Customer Experience (CX) and User Experience (UX) are often used interchangeably. Hence, they are often mistaken as the same concept – with the addition of User Interface (UI/UX). A common area the terms are often seen are in job descriptions of a related field or in conference topics. While UX is a subset of CX, it isn’t fully similar. It’s important for organisations to understand the differences to provide their audience with the best experience for their products and services.
Differences Between CX and UX
CX and UX share a similar goal – customer satisfaction. They are focused on researching the needs of people, creating buyer personas, coming up with journey maps and testing solutions and more.
| CX | UX | |
|---|---|---|
| Target Audience | Existing and potential customers of a brand | Users who engage with digital platforms, websites, or applications |
| Goals | Build trust, foster loyalty and establishing long-term relationships | Designs interfaces that are intuitive, visually appealing, and meet user needs |
| Key Metrics | Churn Rate, Retention Rate, CLV, CES & NPS | App store ratings, Usability testing results |
| Area of Focus | Boost overall brand perception and increase customer loyalty | Observe and design services/products based on user feedback |
Despite sharing a similar goal, they have nuanced differences – CX refers to how a business engages with its customers at every point of their buying journey while UX focuses on having a deep understanding of users, what they need, what they value, their abilities and their limitations.
Similarly, many have a misconception that UX design only addresses websites; which is not true. UX addresses the needs of consumers, regardless of the platforms used – ranging from mobile devices, IoT devices to physical environments. Different platforms present different challenges and opportunities. A UX design is to ensure the experience remains consistent across all touchpoints.
Examples of Good and Bad UX Design Practices
An example of a bad UX design would be Netflix’s hover auto-play feature. If a user hovers over the thumbnail of a series/movie to view the details/information, the action triggers an auto-play of its trailer. This feature limits the site’s usability, preventing users from seeing key information which causes frustration.
Meanwhile, a good UX design would be Zoom’s simplified user interface. The number of UI elements and interactions to core actions are minimised, aiming to only display a limited number of options and enlarging the icon so they are visibly seen on the screen. Zoom’s success is due to its simple design, allowing users to navigate the interface with no issue.
The Relationship Between CX and UX
CX and UX work together in creating cohesive and an enjoyable experience. CX teams provide UX teams with customer feedback collected through feedback loops, and the UX team focuses on creating a product that addresses pain points, optimises usability, and aligns with customer expectations.
CX and UX play a pivotal role in a consumer’s level of satisfaction when interacting a with the product/service of an organisation. For example, an organisation that specialises in air travels has a good UX design but poor CX. Users may find the experience of booking flights via their website or app pleasant; however customer service agents may take days to respond regarding a refund.
A research report conducted by Forrester, a renowned business consulting and analytics firm, indicates that customers are willing to explain extra when they have a positive long-term relationship with the company and are satisfied with the quality of its products.
Professions Involved In CX and UX
| CX Professionals | UX Professionals | |
|---|---|---|
| Focus | Enhancing a customer’s experience throughout all types of interaction with an organization | Understanding user needs, designing intuitive interfaces, and ensuring that users can easily accomplish their goals while interacting with digital platforms |
| Job Responsibilities | CX Strategy Development, Prototyping & Testing, Digital & Physical Touchpoints, Customer Journey Mapping | User Research, Information Architecture, Design Documentation, Wireframing & Prototyping |
| Has a Background in | Marketing, Advertising, Management, Psychology, Tech, Sales & Communications | Design, Psychology, Computer Science, and Communications |
| Examples of Job Titles | CX manager, CX consultant, CX researcher, CX writer, and CX strategist | UX manager, UX writer, UX strategist, Information Architect, and UI designer |
CX Professionals
CX professionals focus on enhancing a customer’s experience throughout all types of interaction with an organization. They are responsible for designing and optimizing the overall customer experience to enhance customer satisfaction, loyalty, and business success.
Their job responsibilities include:
- CX Strategy Development – Collaborating with cross-functional teams to develop and implement a customer-centric CX strategy that aligns with the organization’s goals and values.
- Prototyping & Testing – Developing prototypes and conducting usability tests to gather user feedback and refine design solutions.
- Digital and Physical Touchpoints – Designing digital interfaces, websites, mobile apps, and physical touchpoints (e.g., in-store experiences) to align with CX goals.
- Customer Journey Mapping – Creating detailed customer journey maps to visualize end-to-end customer experience, identify pain points and opportunities for improvement.
UX Professionals
UX professionals focus on understanding user needs, designing intuitive interfaces, and ensuring that users can easily accomplish their goals while interacting with digital platforms. They are responsible for creating digital products and services that provide an exceptional and user-friendly experience.
Their job responsibilities include:
- User Research – Conducting user research to understand user behaviours, preferences, and pain points. This often involves user interviews, surveys, usability testing, and competitor analysis.
- Information Architecture – Organising content and navigation structures to ensure users can easily find information and navigate the digital product.
- Design Documentation – Creating design specifications, guidelines, and documentation to guide the development and implementation of design solutions.
- Wireframing & Prototyping – Creating wireframes and interactive prototypes to visualize and test design concepts, allowing early user feedback and iteration.
CRM Solutions’ Role in CX and UX
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) solutions play a significant role in enhancing both CX and UX. Key aspects of how CRM contributes to this include:
- Enhanced Communications and Personalization – CRM captures conversation histories within a single platform, allowing cross-department collaboration and provides context for personalised responses; such as addressing them by their names or having a knowledge of their issue without the customers needing to repeat themselves.
- Targeted Product & Services Offering – CRM facilitates customer segmentation by utilizing historical records to identify patterns and anticipate customer wants and needs accurately – allowing brands to better determine how they approach each customer.
- Efficient Customer Support – A study by AutoDeal shows that businesses who respond to queries within an hour or less are more likely to close a sale as compared to those that within 6 hours or less. As CRM platforms can be accessed remotely, they facilitate a faster response time for sales, marketing, and customer service inquiries
There are also other ways CRM can benefit a business besides playing a role in CX and UX. Read our article on 4 Ways CRM Software Could Benefit Your Business.
Conclusion
CX and UX are important for brand success as they both focus on the consumer’s level of satisfaction when interacting with a company. Simultaneously, the implementation of CRM solutions helps leverage customer experiences as businesses gain holistic views of their customers. This facilitates strategic planning aimed at exceeding evolving customer demands and fostering long-term satisfaction and loyalty.
Orlig CRM helps businesses enrich their customer experience in an effective manner. Get in contact with us now to learn more.
