Customer Science buys Friendly Persuasion to boost CX solutions

Customer Science has acquired the Sydney-based firm Friendly Persuasion, expanding its offerings to include written customer experience solutions.

Under the terms of the acquisition, Friendly Persuasion's founders, Peter Vierod and Tony Rambaut, will join Customer Science and lead a newly established CX Communications consulting division.

Since its establishment in 2014, Friendly Persuasion has supported service organisations in refining their written interactions with customers, improving outcomes for both clients and internal teams in areas such as account correspondence, chat, and short messaging services. Friendly Persuasion's work with Telstra included transforming more than 7,000 customer messages and providing training for 1,100 staff members to write more effectively, an initiative cited as a notable contributor to Telstra's improved Net Promoter Score (NPS).

Customer Science Chief Executive Officer, Todd Gorsuch, emphasised the strategic rationale for the acquisition, noting the increasing importance of effective language in a rapidly automating business landscape. "Friendly Persuasion has shown that effective language creates a step change in company performance, particularly in the age of automation and AI," said Gorsuch. "By adding their deep expertise in human-centred writing and customer engagement, we're able to bring our clients' customer experience visions to life at every touchpoint."

The addition of Vierod and Rambaut brings both additional expertise and a new focus to Customer Science, as the company forms its CX Communications consulting division in response to growing client demand for specialist support in written customer interactions.

"It's not just about making customers feeling warm and fuzzy," says Friendly Persuasion business partner, Tony Rambaut. "Badly written correspondence is like grit in the grease of business. It slows everything down while irritating customers. But get it right and the gains can be substantial – in both customer satisfaction and operational efficiency."

The integration of Friendly Persuasion's methodologies is expected to further strengthen Customer Science's client solutions, particularly in industries where high-volume customer correspondence and digital messaging are central to customer engagement strategies.

Peter Vierod, Creative Partner at Friendly Persuasion, pointed to the value of Customer Science's expertise and resources in digital transformation, with a particular focus on the use of artificial intelligence. "Customer Science's expertise in using AI to enhance customer experience was a clincher for us. We'll be using their AI capability to help clients generate the maximum value from every customer communication," said Vierod.

Customer Science provides customer and digital experience solutions for a variety of clients across Australia, and its innovation in deploying automation and AI technologies has been a key component of its market strategy. The company's expansion into written CX solutions allows it to address end-to-end customer journeys, from digital self-service to personal communications, with AI-powered insights and human-centred content design.

The acquisition follows a trend of professional service firms seeking specialised expertise in customer communications, as organisations respond to increased customer expectations and the growing complexity of multi-channel interactions. The creation of the CX Communications consulting division under Vierod and Rambaut's leadership signifies Customer Science's intention to become a single source provider across a wider spectrum of customer experience services.

Both companies expect to offer clients greater opportunities to develop their written communications and achieve measurable improvements in both customer satisfaction and operational efficiency.