Customer experience: unlock the power of data!

Collecting customer data is no longer enough; you have to act on that data!

“Forrester predicts that 2016 will be a busy year for customer relations. It will be a year in which companies that make real efforts to improve customer relations will be rewarded, while those that have minimized their customers' needs for years will begin to decline,” says Forrester in its study « Top 10 Success Factors to Determine Who Wins And Who Fails in the Age of the Customer » (1)

According to this report, customers will reward companies that anticipate individual needs and use the data collected. Conversely, companies that constantly have to ask for basic information and are unable to "recognize" a customer will begin to lose them.

In short, Business Intelligence must create added value! Data collection must genuinely serve the customer experience!

Customers will no longer tolerate companies that appear to forget their preferences.

 

explained Gene Alvarez, managing vice president at Gartner, at the Gartner Customer 360 Summit in September 2015 (2). It is therefore imperative for companies to recognize their customers and provide them with relevant content that demonstrates a real effort.

Upholding confidentiality and privacy as a differentiating value.

Consumers are accustomed to brands collecting data and are more or less receptive to it. But one thing is certain: if personal information is collected, then these consumers expect it to be useful!

Consumers expect brands to use data before interacting! All your customers know that you collect data, and they will more readily accept the idea if it serves the experience they have with your brand.

 

To take action, data is necessary. However, be mindful of how you collect it. Data confidentiality and respect for privacy have become central issues. It's no longer sufficient to simply consider the 'legal' aspect, nor should data collection be seen as a risk. On the contrary, it's a real opportunity to stand out. It's important to educate and explain the purpose of the collected data and how it can personalize the offer.

Customer involvement will thus become a lever for improving the relationship! What does that mean? According to Forrester, brands that more strongly involve their customers – through their loyalty program, for example – will see the benefits.

Companies that launch customer-oriented operations will gain a real and lasting differentiation. Sticking to old habits is doomed to failure.

 

The customer must participate in defining the brand and designing its products and services: who is better placed than themselves to know their needs? This is what our client Castorama has understood very well: through questionnaires delivered via touch-screen kiosks placed in stores, some of its points of sale directly collect the opinions of their customers. This has allowed them in particular to adapt the hours of presence of their teams, to further improve customer reception and to develop new ideas based on reliable data obtained in real time.

Since the core of the customer relationship is based on personalizing and contextualizing the offer, it's important to strongly involve the consumer, ideally very, very early on. This is what our consultants contribute to, particularly when they implement an support program to improve customer experience.

And are you ready for these changes?