Fast moving and integrated technologies are resulting in larger and larger business impacts. These changes aren’t simply related to businesses, they’re also changing the customer; the new customer is always connected, has a very loud voice and reaches further than you can imagine.
Do you want to survive and make the most of your new customer? Well it’s not enough to stay as a traditional business anymore; with the evolution of the internet and the uprising of the digital customer a new customer centric approach is required for a business to thrive.
Today, customer-centricity begins with creating a business culture where the customer is at the centre of everything you do. In today’s market the competition is incredibly high, it doesn’t matter how great your products are because someone else has equally great products. The only way to stand out from the crowd is to focus on the customer and their experience!
In other words ‘customer-centricity’ isn’t a new trend being thrown around, it’s a required element for business in the social media connected world: an element that requires businesses to think like their customers, engage with their customers, listen to their customers and prioritize strategies that reflect this.
A customer-centric approach explores ways to satisfy the needs of their customers at the same time as delivering greater value – making it an easier and a more pleasant experience for their customers to buy from them. Incremental sales should only be considered successful as a result of the degree to which customers have been satisfied.
Customer-centric businesses do this in the unequivocal belief that by demonstrating superior customer-centric behaviour, that is to say by investing heavily in making the customer’s experience unique and pleasurable, they will get increased support and profits from an expanding and loyal customer base.
In short:
- It’s all about the customer
- Use customer data to better understand and segment your customer base
- Identify the best customers
- Focus on products and services for the best customers.
- Use customer lifetime value (CLV) to segment your customers
A customer-focused approach will generally structure sales so that they can maximise their return. What this means is that a customer-focused business would look at how they can get more business from their customers by delivering a level of service that is only marginally better than their rivals and perhaps offering a slightly lower price.
Customer-focused businesses address customer needs only in so far as these are self-serving and address the organisation’s goals and imperatives.
In short:
- It’s all about the business
- Focus on the ‘average’ customer
- Court and retain low-quality customers
- Underspend on acquiring high-quality customers
The late Peter Drucker – the great management guru of the 20th century – said: “The purpose of business is to satisfy its customers’ needs. The consequence of satisfying customers is improved, continuous profits.”
Meet your new customer
Welcome to the digital age, your new customers are connected 24/7. They’re mobile, they always have access to the internet close at hand and they assume everyone else does too.
Your new customers are adept at finding useful information whilst on the move, they compare your prices with your competition and they demand more than ever before because of the number of options available in almost every choice they make.
More than anything your new customer base is more social than ever. They are always connected to networks that give them the ability to reach millions of other users and influence their buying decisions; this alone should show you it’s a good idea to keep the customer happy!
Why is the customer changing?
The sales and marketing industries are undergoing their biggest transformation since the beginning of the internet. The main driving force behind these changes is the increased popularity of online shopping. The ability to easily compare products increases competition which drives down prices and creates highly competitive environments. In addition, social media has created a network for consumers to share their opinions and experiences instantly with thousands of people.
Key changes in customer behaviour:
- Customers no longer just compare companies with their competitors
Your customers collectively compare you and your performance to other businesses and not just your rivals.
- Customers are less tolerant
Customers are better informed, faster to complain and harder to satisfy than ever before.
- Customer to customer dialogue has increased
The rise of social media, business review sites and business forums means brand loyalty and brand trust can easily be strengthened and even more easily destroyed with customers sharing their reviews, thoughts and opinions online.
- Customers are less loyal
Over pricing and poor standards of customer service are no longer accepted and are now cause for switching businesses – the customer wants value for money.
- Customers no longer accept branding and marketing from organisations
Due to widespread mistrust of mainstream information and advertisement, opinions and commercial relationships are formed elsewhere.
- Customers are more informed
The customer is more informed than ever and has a wealth of resources at their fingertips for enhanced product or service information.
- All customers are becoming multichannel users
Customers decide which communication method will be most used; businesses must prioritise the most suitable channel for the type of interaction.
Companies are now forced to invest in improving their customer experience and using it to create a competitive advantage.
An example of a customer-centric approach
A business that perfectly encapsulates the customer-centric approach is the online retailer giant Amazon. Amazon aims to be a customer-centric company for four primary customer sets: consumers, sellers, enterprises, and content creators.
To achieve this aim Amazon has had to gain a deep understanding of all of its customer’s needs, enabling it to deliver what consumers expect and want today, and also help anticipate what they may want tomorrow.
Understanding your customers is one key to success; one customer priority Amazon identified across all of its markets was a customer desire for the ‘always-on experience’. This hunger to get access to their content, anytime, anywhere drove the strategy behind the creation of the Kindle.
Conclusion
For a business to stay highly competitive in the changing market a customer-centric approach has to be adopted and the right channels utilized to effectively communicate with a target market.
If you listen to your customer, deliver a highly intuitive, easy to use and original user-experience you will be able to build your business strategy around anticipating the future needs of your customers.
StratX is a management development firm that delivers top 500 global companies engaging customized learning solutions. Visit StratX at http://stratxcorporate.com/
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