Monolithic out-of-the-box customer communications management (CCM) systems are on their way out. Gartner and Forrester research indicate that future CCM use cases will be addressed using best-of-breed content services designed to be part of a larger digital experience architecture.

We have long been writing about the importance of building a seamless user experience into digital experience (DX) delivery solutions. In fact, seamlessness has become the dominant focus in the age of digital transformation.

Have you ever thought about how much correspondence you really need to manage? Think about it: every memo your staff sends—emails and printed letters, document that gets shared with customers, colleagues, and partners—these are all components of an array correspondence that you need to read, delete or respond to in some fashion. Now consider that anything populated with content that moves your business along can benefit from better, more transparent systems. Every piece is important and it all needs to be managed.

We have been writing about the convergence of customer communications management (CCM) and digital customer experience (CX) management technologies for over four years. We researched with Forrester, produced an ebook, and authored a white paper, all digging deeper into the detailed why’s and how’s of the topic.. We were way ahead of the curve then, and still are now.

What is CCM Technology? Customer communications management (CCM) software streamlines the design, personalization, delivery, and tracking of customer communications like letters and statements that inform and engage customers across web, mobile, and print channels. CCM allows companies to present a cohesive, consistent image for communicating with customers. The primary function of CCM software is to enable companies to create, deliver, and manage highly personalized communications with customers at scale. CCM software tames people and processes to show the customer one, uniform brand. There is a reason the focus is on customers rather than on company or product or service. Imagine a sports team. Although the main goal is for the players to perform well during games, a lot of behind-the-scenes effort goes into keeping them part of the team. Player interactions with coaches, trainers, staff psychologists, HR, fans, and teammates all affect how a player feels about the team. Every touchpoint pushes the player closer to (loyalty) or further from (indifference) the team. Indifference is dangerous because, given the right opportunity, a player will switch teams. Teams spend quite a bit of money on valuable players ensuring their loyalty. Team owners know that the return on this investment (ROI) is worth it. The same holds true for CCM. Given the right CCM software, you can keep customers happy and engaged. Here’s a look at the five key pieces of CCM that help keep all of your customer communications in sync. Like cogs in a system, the various parts of good CCM software work together as one.

Correspondence management is all about efficiency on the part of the business, especially for today’s digital customers who demand responsive interactions that keep up with the pace of their daily lives. For the everyday incoming and outgoing customer communications, centralization helps carry out those exchanges in an optimal timeframe. To facilitate such, customer communications management (CCM) platforms provide a solution to calm the chaos; but when it comes to correspondence management don’t forget to watch the horizon.