Strike-mare before Christmas – 2022 to be remembered as the year businesses failed on customer experience.

Infinity, the global call intelligence and speech analytics platform, can today reveal the shocking data trends that have shaped customer experience over 2022 – and the data highlights the key industries that need to invest in their customer experience management in 2023 in order to meet consumer expectations.

1. Le Mortgage d’Arthur

The global housing market reached a breakpoint in the 3rd week of April 2022 and is heading towards a brutal crash in 2023. In this week, two of the largest lenders in the UK increased the minimum salary requirements for a mortgage. Stricter borrowing requirements, coupled with soaring house prices, created huge anxiety amongst UK homeowners. During the week of April 17th to April 24th, inbound calls from anxious customers to property management companies rose by over 25%. The UK’s mortgage crisis is still raging, and property management companies will continue to be inundated with calls from uneasy customers.

2. Customers have long-term energy

Coupled with the mortgage crisis, the most dominant news story in the UK in 2022 was the energy crisis. On April 1st, a new energy price cap came into effect, 54% higher than October last year. Those on default tariffs paying by direct debit saw an increase of £693 from £1,277 to £1,971 per year. Prepayment customers also saw an increase of £708 from £1,309 to £2,017. Following this announcement, calls to energy providers increased by 50% in the week of the 27th of March. The rise in consumer prices of energy and increase in call volumes show a difficult time period for energy providers to deal with. A critical component of reputation management is effective communication, and the need for excellent and effective communication will probably rise as the energy crisis continues into 2023.

3. There are still some reasons to celebrate

On the more positive side of customer service, the Platinum Jubilee caused a huge spike in calls from customers to Infinity’s clients during the week of May 29th to June 5th —an increase of 28%. This was the largest increase of inbound calls of the year and shows the rise in competition around big sales events. The Platinum Jubilee was a huge sales event in the UK, with many brands across various industries offering discounts. At busy sales periods during the year when competing special offers are on, customers quickly try to find the best deal through calling businesses and comparing prices. Customer service teams need to be readily equipped with the knowledge and information that their brand is offering, to ensure that the customer is informed, and to maximise sales.

Infinity’s CEO Warren Newbert commented on the 2023 trends: “From looking at 2022 customer data, there are three industries in particular that must recognise the importance of excellent customer service; utilities, financial services, and property management. The energy crisis and mortgage crisis are creating waves of anxiety among the UK population, and each phone call to a brand operating in one of these industries represents a critical make or break moment for their reputation.

As the cost-of-living crisis bites, overall sales in the UK may decrease as people have less money to spend at their discretion. This makes big sales events like Black Friday, Christmas, and Easter all the more important. The Platinum Jubilee in 2022 showed that people are willing to part with their money for the right price – but they are going to spend time looking for the best deal. Ensuring that customer service teams are ready at these times will be essential in 2023.”

About Infinity

Since 2011 Infinity has been developing call intelligence technology to optimise marketing campaigns, accelerate sales, improve contact centre operations, and deliver slick customer experiences for clients in the automotive, travel, finance, healthcare, property, telecommunications, retail, and technology sectors. With offices in London, Madrid, San Francisco, Baltimore, Manchester and Reigate, the business now offers an innovative suite of products across the conversation intelligence spectrum. To learn more about how you can use call intelligence to improve the experience, you offer customers and enhance your sales visit www.infinity.co