With consumer experience heralded as the prime marketing battleground for businesses, it’s not all about technology. According to PwC, 74% of European consumers want more human interaction in the future – but only 46% agree that the employees they interact with understand their needs.

And the stakes for customer-facing staff keep rising.

With 71% of customers paying more attention to corporate values in 2022 than they did in 2021, 89% of Customer Experience professionals confirm that their contact centre agents are expected to be better versed on their brand’s stance on social issues compared to a year ago.

And there’s a real focus on personalised, non-scripted engagements – with Boston Consulting Group research showing that NPS scores are 20% higher for businesses that deliver a high level of personalisation, compared to those that don’t.

And these trends are mirrored in candidate expectations of your recruitment process.

80% of customers say the experience a company provides is as important as its products and services - and 65% find a positive experience with a brand to be more influential than great advertising.

Snap.

79% of consumers say they trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations from friends or family.

And negative reviews can have a significant impact on consumer behaviour, making 92% of consumers less likely to use a business.

Same in recruitment.

So if we check what consumers want from a great digital experience, it’s likely to mirror candidate aspirations?

The key contributors are – the Three Ss – Speed (94 percent), Seamlessness (92 percent) and a Sense of Control (92 percent), combined with an individualised experience (83 percent).

Time to review your candidate experience through a consumer lense?