Customer experience is the overall impression your customers derive from all of their engagements with your company over time. This concept has evolved over the years, particularly with the advent of digital products and the closely-related field of user experience (UX). In fact, customer experience is often referred to as “CX” now, implicitly acknowledging the central importance of a digital app’s usability and user interface to customers’ overall perceptions of a company.

However, customer experience typically means more than just UX. Customer experience is a holistic concept that encompasses the cumulative impression left by your product as well as your people, including sales and customer support staff. In this sense, it overlaps with the concept of brand identity - and, like successful brand management, improving customer experience relies on user research and surveys to get a better sense of exactly how your company is seen.

While customer experience can mean different things to different companies depending on the products and services they offer, it is ultimately about building relationships. Whether that relationship is delivered through an app interface or a helpful tech support professional, the goal of customer experience is for your customers to feel that their interactions with your company are satisfying and rewarding.

Because customer experience can mean different things in different industries, customer experience experts may have significantly different educational and career pathways. In the tech world, insights into CX are valued in UX or user interface (UI) designers on product experience teams. In fact, some companies may specifically hire CX designers who specialize in seeing the big picture created by interactions with UX/UI and the company’s overall brand and customer service.

A customer experience background is also highly relevant for sales and service management careers in all industries, regardless of whether digital or physical products or services are being provided. Sales managers supervise the customer-facing sales teams of an organization, and may also be responsible for ongoing customer support and service. While their responsibilities include many other areas of setting budgets and overall sales strategies and goals, the creation of a sales experience that leaves customers with a positive impression is a critical part of their job.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, sales managers earned a median annual salary of $126,640 as of May 2019, a testament to the high value of this role.

Absolutely. Whether your goal is designing apps that delight users or customer service journeys that reassure, Coursera offers courses and Specializations to meet your needs. You can learn about customer experience as well as related topics such as user experience research and design, brand management, and even the psychology of human needs that underlies customer relationships. And, with the opportunity to learn remotely from highly-ranked schools like the University of Michigan, the University of Virginia, IE Business School, and London Business School, Coursera aims to provide all of its learners with a rewarding education at a significantly lower price than on-campus students.