Companies today are rushing headlong to become more 'digital'. But what does 'digital' really mean? In the 70s it was a meant to be a source of information – a future of perfect knowledge, you can know anything you want, anytime, anywhere. Today, for C-suites 'digital' is about technology, for marketers it's about a new channel to engage with customers and for others 'digital' represents an entirely new way of doing business. These diverse perspectives reflect a lack of alignment and common vision about where the business needs to go. That is why companies very often are faced with piecemeal initiatives or misguided efforts, missed opportunities and an overall sluggish performance. As a matter of fact, 'digital' consists of 3 components that have to work in sync: 1.Creating value It is about creating value at the new frontiers of the business world. 'Digital' means digital products / services that use sensors, big data and analytics. E.g. IoT (Internet of things – physical products 'talking' directly to each other without human interference) – think of autonomous driving E.g. AI (artificial intelligence – makes it possible for machines to learn from experience and adjust new inputs) – think of Josie Pepper at the Munich airport. E.g. Logistics where you can improve efficiency of the supply chain E.g. eCommerce: marketplaces, aggregators, Apps etc. 2. Customer experience It's a cycle of core processes that execute a vision around customer experience. It means to understand customer behavior and customer decision journeys. In this part of 'digital' we can create accurate customer insights based on data and deliver personalized content and experiences. With consistent user journeys along various touch-points we then enhance the customer experience. 3. Capabilities It's about foundational capabilities that support the entire company structure. Technology and organizational processes have to be agile and fast. This is the hardest part: I have seen a couple of organizations that struggle with functional vs. cross-functional teams. Outsourced vs. in-sourced teams. Local vs abroad development teams. It is easy to exchange information and align processes within a company of 50 FTEs (e.g. start-ups in their early phase). But what about big organizations? Believe me, there is not the ONE solution. I am ready to share my experiences ;-) Gartner has recently released their popular report heralding the most important technology trends of 2018. Learn more about the trends that will transform the digital landscape over the next five years: Inspired by: McKinsey
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Customer experience encompasses every aspect of a company's offering – advertising, packaging, product and service features, ease of use, reliability and, of course, quality of customer care. One of the many marketing buzz words. Why? Finally after many years of offering excessive product features, price wars, paucity of human contact and slashing staffing costs, companies try to move indifferent customers back into the center of attention. Here is a simple guide to make customers fall in love with your brand: 1. Fix up - look sharp:
Brands are living business assets and a strong corporate brand image boosts your stock price. Always look your best! 2. Stir up emotions More than 90% of purchase decisions are made subconsciously, based on emotion (Martin Lindstrom, 2014). Is your brand already on 'Autopilot'? 3. Create brilliant content 70% of customers prefer getting to know a company via articles rather than ads. 4. Under promise & over deliver 75% of customers say they have spent more with a company because of positive product experiences. Sweep your customers off their feet with a surprise! 5. Awesome customer service 73% of customers love a brand because of friendly customer service. Carmen Beissner always says 'In customer care we don't close cases. We open relationships.' - one of my favorite quotes :-)) 6. Encourage feedback & listen For every 1 complaint there are 26 other unhappy customers who have remained silent. 'Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning' (Bill Gates). Inspired by Harvard Business Review. Big data isn’t just a trend. It’s one of the core elements of a digitally intelligent company and brand. Today it is the most powerful tool to reach customers and to create meaningful experiences at the right occasion, at the right time, at the right place. Here and now.
Being digitally intelligent isn’t just about collecting data; it’s about using it intelligently. Unfortunately 80% of data is never actually used to make improvements or changes to delight customers. Data helps with smart targeting and personalization. Best being implemented with marketing automation. Throughout my career I have tested and got demos of 5 different marketing automation tools. One clearly performed best-in-class when it came to usability, features and accuracy. Which one - get in touch with me and I'll tell you ;-). But before you can implement marketing automation, you need a clear data-driven understanding of your customers and their journey (the hypothesis). Helping marketing teams use data intelligently can map customer journeys more clearly. This is what I have done for several companies in the recent years. Yes, it can explain why some customers are responding to ad campaigns, abandoning shopping carts, or leaving a website as soon as they find it. But it can also show why a customer keeps coming back – or not. It can define what they like best about a product – and how they wish it would change. Keep in mind the journey doesn’t end with a purchase, it’s just beginning. It can gauge how loyal they will be (think CLV and cohorts) to a brand throughout that growth process. Being digitally intelligent means embracing these new phases of the customer journey as an opportunity for growth. Here a couple of considerations: 1. Data management Predictions are only as good as the underlying data sources. If data is outdated or unmanageable, it isn’t useable. 2. Analytics Analytics, including predictive analytics, is the ultimate goal of collecting data. Data must be embedded in a way that teams can use it daily, if not, according to my experience, often hourly. 3. Machine learning Machines can process millions of interactions per minute, humans only hundreds. 4. Marketing automation Channels, words and images in real-time to reach the audience at the right time, the right place, the right occasion. Personalized to the individual need state. Inspired by Forbes, SAS |