• by Ray Schultz , August 18, 2023

Few consumers fully trust brands to protect their data and to contact them only when appropriate, according to Market Study: CX Trends, Challenges & Opportunities, a report from Customer Contact Week (CCW) Digital authored by Brian Cantor, principle analyst at CCW/Digital. 

The consumers surveyed say:

• Yes, I am confident they will protect my data AND only contact me when necessary — 18.29%
• I trust them to protect my data, but I worry about them sending too many emails/texts/calls — 24.90%
• I trust them to only contact me when necessary, but I’m worried about the security/privacy of my data — 24.46%
• I’m worried about the security/privacy of my data AND the company sending me too many messages — 30.35%

This is happening as 57% of consumers say their customer experiences have become worse, and only 4% feel they have improved. 

Yet in a seeming disconnect, only 18.29% say the marketing emails and texts they receive are highly personalized in most cases, and 44.75% that they are in some instances. But 38.96% feel they are rarely personalized. 

This is bad news for brands that use email. 

“With so many brands sending so many emails and texts every day, it will often take a highly relevant, highly personalized message to stand out from the crowd — and inspire action,” the study says. 

Here is more bad news for email marketers: Only 43.19% feel companies can resolve service issues by email, versus 70.43% who say the same about phone/voice and 49.42% about live chat. 

Meanwhile, a clear majority — 58.61% — say that the buzz over ChatGPT and other ZI technology has made them more willing to use self-service (such as chatbots) for customer service or support issues.

CCW Digital surveyed 517 consumers in June 2023.