1 Define your CX goals

Before you compare your CX to others, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve with your CX strategy. What are your desired outcomes, such as customer satisfaction, loyalty, retention, advocacy, or revenue? How do you measure them, and what are your targets or benchmarks? Having well-defined and realistic CX goals will help you focus your comparison on the most relevant and meaningful aspects of your CX.

2 Identify your competitors

Next, you need to decide who you are comparing your CX to. You can choose direct competitors who offer similar products or services to your target market, or indirect competitors who cater to different segments or niches but still influence customer expectations or preferences. You can also look at aspirational competitors who are leaders or innovators in CX and set the standards for your industry or domain. Depending on your resources and objectives, you can select a few or several competitors to compare your CX to.

3 Gather data and feedback

To compare your CX to your competitors, you need to collect data and feedback from various sources and channels. You can use primary research methods, such as surveys, interviews, focus groups, mystery shopping, or social media monitoring, to gather direct input from customers or prospects about their experiences with you and your competitors. You can also use secondary research methods, such as reports, reviews, ratings, awards, or benchmarks, to access indirect or external information about your competitors' CX.

4 Analyze and evaluate

Once you have the data and feedback, you need to analyze and evaluate them to identify the strengths and weaknesses of your CX compared to your competitors. You can use different tools and frameworks, such as SWOT analysis, gap analysis, or customer journey mapping, to organize and visualize the data and feedback. You can also use metrics and indicators, such as Net Promoter Score (NPS), Customer Satisfaction (CSAT), or Customer Effort Score (CES), to quantify and compare the data and feedback.

5 Learn and improve

The next step is to use the insights from your analysis and evaluation to learn and improve your CX. You can look for best practices, trends, or innovations that your competitors are using or implementing in their CX and see how you can adapt or adopt them for your own CX. You can also look for areas where you can differentiate or excel in your CX and create a unique value proposition for your customers. You can also look for opportunities to collaborate or partner with your competitors to enhance your CX.

6 Monitor and update

The final step is to monitor and update your CX comparison regularly. You need to keep track of the changes and developments in your CX and your competitors' CX, as well as the feedback and expectations of your customers. You need to update your data and feedback collection, analysis and evaluation, and learning and improvement processes accordingly. You need to also review and revise your CX goals and strategies periodically to ensure that they are aligned with your business objectives and customer needs.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?