In the age of the customer, companies are changing their business strategy to respond to several key trends.
According to Forrester growth and customer experience (CX) improvement top firms’ business priorities, leading to large-scale digital or CX transformation initiatives. This phenomenon affects all types of organizations: business-to-consumer (B2C), business-to-business (B2B), and government-to-citizen. Here are some of the leading trends to keep an eye on as we move into 2020.
Trend 1: Smart-products and IoT
Sensor-enabled smart products are transforming the relationship between companies and buyers; businesses and consumers expect more interactive, value-added experiences from everything they buy.
But it’s only the dawning phase of the IoT, and most businesses don’t understand that smart connected objects create ongoing customer relationships rather than one-time transactions. Businesses can no longer “sell and forget.” Visionary businesses will disrupt industries as they create two-way relationships that offer more value and yield deeper insights into customer needs.
Trend 2: Big data
Firms pursuing big data and analytics for CX improvement are running up against their limits as point solutions — so visionaries are developing systems of insight to solve problems that big data can’t by systematically harnessing data, testing insights, and creating actions.
The best ones close the loop by using the resulting data to learn what worked and what doesn’t. For example, digital predators like Shutterfly, Netflix, and LinkedIn all have insights-to-execution processes.
They continuously mine real-time application data for new lessons; identify actionable insights; act on these insights using engagement software; and evaluate expected and actual outcomes to improve future insights.
Trend 3: Hyperadopters change the way businesses invest
Technology continues to create a rich information fabric that hyperconnects our society; customers know what things cost and where they’re cheapest — and want them at the touch of a button.
These hyperconnected customers adopt new technology at a blinding pace; to keep up, businesses are changing the way they plan and invest. First, firms seek an up-to-the-minute view of customers — their desires, history, and perception of experiences.
Second, companies are changing how they use CI to invest iteratively. For example, financial services firms see the opportunity to use customer data collected in a marketing warehouse to improve online experiences, help call centre agents, and support better portfolio management. In the past, firms would have undertaken long, complex data management projects to satisfy their needs, but impatient businesses won’t wait.
If you’d like to find out how our Suite of products can help prepare you for 2020 click here.