Customer Experience vs Customer Success: Significant Differences

Navigate the nuances of customer success vs customer experience. Unveil their distinct roles and collaborative impact on customer journeys, satisfaction, as well as long-term business success.

When it comes to building a successful business, what matters more: customer success or customer experience? It’s a question that many businesses grapple with, as they try to find the right balance between these two important factors.

Though companies are recognizing that providing a positive customer experience is paramount to their success – there is another aspect to consider: customer success. While customer experience focuses on creating a seamless journey for customers, customer success goes beyond that to ensure that customers achieve their desired outcomes and goals.

Understanding the differences and knowing how to prioritize them is vital for businesses striving to meet as well as exceed customer expectations. We will delve into the distinctions between customer experience vs customer success while exploring why both are crucial for achieving sustainable growth as well as customer loyalty.

Table of Content

1 What is Customer Experience(CX)?
2 What is Customer Success (CS)?
3 Key Differences of Customer Success and Customer Experience
4 How Customer Success and Customer Experience Work Together
5 Influence of CS and CX on Customer Journey
6 Utilize CX and CS for Customer Centric Organization
7 FAQs about Customer Success and Customer Experience

What is Customer Experience(CX)?

Customer experience refers to the overall perception and feelings that customers have towards a company or brand based on their interactions as well as engagements throughout the customer journey. It encompasses every touchpoint, from initial contact to post-purchase support and can greatly influence customer satisfaction, loyalty, advocacy etc.

Customer Experience(CX)

Key objectives of customer experience:

The primary objective of customer experience is to ensure customer satisfaction.
A great customer experience builds loyalty and increases the chances of customer retention.
A superior customer experience can serve as a key differentiator, allowing a brand to stand out from the crowd.

Do you know? Customers that earn over $1 Billion annually can expect to earn over $700 million more within the first 3 years of investing in customer experience.

What is Customer Success (CS)?

Customer Success can be defined as the practice of ensuring that customers achieve their desired outcomes while using a product or service. It focuses on understanding the needs and goals of customers while providing them with the necessary resources, support as well as guidance to maximize the value they derive from the product or service.82% of the companies with 500 and over employees use a customer success platform.

Customer Success (CS)

Here are a few reasons why customer success is crucial for the success of any business:

Ensuring that customers are achieving their desired outcomes, businesses can significantly reduce customer churn.
Satisfied customers are more likely to recommend your products to their friends, family, and colleagues, which can lead to increased sales as well as revenue.

Key Differences of Customer Success and Customer Experience

Customer Success and Customer Experience are two terms that are often used interchangeably in the business world. While they are related concepts, there are distinct differences between the two. Here are five key differences:

Customer Success and Customer Experience Key Differences

1. Focus

Customer Success is primarily focused on ensuring that customers achieve their desired outcomes. It involves proactively assisting customers throughout their journey, helping them derive maximum value from a product or service. Customer Success professionals work closely with customers, offering guidance, support and resources to facilitate their success.
Customer Experience is about creating a positive overall experience for the customer at each touchpoint. It involves everything from the first interaction with a brand to post-purchase support. Customer Experience professionals aim to deliver seamless, personalized and memorable interactions that leave a lasting impression on customers. In fact, 86% of the customers are willing to pay more for better customer experience.

2. Scope

Customer Success is more specific and targeted. It concentrates on individual customer accounts, understanding their unique needs and goals, while tailoring strategies to drive their success. Customer Success managers closely monitor customer metrics and engagement to identify areas of improvement as well as take proactive steps to address them.
Customer Experience is broader in scope. It encompasses the entire customer journey, focusing on the end-to-end experience. It involves creating positive interactions across various touchpoints, such as the website, customer service and product usage. Customer Experience teams analyze customer feedback and data to identify pain points as well as optimize the overall experience.

3. Timeframe

Customer Success is often associated with long-term relationships. It involves building strong partnerships with customers and maintaining ongoing engagement to ensure their continued success. Customer Success professionals keep an eye on customer health and progress over time, working towards achieving mutually beneficial outcomes.
Customer Experience can be viewed in a more immediate time frame. It is about ensuring that each interaction along the customer journey is positive and memorable. Customer Experience teams focus on improving satisfaction and loyalty at each touchpoint, working towards creating a consistent, delightful experience.

4. Metrics

In Customer Success, the key metrics revolve around customer adoption, usage, and satisfaction. Success is measured by factors such as product adoption rates, customer retention, and expansion of the customer base. Customer Success teams use a variety of tools and technologies to track customer metrics as well as identify areas for improvement.
Customer Experience metrics focus on overall satisfaction, loyalty, and advocacy. Metrics like Net Promoter Score (NPS), Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT) and Customer Effort Score (CES) are commonly used to gauge the effectiveness of the customer experience. Customer Experience teams analyze feedback, conduct surveys, as well as use other feedback channels to monitor customer sentiment and make necessary improvements.

5. Involvement

Customer Success often involves a dedicated team of professionals who work closely with customers. These teams have deep knowledge of the product/service while building strong relationships with customers by understanding their goals and challenges. They act as partners, providing ongoing support and guidance to ensure customer success.
Customer Experience is a collaborative effort that involves multiple departments within an organization. It requires alignment along with coordination across marketing, sales, customer service and other teams to deliver a consistent experience. Customer Experience professionals act as advocates for the customer, working to break down silos and ensure a holistic customer-centric approach.

6. Responsibility and Function

Customer Success is typically a dedicated function within a company that focuses on helping customers achieve their goals and ensuring their success. It involves activities like customer onboarding, training, ongoing support and regular check-ins.
Customer Experience is a broader concept that involves multiple departments and touchpoints within a company. It is the collective responsibility of everyone in the organization to design and deliver exceptional experiences at every customer interaction point.

How Customer Success and Customer Experience Work Together

Customer Success and customer experience are two crucial elements of a successful business strategy. While they may seem similar at first glance, they actually have distinct roles and work hand-in-hand to ensure customer satisfaction as well as loyalty.

Customer Success and Customer Experience Work Together how

Here are some instances where customer success and customer experience work together:

Understanding customer needs: Customer success managers play a significant role in understanding customers’ needs and goals. By actively engaging with customers, they gain insights into their pain points, challenges and expectations. The information helps in enhancing the overall customer experience by tailoring products or services to meet specific requirements.
Alignment of goals: Customer Success and Customer Experience teams should share common goals to ensure a consistent customer-centric approach. By aligning objectives and working towards the same outcomes, both teams can collaboratively work together to maximize customer satisfaction.
Onboarding and training: A smooth onboarding process is crucial for a positive customer experience. Customer success teams ensure that customers are guided properly during the onboarding phase, helping them get acquainted with the product or service. They provide training and assistance, making sure customers feel confident in using the offering effectively.
Personalization and tailored experiences: Customer Success teams can provide valuable information about individual customer needs and preferences to the Customer Experience team. It enables them to personalize interactions, anticipate customer expectations, and deliver tailored experiences that create a sense of value as well as personalized attention.
Metrics and feedback: Both customer success and customer experience rely on metrics/feedback to measure performance as well as identify areas for improvement. Customer success managers track key metrics like customer satisfaction, retention rate, and upsell opportunities to assess the success of their efforts. The data is invaluable for understanding the impact of customer success strategies on the overall customer experience.
Continuous improvement: Collaboration between Customer Success and Customer Experience teams creates a culture of continuous improvement. By analyzing customer feedback, identifying areas for enhancement and implementing changes accordingly, both teams can work towards consistently improving the overall customer experience while also ensuring long-term success. In fact, 66% of CEOs said using AI for customer success is their top priority for several years.

Influence of CS and CX on Customer Journey

The impact of customer success and customer experience on the customer journey is significant. Here’s how they influence each stage of the journey:

Influence of CS and CX on Customer Journey

Awareness
Customer success and customer experience start influencing the customer journey even before a customer becomes aware of a brand. Positive word-of-mouth, online reviews, social media mentions, etc. contribute to a favorable perception of a company and can attract potential customers.
Research and Consideration
During the research stage, potential customers conduct research and compare different options. Positive customer experiences shared by existing customers, along with effective customer success strategies, can sway potential customers towards choosing a particular brand.
Purchase
The customer success and experience elements that come into play at this stage are crucial. A seamless and user-friendly purchase process, along with attentive customer service, can greatly enhance the buying experience while also encouraging customers to complete the purchase.
Usage and Adoption
Customer success plays a vital role in this stage, as it focuses on ensuring customers achieve their desired outcomes. Active engagement with customers through personalized communication, relevant resources and ongoing support helps them maximize the value they get from the product or service.
Support and Maintenance
Throughout the customer journey, customers may encounter problems, have questions, or need assistance. A responsive and efficient customer support system is essential to address these issues promptly. Effective customer success strategies ensure that customer needs are met, leading to enhanced customer satisfaction and loyalty.
Loyalty and Advocacy
The ultimate goal of customer experience and customer success programs is to create loyal customers who not only continue to use a product or service but also become advocates for the brand. Loyal customers contribute to positive word-of-mouth, referrals, and even testimonials, which in turn attract new customers as well as further enhance the overall customer journey.

Utilize CX and CS for Customer Centric Organization

Customer success and customer experience are both crucial components of a customer-centric approach. While customer success focuses on helping customers achieve long-term value, customer experience encompasses the entire journey, from initial interaction to ongoing support.

Understanding the distinctions between the two concepts allows businesses to create a comprehensive customer-centric strategy. Focusing on customer success, companies can provide a seamless customer experience, resulting in customer satisfaction. Investing in customer success and delivering exceptional customer experiences is key to business success in a competitive market.

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FAQs about Customer Success and Customer Experience

How do customer experience and customer success work together ?

Customer success and customer experience work together to create a positive relationship between the customer as well as the brand. By providing exceptional customer experiences, companies can increase customer satisfaction and loyalty. Customer success, from the other perspective, plays a critical role in proactively guiding customers towards achieving their goals, anticipating their needs, and providing the necessary support.

What are the structures of CX governance?

CX governance is centralized under a dedicated team responsible for overseeing CX initiatives company-wide. Meanwhile, each business unit has its own CX governance team responsible for managing CX strategies within their respective areas. The approach combines elements of both centralized and decentralized structures. It involves a central CX governance team responsible for setting overall CX strategies and decentralized teams ensure their implementation at the business unit level. The structure strikes a balance between consistency and flexibility.

How customer success and CX impact the customer journey?

Customer experience and customer success are intertwined throughout the entire customer journey. The customer journey consists of multiple stages, including awareness, consideration, purchase and post-purchase. At each stage, both customer experience as well as customer success influence the customer’s perception and satisfaction.

Is customer success part of customer experience?

Yes, customer success is an integral part of customer experience. While customer experience encompasses the entire customer journey, customer success focuses specifically on guiding customers towards achieving success with the product or service they have purchased. It is a proactive approach to ensure customer satisfaction and retention.