Amid inflationary pressures and the global economic downturn, business leaders, naturally, are more inclined to cut costs and hold back on spending that they deem risky. This mindset, though common and understandable, can hinder companies’ abilities to harness new growth opportunities. While cutting costs in technology and marketing investments might have been seen as sound financial decisions in the past, this strategy is no longer viable in today’s experiential economy. This seems to be the case with Asia Pacific organizations who have been making more digital customer experience (CX) investments to better position themselves to cater to increasingly digital-first consumers.
Unsurprisingly, many brands today recognize this as imperative and have formally implemented customer-centric measures, including customer data platforms and omni-channel management platforms. According to IDC, 30 percent of Asia Pacific 2000 companies will adopt a next-best approach in 2024, which will increase the demand for customer experience technologies. Supporting a customer-first approach allows organizations to meet customers where they are. At the same time, they need to know the best solutions to invest in that provides the best return on investment (ROI). Rather than downsizing their marketing and data investments to withstand inflationary and recessionary threats, companies must look to optimize their marketing and customer experience (CX) offerings to retain existing customers and gain new ones.
Establishing Customer Centricity
Tracking and optimizing the customer journey to meet their unique preferences requires organizations to adopt a customer-centric mentality. Brands and agencies often have a good sense of the messaging and content which resonates with target audiences, but they don’t always fully grasp the how or when of their impact on the customer. A customer-centric approach allows a company to be intimately familiar with the buying process throughout the funnel, from the awareness phase to purchase. But gaining awareness of customer journeys hinges on meaningful digital transformation.
Customer interactions today are compatible with different platforms. It doesn’t matter if it’s through TV or in a direct message on Twitter or Facebook, customers want to engage with brands on their favorite channels. At the same time, it is imperative that organizations imbibe customers with confidence, especially with regard to data security and Personal Identifiable Information (PII). In fact, a report by EY Parthenon found that 64 percent of customers were willing to share their personal data for a more tailored online experience. A robust customer data management platform can equip brands to achieve this while mapping out their customer journey and planning out customer experience strategies.
Following Along On The Customer Journey
Impactful customer transformation has the power to drive sales. Specifically, ensuring customer experiences meet demands for personalization requires organizations to leverage individual customer journey data.
Current-state mapping allows organizations to gain insight into each customer’s progress in their journey. By outlining everything customers are doing in interactions with your company, organizations can leverage this hugely valuable information to plan and effectively execute customer-centricity.
Other examples of different types of customer journey maps include:
• Day-in-the-life navigations.
• Future-state.
• Service blueprints.
There are differences between these three approaches, and it is important for companies to investigate which will work best for their goals and how far they are at implementing their customer experience measures.
Personalizing CX At Scale
The ultimate objective is to create the most relevant message and experience that will reach out to the largest audience possible. The good news is that organizations can harness best-in-class tools that empower the implementation of strategies at scale and with minimal cost. With the right data and infrastructure in place, brands can optimize their marketing and CX delivery to provide the best return on investment (ROI).
Technology investments can feel like luxuries when markets are relatively unstable, but there are certain solutions that offer immediate returns on investment. Before transforming customer experiences, organizations should evaluate their tech stacks to determine their purpose and business value. Once a company has such customer-centric technologies in place, it will be able to achieve growth no matter the industry or economic conditions.
By Kazuki Ohta, CEO and Founder of Treasure Data
