Omdia View

Omdia’s research on CEPs began in 2018 with the publication of an Omdia Universe (formerly Ovum Decision Matrix) that examined the players in the emerging CEP market. At the time, the CEP vendors were morphing from customer relationship management (CRM) applications that were failing to meet the complex omnichannel demands of business-to-consumer (B2C) companies. Today, the market is witnessing further convergence from different legacy starting points, including contact center vendors and customer communications management providers. Omdia’s Market Landscape: The Customer Journey Orchestration Ecosystem report pointed to the early signs of the market taking shape. It examined the convergence of the market’s categories, including customer data platforms (CDPs), customer journey analytics, customer journey mapping and visualization, digital asset management, customer journey orchestration, and marketing optimization. Since then, the market has seen further convergence between contact center as a service (CCaaS), unified communications as a service (UCaaS), and CPaaS providers. Anticipated benefits of this expanded ecosystem include the following:
  • The convergence of CCaaS and UCaaS creates end-to-end visibility that enables agents and specialists throughout the enterprise to easily collaborate.
  • The convergence of CCaaS and CPaaS streamlines and modernizes communications functions.
  • The merger of journey analytics and journey orchestration platforms enhances orchestration capabilities.
  • The integration of conversational artificial intelligence (AI) into systems of engagement creates conversational experiences across digital channels.

The above confluence is a direct response to rapidly evolving customer behaviors and expectations accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Customers’ interactions now start and stop along myriad digital doorsteps, and customer journeys are complex as a result.

But to a customer, it is not complex at all. To them, the differentiation between online and offline channels does not and should not matter. Such complexity requires enterprises to calculate the “next best action” for every customer and respond at key moments with relevant communications, interactions, and offers. All customer-facing employees across an enterprise must have the capability to proactively engage with customers—from awareness to purchase.

This requires the capability to interact seamlessly along those digital journeys with little to no friction on the customers’ end. Wherever customers choose to interact, be it on a third-party reseller’s website, their own app, a messaging channel, or in a physical store, they must be met with a relevant and consistent presence that enables them to pick up the thread of their journey and continue it smoothly.