The marketing sector is at a critical juncture.
Major advances in artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, machine learning and especially big dataOpens a new window , among other exploding technologies, are creating opportunities for companies to revolutionize their operations.
Perhaps most crucially, though, is that the convergence of these digital upgrades is providing marketers with advanced customer analytics to take their work to the next level. Businesses that don’t incorporate and capitalize on these new, new technologies – and ultimately fail to stay ahead of them – run the risk of falling behind their competitors that do.
Yet, although the potential dividends are massive, a recently published study by Harvard Business Review Analytical ServicesOpens a new window has found that most companies are failing to use this newly available customer data effectively and in real-time.
“Strategic alignment and a willingness to constantly return to analytical methods are critical to those most successful in creating personalized customer experiences at scale,†advises Alex Clemente, Managing Director of Harvard Business Review Analytic Services.
As organizations increasingly “go digital,†their customers expect relevant and localized services, solutions and offers especially tailored to their needs and preferences. In particular, real-time customer analytics enable a business to service customers like never before.
In today’s digital landscape, companies can access vast amounts of data generated at every stage of the customer lifecycle, including e-mail, online, contact centers, retail, social media, mobile and even search activity. Critically, these channels are now almost entirely digital, making all the information accessible and available for analysis, and usable with real-time analytics to improve marketing services across various aspects of the customer journeyOpens a new window , including during acquisition, onboarding and retention.
Yet, although 60% of business leaders surveyed by the Harvard Business Review Analytical Services agreed that real-time customer interaction is “extremely important,†only 16% consider their companies “very effective†at delivering these interactions across their services.
Moreover, while most marketers and executives believe that real-time customer analytics are a strategic priority, just one in 10 survey respondents indicated their business offers a solution that supports this type of customer interaction.
Indeed, real-time data visualization of customer and marketing data allows brands and businesses to better understand their clients’ behaviors and preferences. They can identify exactly what customers want and when, ultimately supporting companies as they optimize their marketing plans by spending more on operations with strong ROIOpens a new window and target budget at high-revenue operations.
Predictive analyticsOpens a new window is one of the major applications for the vast swaths of new data. Retailers, for instance, can analyze buying habits to pinpoint changes in a customer’s life and thus offer specific product discounts – like Target did in 2012Opens a new window when its automated tech deduced a teen girl was pregnant.
Similarly, e-tailers such as Amazon can now predict when a customer might be running low on certain consumable products and thus offer relevant deals.
There are, however, major challenges to entering this world. Installing new and advanced infrastructure and technology that supports the acquisition and manipulation of this customer data is no small task.
But it’s not just about investing in the latest tech. Traditionally, different data-producing systems and technologies within the same company are disjointed and use different coding schemes, hence lacking the required infrastructure to match the information gathered.
As such, embracing a data-driven culture,Opens a new window as many larger, already established firms struggle do, is key. Instead of simply producing data and then figuring out how to use it, companies should decide first what to do, and then work out which data best serves that purpose.
Integrating marketing and IT is paramount to getting there, freeing them then to develop systems focused on the most important data.
Consequently, as the HBR study concludes, the changes required to make the transformation must come from the top down, and within a company-wide effort.
Specifically, the issue is less about who owns customer experience, but rather how the entire C-suite executes on it. It is vital that CMOs, CIOs, and other C-level executives bring customer data together to apply dynamic, robust analytics that contribute to marketing operations and uncover new opportunities.
The nature of data is constantly evolving, which presents challenges and opportunities for marketers seeking to deepen customer relationships. Those who succeed will have a customer experience management strategy in place that allows their brands to deliver on customer needs.
In short, business owners, executives and managers who can analyze their data in real-time will be able to use the most current information to make better informed and more intuitive decisions.