The Internet of Things, Industry 4.0, Big Data. All buzz words on everyone’s lips these days. Data volumes are exploding: more data has been created in the past two years than in the entire previous history of the human race. The big question is how do you turn Big Data into Smart Data and create value? And how do you turn Smart Data into Customer Insights to Improve your Customer Experience?
Big Data versus Smart Data
To me, the biggest obstacle is that many companies focus on Big Data instead of Smart Data, which I would argue is the information that can really transform your business.
Data on its own isnt dynamic. It isnt smart. Its static. It takes the right questions and the right insights to make it dynamic. You need to know what to expect of the information you have. Do you want to use data technologies to help reduce costs? Do you expect data to support your internal decision processes? Do you expect that data will provide real-time insights or create new market solutions? Or analyze your Customer Journey?
Big Data isnt a new dimension in business; its simply a new tool. It still takes smart leaders to make it smart. You can turn big data into smart data when you optimize collection, analysis, and sharing based upon the specific needs of your micro-vertical industry and your individual company. So how does a small to mid-sized company integrate the necessary infrastructure to derive this value?
It takes people with the combination of left-brain analytics and right-brain creativity a combined DNA and the ability to work together to drive value specifically a valuable Customer Journey. It takes a great User Interface intuitive and graspable. Without a great interface, the power of massive data and analytics will be merely superficial.
Analyze the Journey
Marketing analytics is rapidly evolving past a single-channel and campaign view to encompass the entire customer engagement with the organization.
Customer Journey analytics attempt to understand how individuals and customer segments interact across channels and over time. The practice is phased around the activities of gathering, connecting, visualizing and acting on data, often collected on an individual level.
Know the Customer
The second common area of Customer Experience analysis is voice of the customer and refers to the tools and techniques used to gather information about customer opinions, attitudes and emotions.
Voice of customer analytics differs from Customer Journey analytics and other forms of marketing analytics in their emphasis on mental states rather than behaviors on customers thoughts, rather than their actions. Marketing organizations use this type of analysis for reputation management, competitive intelligence and managing products.
Methods for collecting and using the voice of the customer, range from short surveys to comprehensive software platforms. The most common ways to capture the voice of the customer for marketing include direct voice (surveys and customer engagement through call center logs), indirect voice (social listening and voice analytics) and inferred voice (behavioral observation and analytical modeling).
Customer Journey Mapping: What, How and Why
We are now in an age where businesses are all about the customer. Companies are noticing they must treat users like royalty through every stage of the journey to increase profits. That means understanding and nurturing them from the very first interaction to long after the purchase has been made. How do customers learn about you, and what potential barriers do they face between discovery and purchase?
How do you solve those problems? These questions are the foundation of Customer Journey. Thankfully, Smart Data has given us the tools we need to do just that. By analyzing customer behavior, we understand their needs. By understanding their needs, we can cater to them more effectively.
The Customer Journey closely resembles the sales funnel: There’s a beginning stage full of potential, a critical turning point and a final conversion. Customer Journey mapping breaks down each of these stages into several touch points (moments of customer/brand interaction) and optimizes each.
A basic Customer Journey goes as follows:
- The early stage Customers become aware of your brand through social media or some other means. This is where your Content Management System (CMS) comes in. By analyzing content, SEO campaigns and other marketing and advertising strategies, you see what channels are most effective at bringing in new customers
- The middle stage Customers are beginning to research your brand and your products or services. Here they want to learn everything possible about your company and message. This is a critical point for building trust and convincing readers that your business is the best. FAQ pages, product descriptions, live help and other informational services are critical here. This is where your customer personas really come into play; the more you know about your users goals, the more you can shape content to provide solutions before their problems arise.
- The final stage This is when your customers decide to commit and make a purchase or subscribe. Theyve learned about your brand and decided youre the best option for their needs. But it doesn’t end there — ongoing communication and customer service will foster a positive relationship and lead to subsequent purchases and word of mouth marketing
This is a basic model of the Customer Journey; many maps are much more complex than this. And of course, throughout each of these stages, there are multiple touch points. Customers interact with your brand in a multitude of ways: online, in-store, over the phone and the list goes on. Furthermore, each interaction holds potential for multiple outcomes.
To add even more confusion, Customer Journey maps frequently change as the business and its users do. So it’s easy to see how they can expand from a local area map to a complicated atlas. They can be time-consuming and research-intensive, but I believe they’re ultimately worth it.
Customer Journey mapping gives your business a competitive edge. In any given industry, there are thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of competitors. Business owners are quickly realizing they need an in-depth understanding of their customers to stay afloat. As you start to understand how users find, engage with and learn about your brand, you discover how to build relationships with them. And that’s always a good thing.
Achieving this level of understanding allows you to better connect and communicate with your customers and provide clearer information at the right time in the purchase process. This increases retention, loyalty and ultimately, your profits.
Leverage the Power of Smart Data
Many business owners feel overwhelmed by Customer Journey mapping. As I said, its a complicated process and certainly requires a time commitment. Luckily, harnessing the power of Smart Data technology — like analytical software, CMS and CRM platforms — makes it much easier to gather critical information. Data from these platforms tells you how your audience behaves throughout its journey.
Providers have also started offering Customer Journey mapping as a service. It’s a small investment with a significant ROI. As more businesses begin to realize how critical the customer journey is to profitability, Customer Journey mapping will become a go-to tool for building and strengthening relationships.
Technology Trends that are Transforming the Customer Experience
It’s unquestionable that companies must keep up with rising customer expectations or become obsolete. But new product features and lower prices are no longer enough; forward-looking companies are using experiences and data-driven strategies to beat the competition. For example, on-demand services and increasingly interconnected devices are already upending business models and customer experiences with more changes on the way. Here’s a list of the most notable technological trends that are transforming customer experiences:
- Smarter algorithms are on the rise Machine learning algorithms are still far from perfect but they’re continuing to gain traction and learn more. Google, for example, releases monthly reports on the progress of its self-driving car project. Recently, the driverless car learned how to identify and detect situations through sensors where making a right turn on red is permissible. Its algorithm has also been taught to drive more cautiously around children, who may move unpredictably. Algorithms are also increasingly handling more tasks, allowing marketers to focus on more difficult projects. It’s exciting to see companies begin to trust algorithms enough that they don’t need to constantly monitor them and instead shift their focus to other areas of the business
- Video offers unique engagement opportunities From real-time video streaming platforms to virtual reality videos, video technology has come a long way. And as people become accustomed to creating and sharing content via video, brands are following. Videos provide unique opportunities for brands to engage customers that beat other mediums. Whether it’s a professional video or recorded on a smartphone, videos are capturing growing audiences
- Voice recognition is gaining more usability Voice recognition technology continues to improve, offering more and more uses in customers’ daily lives. Last November Amazon garnered a lot of buzz with the launch of Amazon Echo, a Bluetooth speaker with voice recognition technology (known as Alexa) that makes it a “home assistant.” Echo connects to Alexa, which enables it to interpret questions and requests from the user
- Contextually relevant ads get a boost from ad blockers Apple sent a shiver through the ad industry when it equipped the iPhone 6s with an operating system that allows users to install software that blocks banner ads. And according to some estimates, ad-blocker adoption is growing. A December survey found that 33 percent of customers are likely to try ad-blocking software over the next three months
- Cyber security is becoming a top priority A data breach can be disastrous for a business and its brand. Companies can’t afford to lose their customers’ trust and are investing more resources and attention on security measures as reports of data breaches continue to grow. By 2018, more than half of organizations will use security services firms that specialize in data protection, security risk management, and security infrastructure management to enhance their security capabilities, estimates Gartner
- Partner ecosystems are critical Some of the most effective business partnerships result in companies with complementary products and services that drive better customer experiences and business models. But in order to be effective, they must be win-win-win relationships. As society moves deeper into an on-demand economy where customers prize convenience and availability, partner ecosystems will become a competitive differentiator
Other technology trends such as virtual reality, drones, and many others are also poised to change customer experiences, but integrating all of these trends is difficult, leaving stakeholders with few results. The problem is that efforts to improve the Customer Experience often lack a single owner or sponsor within an organization. Companies need a single locus of authority to oversee cross-functional Customer Experience initiatives and to align resources to a well-defined set of investments and priorities.
Therefore, while it’s important to stay abreast of the latest technology trends that are shaking up industries, having a plan to actually implement these trends is just as important.
Takeaway
In order not to fall behind the competition in 2016, it is advisable to get started with data-driven marketing. Make sure that the data you use is central and make availability fast. Dont wait until you have all the data, but start directly with the data thats available. With this, you become more relevant to your target market and you will increase conversion.
How About You?
Are you already incorporating Smart Data into your Customer Experience? What tips can you share? Please share your thoughts in the comments below.