Customers Have Changed
How customers engage with organisations is vastly different from the fairly recent past and will continue to change in the future. Customers engage with individuals and companies in two way communication through multiple channels, across multiple communities and platforms. Through this engagement they are shaping how companies and brands are perceived. Marketing needs to change to address this change in behaviour and to engage with customers in a personal and consistent way.
Current Situation
Many companies are struggling with internal organisations, processes and systems geared up for product centric, one way, mass marketing which is increasingly irrelevant to today’s customers . It’s safe to say that the companies that succeed in the future will be those that make the shift to one to one marketing and engage customers as individuals.
Today many companies use multiple and uncoordinated databases, processes and campaigns. This leads to uncoordinated activities with multiple, inconsistent customer contacts. As well as often being irrelevant to customers, it is also inefficient, costly and doesn’t provide the greatest return on marketing investments (ROMI). Companies that provide a consistent customer experience, integrated across channels, that is personal and relevant to the customer can improve customer retention and advocacy, as well as achieving greater returns.