Every day, there are more and more advanced back-office and customer-facing technologies at the ready for businesses to modernize CX and CRM. The challenge that many decision-makers face isn’t just wading through the mind-numbing array of advanced technologies to deploy but whether or not they can see the extent to which their customers have moved away from current value-propositions and touch points. Brian Solis is a leading digital analyst, anthropologist and futurist. He has studied how customer behaviors, preferences, values and intent have evolved and how organizations are and aren’t keeping up. In his keynote presentation, Brian will share the world of experience through the eyes of the evolving customer and it how companies need to reverse engineer new perspectives, models, and journeys to stay relevant.

You already realize the importance of Millennials as consumers, but have you considered the impact they could make within your company? Contact centers are changing, with a new focus on handling complex and difficult interactions and “postchannel” strategies that erase your customers’ awareness of channels. Digitally fluent and social media-connected Millennials can be the ideal fit for chat, social, and mobile agent support. This presentation shows how you can leverage this key demographic, along with innovative technologies, to enable the best possible customer outcomes.

This highly interactive presentation offers a dialogue about the customer experience your employees are providing to customers and compares it to the customer experience that your employees have when they themselves are customers. Attendees discover what customers want, the difference between customer service and customer loyalty, the role of social media in customer service, what it means to think like an owner, why a complaint is a four-letter word, how to improve the stories your customers are telling, and what to do to inspire your customers to refer you.

The reason employees engage is the passionate pursuit of a better customer experience. This level of customer-centricity is far from being a new concept, but the techniques and digital workplace tools that can make it a reality have advanced significantly in recent years. In this session, attendees learn an easy-to-remember, fivestep framework for people-centric success in the digital age; the connection between employee engagement and innovative customer experiences; how data, processes, people, and culture have to align; and how to balance the often-conflicting organizational disciplines that result in the best customer experiences. Real-world examples of companies leading the transformation toward customer-centricity are given.

ELIZA, one of the first chatbots ever built, was introduced more than 50 years ago, but it was not until Siri in 2011, Alexa in 2015, and Facebook’s Bots launch in 2016 that we saw anything close to mass market adoption of conversational assistants. As with these applications, most technologies that start in the consumer world eventually reach the commercial enterprise, but should chatbots be treated as traditional projects? Chatbots are essentially ushering in a new era of man-machine interaction—one that goes far beyond the now familiar “information retrieval” applications that rely on simple question-answer system constructs. As machines are starting to learn how to speak and to perform traditionally human functions, should we treat them more like humans? This is a new IT frontier. Is the goal to improve the human condition? These and other similar questions must be asked, but here is the big question: How do enterprises get this right?

Recall the absolutely best customer service experience of your entire life. What made it so spectacular? Today’s customers do not talk or tweet about good service: only experiences they find unique, special, and ingenious. Value-added service (taking what customers expect and adding more) will not provide a solid ROI and only serves to further elevate customers’ expectations. Value-unique service (delivering an unexpected, compelling surprise) creates animated advocates and fuels bottom-line impact. The pinnacle of customer advocacy is not about “Would you recommend?” but rather “Would you tell a ‘you’re-not-gonna-believe’ type of story?” Based on Chip Bell’s newest national bestselling book, Kaleidoscope: Delivering Innovative Service That Sparkles, this high-energy session provides the tools, tips, and techniques for leading and delivering innovative service that sparkles.

Open to all conference attendees and Networking Pass holders, solution sessions are presented by conference sponsors. The sessions are educational, and the presentations typically focus on solving real-world problems using case study examples, with a question-and-answer period that follows. Check back for session details or follow #SmartCS on Twitter for updates.

More information coming soon.

While new technology can make it easier to help customers achieve specific goals, it doesn’t inherently address their full needs. Companies still need to craft interactions that connect with customers at an emotional level. To understand how to build stronger bonds, Temkin Group shares its research on the Human Conversational Model, showing how companies can improve their digital efforts by adopting lessons culled from an analysis of successful human-to-human interactions. During this session, attendees learn how consumers currently view their experiences today; why it’s critical to design digital interactions that are both functional and emotionally stimulating; and how to create engaging conversations instead of just deploying digital technology.

Outstanding customer service does not happen by accident. To distinguish your business, you need to turn your current customers into fans. Why? Because fans are loyal, they return, they talk, share, and they post! In this talk designed for leaders, we discuss the steps needed to take an ordinary customer experience and make it extraordinary and create a fan culture. Attendees will leave being able to: Start the process of creating a fan culture in their business. Lead their team to support and grow this culture long-term. Make fan experiences happen throughout the organization on a regular basis.

This case study presentation examines how AAA of Western and Central New York established a new, personalized, digital connection to its member base, ultimately driving immediate business value and enhancing overall customer service and communications strategies. AAA WACNY was increasingly aware of rising customer expectations for communications to be easy, personalized, and mobile. Ultimately, the organization decided to implement a guided self-service digital solution that would connect it to a significant percentage of its member base to help improve renewal rates and support ongoing, value-added communications around product education or plan updates. The session looks at the challenges and successes AAA-WCNY navigated while implementing its technology program.

ELIZA, one of the first chatbots ever built, was introduced more than 50 years ago, but it was not until Siri in 2011, Alexa in 2015, and Facebook’s Bots launch in 2016 that we saw anything close to mass market adoption of conversational assistants. As with these applications, most technologies that start in the consumer world eventually reach the commercial enterprise, but should chatbots be treated as traditional projects? Chatbots are essentially ushering in a new era of man-machine interaction—one that goes far beyond the now familiar “information retrieval” applications that rely on simple question-answer system constructs. As machines are starting to learn how to speak and to perform traditionally human functions, should we treat them more like humans? This is a new IT frontier. Is the goal to improve the human condition? These and other similar questions must be asked, but here is the big question: How do enterprises get this right?

This case study session looks at how to successfully reorganize in the public sector to achieve higher workforce engagement and increase citizen satisfaction. It discusses how to build leadership commitment and set clear expectations and performance management practices; how staff can successfully engage through good planning, creative thinking, and inclusive methodology; how clear performance expectations lead to more engaged staff and better customer service outcomes; and why the tone at the top is critical for any successful reorganization.

What do customers really want from you when they reach out on social media? Why are they so angry? Frankie Saucier, host of the Socially Supportive Podcast, provides answers to this. She also shares today's real-world use cases for social and digital customer care, and reveals 9 fantastic responses that help diffuse angry customers and turn them into loyal brand fans!

Join your peers as we celebrate the grand opening of the Customer Solutions Expo. Visit with conference sponsors, exhibitors, speakers, and other attendees while enjoying light hors d’oeuvres and drinks.