Advancing customer experience practice and strategy in Thailand

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide a broad preliminary overview and critical viewpoint on the current state of customer experience innovation and strategy in Thailand. Design/methodology/approach This paper outlines and critically analyses the key trends based on 15 prime instances of customer experience innovation from the past ten years in Thailand across three industries: retail, fuel service and insurance. Findings Customer experience in Thailand is still in its nascent stage. This is because firms are yet to realise their full potential as critical brand differentiators. Many Thai firms also miss collaboration opportunities with external partners when innovating customer experiences. This is despite the overwhelming contributions from local SMEs to breakthrough innovations and creativity. Consequently, many customer experience innovations in Thailand are yet to be truly memorable and unique. Originality/value This is the first paper that critically examines the trends in customer experience across the retail, fuel service and insurance. It is also the only paper that outlines strategic implications of customer experience strategies and innovations to date for Thailand. Both future research topics and managerial implications for Thai professionals are discussed in the paper.