BY LUCY MARINO, executive director of the marketing and creative practice at global talent solutions firm Robert Half  which connects employers with skilled marketing, creative, digital, advertising and public relations professionals to meet their specialized recruiting needs. Marino manages strategy and operations for the company’s marketing and creative talent solutions teams across U.S. locations.

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2025 is the year of customer experience for marketing and creative teams. According to research from Robert Half, creative and marketing leaders ranked CX as their number‑one strategic priority for the year, ahead of AI and machine learning.​ And these leaders plan to hire additional talent for CX projects through the end of the year. But with budgets tight and customer attention spans even tighter, the message is clear: A design team — including professionals from UX/UI and visual design to content writers and motion designers — able to fashion every touchpoint with a focus on customer needs will set the pace while those at other companies play catch-up.

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CX is more than UX

It’s easy to see “customer experience” and think wireframes, micro‑interactions and A/B tests, but user experience (UX) is only one important tile in a much larger mosaic. CX includes all your company’s social media ads, emails, online content and countless other touchpoints with the customer. It folds in tone of voice, motion design, accessibility, even how a customer complaint is handled on a Sunday night.

For creative directors and design managers, that means broadening the brief. Before a pixel moves, ask: Where does this fit in the customer’s journey? When your designer, copywriter and creative ops lead can all address this question together, you’re practicing CX, not just UX.

What defines great customer experience?

Here’s what good CX looks like in 2025 — and the kinds of skills you’ll want on your team to make it happen:

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• A connected journey from start to finish — A customer might spot an ad on Instagram, browse your website on their lunch break, and place an order later that night on their phone. Good customer experience means making sure all those steps feel connected. That’s where creative thinkers who look at the full picture—not just one page or one moment—can really shine. They ask: “Where could this get confusing? What would make this feel smoother?”

• Personalization that earns trust — Smart algorithms can pick the next product to recommend, but only humans can decide whether the timing and tone feel respectful. Designers who read a basic analytics report and chat casually with end‑users turn raw data into offers and touchpoints that feel engaging and helpful, not just another marketing blast.

• Inclusive design that welcomes everyone — Good design includes everyone. That means using colors that are easy to see, adding captions to videos, writing text that’s clear and simple and making sure everyone can use your site. Look for team members who treat accessibility as a normal part of the job, not an afterthought.

• Small moments that make a big difference — Little touches like a wink of animation on “Add to cart” or a kind word on a slow‑loading screen can lift customer satisfaction and retention without a budget blowout. Detail‑obsessed designers notice the beats that other professionals rush past.

• Thoughtful responses when things go wrong — A payment hiccup, a missing package—service stumbles happen. But the way your company responds can strengthen relationships with customers. Designers and writers who work closely with customer support teams can help create messages that are transparent, kind and practical. A well‑written and designed error message page won’t fix the problem, but it can stop frustration from turning into lost business.

A 5-step plan for shaping a CX-focused design team

You don’t need a giant team to deliver standout customer experiences. You can shape your existing creative team to be CX-focused by ensuring all members understand the full customer journey.

You also need the right people in the right roles, and a flexible way to get work done. That often means mixing full‑time staff with trusted contract talent and helping your permanent team grow new skills. Here’s how to think it through:

1.  Start with your core team
Keep the people who shape most of your customer experience as part of your permanent, in-house staff. That might be a lead designer, a senior copywriter or someone who looks after your brand’s tone and feel. These are the people who carry knowledge from one project to the next, who understand your audience and who know what’s been tried before. Their job isn’t just to deliver—it’s to guide, remember and help others stay on track.

2. Help your current team grow
Reskilling doesn’t have to be complicated. A short course, a peer-led session or even time set aside to explore a new tool can go a long way. Having someone talk about creating empathetic chatbot responses, for example, or scheduling a refresher on designing inclusive customer feedback forms can have a real impact on the customer experience—and help your team feel more confident and valued.

3. Mix teams to build insight
Customer experience doesn’t live on just one team. So why not let people swap seats occasionally? Have someone from the user experience team join a brand design brainstorm or creative review. Ask a designer to listen in on a few social media team calls. These small shifts can bring fresh perspectives and lead to better decisions, ones that reflect what real customers actually need.

4. Work with a talent expert who knows the terrain
Behind every standout customer experience is a team that was built with care, not just hired quickly or staffed for convenience. When timelines are short and pressure is high, customer experience is often the first thing to suffer. A talent solutions firm like Robert Half can help you solve for gaps quickly—whether it’s a graphic designer, UX researcher, production artist or someone who can just jump in and keep things moving.

Marketing and creative leaders who see CX as their key priority in 2025 recognize it as the thread connecting every interaction with their brand. By building teams that understand the importance of these touchpoints, they can create lasting experiences in a landscape where differentiation is increasingly difficult.

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