Healthcare Industry to mark territories on the Customer Journey Map: Customer Experience Challenges

We know how important “Good Data” is in this world of ever-growing Big Data. This has given rise to a new dimension to the information flow across industries. If we look at the healthcare industry, patients have become willing to trade their privacy for easy access to their medical information – another hint to the ever discerning and enlightened consumer – the impatient patient. Let’s see where the healthcare industry stands with the other industries right now.

It is high time that the old-school and textbook models, where the data was restricted for use and access levels were too hierarchic, breaks and gives way to a more connected and complete journey model . A model for on-demand healthcare is underway to fulfill the heightened desire of patients – with telemedicine, mobile health, social media integrations and retail clinics – and to render the healthcare available 24/7 from anywhere in the world. Information access is closing the gap between patients and healthcare companies.
For a competitive advantage, it’s essential to enable a positive and effortless customer experience. This is what will cause an increased customer satisfaction, loyalty, advocacy and greater customer lifetime value. Healthcare payers and providers alike are reacting to this change and reorganizing their business models to better acquire, serve, and retain these newly enlightened and empowered consumers.

The interactions that a customer has with an organization across the multiple channels paint his perception of a healthcare payer or provider organization – and not through a single, individual transaction or moment in time. Integrating customer data and platforms in order to develop a single customer view is the information based foundation of a customer-centric organization. To deliver this multi-channel, digital, and optimized customer experience, organizations need to leverage this ‘good information’ and analytic-based insights that along with new technologies can be utilized and then truly enable business growth and competitive advantage.

In any healthcare facility–a system that provides valuable omni-channel functionality, for example by allowing customers to move seamlessly from chat to a phone call and connect to the same agent, enabling the customer to start an interaction in a chat session and continue where they left off on the phone without having to repeat their issue. This is what makes a customer journey complete – without any disconnect. This is undoubtedly emotionally and efficiency-wise quite a big deal for a customer, whether she’s talking to the hospital, or any other industry for that matter!