In today’s fiercely competitive business environment, companies are exploring new ways to delight customers and retain their loyalty because it has a direct impact on revenue. Customers today expect to have fluid, convenient and timely interactions with businesses seamlessly across multiple channels. While many businesses have adopted an omni-channel approach, customer data remains fragmented, making it difficult to gain a single view of the customer.
So, combining data from multiple sources is a fundamental step to gain a complete, 360 degree view of the customer. A customer relationship management (CRM) software offering data on all customer interactions and integrating with other systems is the ideal first step to achieving your customer experience (CX) goals.
A CRM, such as the one from Salesforce, also makes it easy for sales representatives to effectively engage with customers while keeping track of their own sales targets and performance. They are also able to capitalise on selling trends and share pipeline information with their managers for better collaboration and accountability.
A single-point view of customers’ demographic information, including whether they have partners and dependents, can help you create tailored and timely messages. An insurance carrier, for instance, can send car insurance offers via SMS or email to a customer a few weeks before the customer’s child turns 18.
Another tip is to use qualitative data to provide customers the information they need. For instance, what kind of questions are leads and customers asking about your product/service? Do some of your high-value customers have individual preferences or specific queries? With this data at your fingertips, you can add the right Q&As to your FAQ page, highlight key points likely to convince or impress potential customers in your marketing brochures and case studies, and update customer care training materials with useful takeaways.
Leverage customer behaviour data – including their feedback on your website and social media channels, as well as that recorded by your sales representatives – to retain their loyalty, upsell to them, and send them special offers for being brand ambassadors. Some points you may consider to identify patterns of behaviour include:
- How frequently do they buy from you OR how long have they been your customer?
- How many have downloaded your app OR how many keep trying out the latest features brought out by your company?
- How many have unsubscribed from your newsletter?
- What has motivated repeat purchases? Was it at a particular time of the year or after you advertised coupons or individual discounts via SMS?
- Website traffic, time spent on your website, and engagement levels on your social media pages.
If possible, enrich customer data with market data and third-party data to test assumptions, design in-house experiments and surveys, and validate popular or trending CX ideas and approaches. The wealth of knowledge and insights gained from this endeavour will serve as one of your most valuable assets for the present and future.
If you would like to learn more about the benefits of a CRM solution, contact us today!
