Customer feedback management (CFM) vendors are continuously building new capabilities to attract contact center and experience management buyers.
Yet, despite their terrific speed of innovation, 47 percent of voice of the customer (VoC) and CX measurement program leaders rate the maturity of their program as "low or very low."
Noting this, Forrester reveals that while CFM technology is sprinting ahead, "buyers are still playing catch up."
Wary of this reality, the market analyst assessed the core product offerings of the nine CFM vendors it deemed the "most significant" in the space as part of its latest Forrester Wave report.
In doing so, it evaluated each of the following vendors, categorizing them into four groups: Leaders, Strong Performers, Contenders, and Challengers.
- Medallia (Leader)
- Concentrix (Strong Performer)
- InMoment (Strong Performer)
- Qualtrics (Strong Performer)
- SMG (Strong Performer)
- PG Forsta (Strong Performer)
- NICE (Contender)
- Alida (Contender)
- Verint (Challenger)
Forrester also noted three essential solutions and services every CFM buyer should seek out.
Let’s consider these before inspecting the top takeaways from the Forrester study.
What Should Buyers Look for in a Feedback Management Vendor?
Forrester believes CFM buyers should partner with a provider that meets three criteria.
First, the provider should "play nice with their tech stack." A vendor that does so offers omnichannel data integration tools, integrations support for third-party solutions, and insight-sharing capabilities.
Such integrations allow more employees to engage with customer feedback and pave the way for customer-centric decision-making.
Second, the vendor must "make it easy to use advanced technology." Such technology harnesses NLP and NLU to make sense of unstructured data and bring new insights to the fore.
Many vendors offer these features. However, they do not always package them with their core offering. As such, businesses that wish to leverage elements of analytics should consider this closely.
Finally, CFM vendors must "balance real-time action with systemic CX improvement." Such a vendor supports a more proactive service recovery approach as they go beyond break-fix solutions.
Customer journey-centric dashboards that connect CX outcomes with other business metrics help here. Yet, so do technical and strategic support services. The depth of these is critical to consider.
"Medallia Breaks Away from the Competition"
Various analyst reports often tag Medallia and Qualtrics as leaders within the VoC space. Yet, Forrester pegs the former as the single market leader.
The breadth and depth of its product offering is the primary reason. Indeed, Forrester refers to its acquisitions of Thunderhead and Decibel as "savvy" moves to strengthen its portfolio.
However, Medallia also differentiates itself with its "superior vision" and comprehensive product roadmap, according to the market analyst.
The roadmap outlines plans to deepen its capacity for digital experience insight generation, reduce total cost of ownership, and enhance its current proposition.
Forrester concludes that in every area it evaluated, Medallia lived up to its tagline: "Enterprise-Grade Everything."
Concentrix Becomes Its Closest Competitor
Concentrix is on the precipice of CFM market leadership, which may surprise some as the business is best known for its global CX consultancy.
Yet, Forrester highlights how its in-house expertise allows the business to offer differentiated services built around its mantra: "Design, Build, Run."