Omni Core · Omnichannel Integration · Module

Continuity of state

Carrying what happened in one channel into the next, so that a customer does not restart.

The idea

How it works

Repetition is the thing customers notice and remember. Being asked the same question twice is a small failure that reliably produces a large reaction.

What has to travel is smaller than it appears: who they are, what they were doing, and what has already been said. Full history is rarely needed and is frequently used as a reason not to start.

Working with it

In practice

  1. 01

    Carry the current context first

    What they were doing and what has been said in this episode. That alone removes most repetition.

  2. 02

    Make history visible to the person, not the system

    A support agent who can see the last three interactions removes most of the felt discontinuity.

  3. 03

    Measure how often people repeat themselves

    Ask in the feedback, or count repeated information in support records. It is measurable and rarely measured.

  4. 04

    Start with the highest-volume crossing

    One channel pair usually accounts for most of the repetition.

One level in

The components of continuity of state

A component is something that exists afterwards which did not exist before — a deliverable or a mechanism, not an intention.

  1. The carried context

    What travels with the customer between channels.

    Learn
  2. The visibility

    Whether the person on the other side can actually see it.

    Learn
  3. The repetition measure

    How often customers have to say things twice.

    Learn

Full history is rarely needed and is frequently used as a reason not to start. Carry the current episode first.