchase history, and their interaction history. A platform like CRM9 makes this process seamless by centralizing customer insights and helping teams deliver more personalized experiences
- Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP): Your ERP system is where you manage your core business processes, such as finance and supply chain. Integrating your ERP with your CRM can provide a more complete view of your customer.
- Product Information Management (PIM): Your PIM system is where you manage all of your product information. Integrating your PIM with your e-commerce platform and your marketing automation platform can ensure that your customers always have access to accurate and up-to-date product information.
2. The Engagement Layer: Channels and Touchpoints
The engagement layer is where you interact with your customers. This includes a variety of channels and touchpoints, such as:
- Contact Center Platform: Your contact center platform is the hub of your customer service operations. It should support a variety of channels, including voice, email, chat, and social media. Integrating it with the right customer service software helps teams centralize tickets, track resolutions, and maintain service continuity across every touchpoint.
- E-commerce Platform: Your e-commerce platform is where you sell your products and services online. It should provide a seamless and convenient shopping experience.
- Marketing Automation Platform: Your marketing automation platform is where you manage your marketing campaigns. It should be integrated with your CRM to enable personalized and targeted marketing.
- Content Management System (CMS): Your CMS is where you manage your website content. It should be integrated with your other systems to provide a consistent and personalized experience.
3. The Analytics Layer: Insights and Intelligence
The analytics layer is where you turn your customer data into actionable insights. This includes:
- Customer Data Platform (CDP): A CDP is a specialized system that ingests data from a variety of sources to create a unified and persistent customer profile. Modern customer experience analytics solutions often build on CDPs to further integrate insights and guide CX strategy.
- Business Intelligence (BI) and Analytics Tools: BI and analytics tools can help you to analyze your customer data to identify trends, to segment your customers, and to measure the effectiveness of your CX initiatives.
- AI and Machine Learning: AI and machine learning can be used to personalize the customer experience, to predict customer behavior, and to automate customer service. For more on this, see our article on AI-powered contact center automation.
| Layer | Key Technology | Key Function |
|---|---|---|
| Foundational | CRM, ERP, PIM | Provide a single source of truth for your customer data. |
| Engagement | Contact Center, E-commerce, Marketing Automation, CMS | Interact with your customers across all channels. |
| Analytics | CDP, BI, AI/ML | Turn your customer data into actionable insights. |
Conclusion
Building a modern CX technology stack is a complex but essential undertaking for any organization that wants to compete on customer experience. By taking a strategic and customer-centric approach, you can build a CX stack that provides a single view of the customer and that enables you to deliver a consistent and personalized experience across all channels. The journey to a modern CX stack is a marathon, not a sprint, but with the right strategy and the right partner, you can build a more intelligent and customer-centric business. For a deeper dive into the metrics that matter, see our guide on the contact center analytics that truly improve CSAT.
