When Sony Network Communications (SNC) approached Clicktale in 2013, they were mainly using Adobe Analytics to uncover and resolve their customer experience issues. Furthermore, SNC were looking for a solution that would visualise the data provided by Adobe Analytics. Although the data was exactly what the team needed to improve the digital customer experience, the team did not enjoy the process of manually trawling and analysing the data.
Established at the beginning of an explosion in Internet usage, Sony Network Communications Inc. first provided Internet access to subscribers in 1996. Since then the company – a subsidiary of the Sony Group – has gone through many incarnations, and the number of Internet users has gone from the millions to billions.
Sony Network Communications is now a leading ISP for Japan, offering a wide range of Internet services for domestic consumers and businesses, as well as mobile telecommunications packages.
We spoke to Kohei Kagami, Chief of Digital Marketing Strategy at Sony Network Communications, and Tatsunori Kunihiro, Chief of Data Management, CX Division, Customer Communications Department, about how they used customer experience analytics to overcome these challenges:
What is it about Clicktale that has been of most benefit to your organisation?
TK: “When we first started using Clicktale, we noticed two main benefits. Firstly, when using the solution for planning, we noticed that we were able to minutely assess the fine details of movements and actions within and across SNC properties. Secondly, when we performed tests, we used Clicktale to see what and where the issues originated from, as well as seeing a more detailed overview of the output. This has allowed a more efficient and effective quality of service.”
It seems like you’ve made a lot of progress?
TK: “We’ve been using Clicktale in collaboration with Adobe Analytics for about four years now, and we have managed to overcome a lot of challenges.
“An interesting example: our support team now uses Clicktale to undertake specific tasks such as video playback of certain sessions, which provides the data required to improve the customer experience. our call centre is then able to view the sessions and pinpoint the exact moment or action that caused the issue, and help customers with finding the solution.”
So internal teams have seen the benefits of experience analytics, as well as your customers?
KK: “Yes, our customers have hopefully seen an improved service. But internally we’ve seen a shift from being intuitive to being more data-driven, which has led to the team becoming far more interested in the specifics of how and why customers are acting in the way they do.
“We are now able to track the user’s movements, their mouse movements – their digital body language. That is one of the strengths that Clicktale provides, and it’s definitely the one we use the most.”
That’s great – Have you been able to measure the effects of all these changes?
KK: “Previously, the team’s data analysis yielded measurable growth of approximately 5% per test. But since implementing Clicktale, we are able to conduct much more detailed analyses, resulting in about an 8% growth rate. And by comparing our growth before and after using Clicktale, we have experienced a 35% increase in average uplift in conversion rate.”
Wow, those are big numbers! Has the wider Sony organisation taken note of your achievements?
KK: “It is well known that our framework is progressing well within the Sony Group. Using our acquired knowledge, we hope to transfer these skills across the board, improving and producing valuable services for our customers.”
As Mr Kunihiro explains in the full case study, there are significant gains to be made from analysing your customers’ digital body language. For more information, you can download the definitive guide, and see how experience analytics can truly benefit your business outcomes.
