How price comparison sites can leverage customer experience

Focus on customer insights and create personalized experiences to stand apart

Many of us like buying insurance online among other things. We often use price comparison websites to save time, money and, of course, find the best deal. With so much choice around, how can today’s consumers decide which is the best site to use?

Customers nowadays are reinventing how they select and purchase online products or services. In an era where the experience economy is booming, users demand much more than fast and easy-to-use sites. They expect to get the best value for their money but also to have the best customer experience (CX) possible. Plus, they want to able to trust brands with their personal data and information.

What consumers think of comparison sites

With so many players in the market, standing out is a must for price comparison sites. As the recent CMA market study shows, 54% of users say they use different comparison sites when shopping around. However, only two-fifths purchase through them. The main reason is that many consumers use them to negotiate a better deal with individual providers (i.e. insurers). According to the same report many users believe that … “comparison websites in general have very little difference between them in terms of the offers and savings to be made”.

So how do price comparison sites try to differentiate and cut out the competition? Apart from trying to strike the best deals with individual providers … most sites invest heavily in digital and media advertising to strengthen brand awareness and acquire new customers. Some offer gifts and rewards to attract prospects and keep customers happy. While others go beyond using incentives and put emphasis on boosting customer engagement and creating loyalty.

How price comparison websites can thrive in the experience economy

Industry experts suggest it’s time that comparison sites set the bar higher and …

1. Become more innovative and transparent with their offerings

2. Look at creating better customer experiences

3. Compare the quality of the different services not just pricing

4. Offer personalized quotes taking into account customer needs

This is an ultra-competitive sector, so enhancing benefits and helping customers make informed choices will most probably be on the priority list of comparison websites.

Above all though, the real disruption will come when price comparison brands truly embrace the experience economy. How? By focusing on customer experience: connecting with customers in order to understand better their needs and acting on insights fast.

How price comparison sites can enhance CX and customer intelligence

If you work in this sector, you are probably aware of the ROI benefits from optimizing the customer experience and delivering personalized communications.

One of the most efficient ways to engage users is to allow them to talk to a real person in real time. According to recent studies, 79% of consumers still prefer human interaction when seeking advice. It is no surprise therefore that the voice channel helps achieve higher conversions faster and acquire more loyal customers. In fact, 44% of insurance quotes are finalized over the phone.

By displaying click-to-callback buttons at key stages of the customer journey, prospects can get the answers they need in order to complete the purchase. In addition, instant call back helps eliminate holding time, avoid zapping to other sites and decrease form abandonment rate.

Most importantly, call data offer an excellent way to better manage the media mix and generate higher quality leads. These valuable customer exchanges are wasted unless you track and analyze calls. With call tracking you can identify keywords with high buying-intent. In particular, “dynamic” call tracking/ tracking per-user session enables you to measure in a highly sophisticated way visitor behavior: number of calls, geographical regions, visited pages, content and keywords that triggered call requests. This way you can identify which campaigns are the most profitable and reallocate advertising budgets accordingly.

To conclude …
At a time when customer experience can be the true brand differentiator, it is vital to integrate voice into your marketing strategy. Talking to prospects and customers in real time can help you nurture customer relationships and increase satisfaction faster. On top of this, all this customer intelligence can enrich your CRM and enable you to deliver highly personalized campaigns.

2019 is the year that brands will need to focus on making sure they engage customers through authentic experiences. Price comparison websites cannot afford to miss this opportunity to elevate their marketing strategy…