79 percent of U.S. consumers believe high-quality product content improves
their impression of a product or brand
Maidenhead, U.K. December 13, 2012 SDL (LSE: SDL), the leading provider
of Global Information Management solutions, today released a survey report
that uncovers new findings about the importance of product content in
customer experience management (CXM) and why interactive,
contextually-aware, multimedia product information is a must-have in any
customer engagement strategy.
Product information whether thats user manuals, how-to guides, or
installation and troubleshooting guides has always been considered a
staple component in any customer purchasing experience. Yet little research
has been done to analyze exactly how users access and leverage product
information, and how it influences their perception of a product or brand.
The survey, which was conducted online among 1,000 adult consumers in the
United States, demonstrates the impact that high-quality product information
can have on the customer experience. The majority of respondents agreed that
high-quality product content is essential to good customer service (82
percent), makes it easier to solve service problems on their own (87
percent), and improves their impression of a product or brand (79 percent).
The survey also reveals:
How product information is being used: Most respondents stated they use
product information to learn more about a new product before they use it,
while others use it to troubleshoot. The remaining group use product
information to discover new functions and features.
How consumers access product content: When searching for product
information, respondents stated that they most frequently turn to the
manufacturers website or a search engine, such as Google or Bing, to find
content.
How consumers feel about user-generated content: When it comes to younger
consumers (aged 18 24), content found on forums, news groups and wiki
sites is a significant source of trusted product information. This group was
most likely to turn to user-generated content for product information,
compared to a mere 5 percent (aged 55-64) who said they did.
Additional findings are available in the full survey report, titled
Measuring the Importance of Product Content in Customer Experience
Management: www.sdl.com/cxm-survey.
This survey validates our belief that high-quality product content plays a
critical role in improving the customer experience, said Jan Jaap Kolleman,
CEO of SDL Content Management Technologies Division. Taking the time and
effort to deliver valuable and relevant content is a win-win situationit
helps businesses enhance brand loyalty, while enabling consumers to get the
most out of their purchases.
SDL conducted the survey in August 2012 to uncover important trends about
the ways customers use product information, and the role that product
content plays in the customer experience. To qualify, respondents had to
indicate they use product information both at work and at home.
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