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Yext and Forbes Insights Study: Only Half of Consumers Believe Brands Successfully Provide Accurate Information Across Online Search ChannelsNEW YORK, Sept. 10, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Yext, Inc. (NYSE: YEXT), the platform for Brand Verified Answers in search, today announced new research on the expectations of consumers searching for brand information online, conducted in partnership with Forbes Insights. The research, based on a survey of more than 500 consumers in the United States, revealed that while a majority (60%) of consumers expect brands to deliver consistent, accurate information across online touchpoints, including a brand's website, third-party sites, apps, social media, and more, only half believe they do this well. "Our research shows that regardless of where they search for information, people expect the answers they find to be consistent and accurate — and they hold brands responsible to ensure this is the case," said Marc Ferrentino, Chief Strategy Officer of Yext. "Those expectations aren't always being met, however, as only 50% of consumers believe that brands do well in providing a consistent and accurate experience across search channels. This means that there is a significant opportunity for businesses to differentiate themselves from their competition through verification on and off of their own websites." "As today's customers seek information using AI-powered search and increasingly expect sophisticated discovery experiences, it's crucial for brands to control the entire online journey across a variety of platforms and channels," said Ross Gagnon, Director of Research at Forbes. "Yet, brands are falling short: our research shows that many struggle to provide seamless experiences from their websites to third-party platforms such as maps, apps and voice assistants. Only the brands that meet customers' expectations across all touchpoints and provide accessible, consistent and helpful information will continue to grow." Consumers look for brand information in different places online, depending on their needs With a digital universe of brand websites, search engines, voice assistants, social media sites, and more at their fingertips, consumers are never limited to one source when they search online for answers about a brand. Since not all touchpoints provide a consistent search experience, consumers turn to different channels based on the kind of informatio they're seeking:
Where consumers place their trust online depends on how familiar they are with a brand Customers mainly rely on a brand's website or search engine results for answers to their questions about a brand, reinforcing the importance of consistent, accurate information across these channels. However, unique customer journeys — whether people are discovering a brand for the first time or transacting with it for the tenth — inform which sources they trust more, and when.
Negative customer experiences fall on the shoulders of the brand As the customer journey becomes increasingly fragmented across different platforms , brands may view external search experiences as "out of sight, out of mind." In the eyes of the customer, however, brands are more responsible than ever for the information consumers find about them in search. A third of consumers surveyed almost always blame a brand when they encounter inconsistency and inaccuracy in their quest for information online, regardless of the source.
The customer journey starts with a question. If brands work to create seamless, omnichannel experiences across the landscape of brand information, they can provide the answers consumers rely on them for, wherever they are searching. Read the full report from Yext and Forbes Insights here. About Yext Yext has been named a Best Place to Work by Fortune and Great Place to Work®, as well as a Best Workplace for Women. Yext is headquartered in New York City with offices in Amsterdam, Berlin, Chicago, Dallas, Geneva, London, Miami, Milan, Paris, San Francisco, Shanghai, Tokyo, and the Washington, D.C. area. View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/yext-and-forbes-insights-study-only-half-of-consumers-believe-brands-successfully-provide-accurate-information-across-online-search-channels-300915482.html SOURCE Yext, Inc. |