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Context Just a Glimmer? Au Contraire

In a recent blog post, Eric Krapf predicted that "context" will be the buzzword of Enterprise Connect Orlando 2014. Eric went on to write that he feels, "This idea of context is still a glimmer in the eye of folks like Microsoft, Cisco, Avaya and others." I respectfully disagree with Eric and say that the concept of context has been utilized in niche ways for many years.

Although nascent in many industries and in most functions, context is used as a tool by many organizations, especially in relation to the contact center. I agree with Eric that using context is not mainstream. I will relate, though, a couple of examples of how context is used today. I will also ask some additional questions about the challenges that need to be overcome to move context from the periphery to the center of customer experience management.

You may well have experienced context as it has been applied to you without perceiving it to be so. Think of your last self-service interaction. Whether dialing a toll free number or visiting a Web page, you may have been asked to enter some piece of information unique to you. This may be an account number, a telephone number, a PIN or some other relevant information. If employed well, this key should have unlocked information about you that played a role in resolving your inquiry.

There is an important distinction to be made. There is a difference between creating true customer context and a "mashup" of information. The difference is in how that information is employed. When the process is done well, various sources of information gathered over time and across an enterprise are knitted into a quilt of context. The goal is to use that context to improve service and refine the customer experience.

A reason that you may not have perceived your interactions as surrounded by context is because many organizations employ context poorly. Context that was applied at one point in a demand chain of service may have been lost as you were passed on to the next link in the chain.

Many of us have experienced this. An example is when we have escalated a self-service interaction by electing to speak to an agent. Suddenly we find ourselves dumped into a queue. We eventually arrive at a person only to find that the context that had been gathered about us in the self-service session was left behind. "What is your account number?" says the agent. "Did I not just enter that?" we think to ourselves.

Whether you have personally experienced the comfort of the context quilt may also depend upon the relationship that you have with the organization. As in most aspects of commercial life, when it comes to context, customers are segmented. In fact segmentation--mining those most valuable relationships--should be one of the goals in a properly implemented context regimen.

Weaving the fabric of context has costs. It requires effort and investments that may not be supported by the value created by all customer segments.

The value that an organization attributes to a business segment and the amount of context put to use within that segment will vary. If you are in the "1%" of prestige customers, the degree of effort and the way that context is applied to you differs from that experienced by those in other tiers. The costs of utilizing context are both hard and soft, and there is a spectrum of ways those investments are deployed and how resources are directed to satisfy the customer.

Depending upon the customer's tier, the spectrum can range from minimal or basic self-service all the way up to full concierge service. At the level of a relationship which dictates a concierge type service, the use of context is more comprehensive.

Here's an example. If you travel frequently you most likely are a member of one or more loyalty programs. Loyalty programs are all about employing context. World-class organizations take that context and use it to serve the customer at an intensity that's deemed appropriate. As any loyalty program member will understand, the benefits are tiered. The tiers are structured to incent increasing loyalty.

An example of a basic application of context is when an airline may contact you to inform you that your flight is delayed. Most loyalty program members are entitled to this entry-level service. The airline has gathered context about you, including your itinerary, and has combined that with your stated contact communications preferences to notify you. But there's more to be told.

Traveling recently, I observed the application of context and how it is applied to different strata of customers. My flight was delayed. After spending the requisite amount of time idling on the tarmac, our airplane returned to the gate when our departure was formally cancelled due to bad weather. We all dutifully grabbed our belongings, disembarked and most of us queued up to learn of alternatives.

Curiously, a group of my fellow passengers didn't get in line. One by one and taking no noticeable actions, they began to peel off to new departure gates. This was context in action. The airline knitted together the information that it had about each passenger, and because these passengers had a premium relationship with the airline, they were automatically rebooked. Each one in turn received the news based on elements of their individual context.

Depending on individual communications preferences, some got a phone call from a live person. Some learned of their new arrangements by text message, email and other preferred ways. The airline knows who they are, what their loyalty is worth and how they wish to be reached. Based on that and other elements of their individual context, the premium customers were off to their destinations. The rest of us, lower-tier loyalty program members and non-members, remained in line to face the uncertainty of interactions with the gate attendant.

Here is where my opinion and Eric's rejoin. The question is not whether context become important. The examples above show that for some organizations and some customers it already is. The question is, Will the principles of using context extend beyond the minority and become mainstream? Questions that spring from this include: How does an organization justify the investments to extend the value of using context more generally? What is the business case for extending context more generally? If it is a worthwhile investment, how does an organization fund it?

Other great points that Eric brings up include the "creepy and scary" aspects of this concept. These topics need to be explored more fully as well. I will address some of these issues in upcoming blog posts. I hope you found what I have written interesting and that you follow me to learn more.