In the past, a brand's identity was determined by how effectively it convinced its customers of its qualities. However, in the present, a brand's identity is shaped by the emotions that customers experience while engaging with its products, services, and employees. This transformation in the customer experience has emerged as a crucial aspect in distinguishing between industry leaders and their followers.

A Forrester Consulting study to evaluate how companies are leveraging a fully realized experience ecosystem. Our goal was to determine the progress made and we believe that the study, which will soon be published, confirms that leading companies are excelling in providing personalized, predictive, precise, and business outcome-oriented experiences. Additionally, the research indicates that certain fundamental assumptions about experience should be carefully re-examined.

The customer experience consists of three fundamental building blocks that form a three-dimensional perspective:

1. The initial aspect outlines the nature of the customer's encounter and its progression through various channels, touchpoints, and circumstances. This aspect is crucial in determining the value that is exchanged between the customer and the brand. By examining customer cues, market dynamics, and behavioral drivers, it becomes possible to develop novel propositions, segmentation schemes, personas, and critical "moments that matter" — instances where the customer's mindset undergoes a significant shift and behaviors alter.

2. The second aspect emphasizes the facilitation of customer experience through the operational layers of the company. To ensure that significant moments are delivered seamlessly, businesses must synchronize the layers responsible for their delivery. This includes employees, partners, data, technology, and underlying business processes. Achieving this requires a thorough examination of the alignment and integration of these layers and identifying opportunities for improvement.

3. The third aspect examines the temporal dimension of the customer's experience, encompassing their engagement across multiple touchpoints and over time. It also considers how an organization's enabling layers are designed and optimized as a cohesive operating model for a unified customer experience, rather than as a patchwork of isolated solutions.

4. Drawing from the Forrester study and our considerable expertise in the realm of experience, While vision holds importance it alone cannot guarantee a successful experience. The actual delivery of the experience is what truly matters. Therefore, we recommend that businesses prioritize execution over vision. Studies support this notion, as companies that excel in providing experiences are twice as likely to prioritize execution compared to those who fall behind as followers or intermediates.

Personalization must evolve as people change. While customer insights are crucial, they're insufficient. Personalized experiences should be a top priority, with 64% of those surveyed prioritizing investments in this area. However, just a quarter of respondents are developing roadmaps that will adapt over time to meet the constantly evolving needs of customers. 

Experience is not solely dependent on companies as it is influenced by various factors within the ecosystem. Partners and customers are integral parts of the complex experience ecosystem and contribute to the delivery of the experience. Therefore, companies need to consider how they can enable all involved in experience delivery to improve the overall experience. Unfortunately, 38% of the organizations surveyed failed to recognize the importance of employee and partner enablement strategies as part of an interconnected experience ecosystem.