Aussie businesses are investing most in customer experience, but they are lagging behind when it comes to designing CX projects, new research has revealed.

According to Adobe’s 2017 Creative Pulse survey, CX is the number one investment by Australian and New Zealand businesses, followed by social media and content.

Furthermore, 60 per cent of survey respondents advised that CX is as the heart of their company’s strategy.

However, the research found that only 34 per cent of creatives and marketers have recently implemented a CX program, while 30 per cent plan to develop one, and 29 per cent don’t plan on delivering a CX program in the next six months.

“This tells us that organisations understand the importance of putting customer experience at the centre of their business strategy, but the reality is there is more opportunity for creation of end-to-end programs that give customers an incredible experience with their brand,” said Marta De Bellis, vice president of marketing for the Asia-Pacific region at Adobe.

The study also found that new technologies such as augmented and virtual reality and machine learning are the number one trend for creatives, followed by using new platforms to reach target audiences and ‘breaking through the noise’ to reach target audiences.

Meanwhile, creatives are leading the charge when it comes to integrating design thinking across functions (59 per cent), compared to marketers (53 per cent) and those working in content production (40 per cent).