Across financial services, utilities, healthcare, government, and insurance, one reality is consistent. Most customer and member communications are not optional. They are statements, notices, disclosures, and reminders required to operate in a regulated environment.
In 2026, those required communications will shape the customer and member experience more than any marketing campaign.
As Customer Communications Management (CCM) and Customer Experience Management (CXM) continue to evolve, organizations face a clear choice. Communications can become more complex and overwhelming, or they can become clearer, more empathetic, and easier to act on.
This outlook for 2026 focuses on three priorities: rising expectations in regulated industries, what strong CCM and CXM programs look like today, and how AI can responsibly accelerate progress.
Rising expectations in regulated industries
Customers and members now expect the same level of clarity and ease from regulated organizations that they experience in everyday digital interactions. They want communications that are timely, understandable, and delivered through the channels they prefer.
Several themes stand out:
- Consistency across channels matters. Print, email, text, and portal communications must align.
- Clarity reduces cost and friction. Confusing language drives calls, complaints, and dissatisfaction.
- Choice is essential. Many still prefer print for critical documents, while others expect digital self-service.
Organizations that design communications as connected journeys, not isolated documents, will deliver stronger loyalty and retention. Onboarding, billing, renewals, hardship support, and claims are experiences that unfold over time, not single moments.
What strong CCM and CXM programs share in 2026
Leading programs across industries share several common traits.
They work toward a connected view of the customer or member, allowing communications to be more relevant, better timed, and easier to audit. Perfect data is not required, but clarity and intent are.
They move beyond “print or digital” to print plus digital. Print remains essential for trust and accessibility, while digital enables speed, interactivity, cost efficiency, and self-service. The strongest strategies use both together in a true multichannel approach.
They treat compliance as a partner in experience design. Engaging compliance early, standardizing approved content, and maintaining strong governance allows organizations to move faster while meeting regulatory expectations.
They commit to continuous improvement. Rather than large one-time transformations, teams focus on a small number of high impact journeys, measure friction, test improvements, and scale what works.
AI as a responsible accelerator for customer communications
In regulated environments, the most effective use of AI will not be about replacing people or automating decisions. It will be about improving clarity, consistency, and scale across complex communication ecosystems. Applied responsibly, AI can help simplify complex information, support service teams, and keep print and digital communications aligned without compromising accuracy or compliance.
Governance is essential. AI must operate within clearly defined boundaries, with human accountability, approved content, and full auditability. When those controls are in place, AI becomes an accelerator rather than a risk. It reduces friction and error, strengthens compliance, and improves operational resilience instead of introducing new exposure.
Trust will ultimately define success. Customers and members expect transparency, respect for privacy, and confidence that critical communications are accurate and secure. Organizations that apply AI thoughtfully, with discipline and intent, will strengthen trust and build more durable relationships over time.
A focused agenda for 2026
The most successful organizations will prioritize focused execution when it comes to customer or member communications.
- Redesign one important journey end to end
- Strengthen data and preference management
- Apply AI to well governed, high value use cases
- Align print and digital into a cohesive multichannel strategy
- Engage compliance early and often
Our perspective at OSG
At OSG, our focus is helping clients turn required communications into experiences that build trust and deliver measurable value.
In 2026, we will continue to support multichannel strategies, embed AI thoughtfully and responsibly with strong oversight, and focus on the journeys that matter most in regulated industries.
Required communication does not have to feel impersonal. Regulated communication does not have to feel rigid. The organizations that succeed will communicate clearly, empathetically, and responsibly while maintaining the highest standards of security and compliance.
