In this edition of TheCustomer QT: Consumers want ultimate privacy and ultimate personalization. Third-party data is alive and well and living behind the scenes. Good riddance to the once-holy-grail of CX. The best loyalty program is a very simple one. Buy-now-pay-later is officially here. And … cosmetics as tools for self-expression.
Incidentally, we send this round-up out each week in the form of the QT (Quick-Take) newsletter. You can sign up to receive it here.
CUSTOMER DATA & PRIVACY
What consumers really think of the upcoming IDFA opt-in
Quick-Take: Users want to protect their data: 47% use ad blockers and 35% use browser extensions. When presented with the new opt-in scenario, the majority of consumers did not want to accept it.
Privacy Legislation Race Heats Up
Quick-Take: Comprehensive bills in Oklahoma and Washington each passed one chamber, and proposals in Illinois, Minnesota, and Massachusetts were introduced last month. If other states pass legislation, companies could find themselves with an even more deeply entrenched privacy patchwork, spelling trouble for compliance programs and upping regulatory risk.
TikTok will make personalized ads mandatory
Quick-Take: The timing of the notice likely has to do with the upcoming release of iOS 14.5. Apple will soon require all developers to ask explicitly for permission to track your device across websites and apps.
Reinventing CPG Companies
Quick-Take: Commodity to Brand? I love brands but the tables are turning from a business-to-consumer world (B2C) world to a consumer-to-business (C2B) world. CPGs must acknowledge the symbiotic relationship between marketplaces and third-party sellers as the new reality. Size and scale can no longer trump speed and agility in the on-line world.
CONSUMER PREFERENCES
The customer was already changing
Quick-Take: The transition to digital architecture that has transformed many businesses in the last two decades hit hyperdrive last year. The pandemic gave consumers a voice. The need for empathy skyrocketed during the summer, as the national conversation grew to include the painful recognition of injustice and inequality.
Post-Pandemic E-Commerce
Quick-Take: This year, close to 75% of retail ecommerce sales are expected to be made through mobile devices.
CX
Number One Measurement of Digital Success
Quick-Take: Net Promoter Score is fading in relevance: Net Promoter Score (NPS) used to be the holy grail of measuring customer sentiment and loyalty. Now, only 16% of executives see customer sentiment scores such as NPS as important to a digital product’s long-term success.
Emphasizing empathy
Quick-Take: Humanization is the new personalization. Still, personalized CX is challenging, and it’s essential to pair data-driven content with emotional resonance, creating an experience that compels action and deepens the connection.
LOYALTY
Customer Loyalty Strategy
Quick-Take: According to the Salesforce Connected Customer Report, 90% of consumers expect companies to clearly demonstrate their values and 66% expect brands to demonstrate empathy.
This Fast-Food Chain Has the Best Loyalty Program
Quick-Take: The chain’s point reward system is pretty straightforward—every dollar spent earns you a point, every 50 points (aka $50 spent) earns you $5 off. Not to mention, there are other special, personalized offers for those using the app.
TECHNOLOGY
You’ve Outgrown Your Martech
Quick-Take: A recent MarTech survey revealed about 83% of companies have replaced a marketing technology application in the last year. A significant conclusion from that survey is that marketers need to embrace change.
Keeping Pace With Increased Digital Payments
Quick-Take: Contactless credit cards (43%) and contactless debit cards (39%) are the two most preferred touchless payment options for shoppers, followed by digital wallets (30%), cards on file (25%) and QR codes (18%). The survey also showed that just over 40% of Millennial and Gen X shoppers are willing to switch to grocery stores that offer touchless payment options.
Relying on data platforms for connection
Quick-Take: • 32% of execs say they’ll spend ‘significantly more’ on MarTech in 2021 • 53% report their stacks are walled gardens that may not be cross compatible • 59% say AI is central to their success strategy • 62% report integration issues between MarTech stacks
Improve the customer experience with buy now, pay later
Quick-Take: 87% of today’s consumers between 22 and 44 would like to be able to break up large purchases into monthly installments.
PERSONALIZATION
Advertisers have a hammer and everything looks like a nail
Quick-Take: One hammer-wielding clan of late is the data-driven, digital “right message at the right person at the right time” crowd. Let me be clear, there is definitely value in that field, it can be extremely useful in some situations. But to believe any tool is universal and appreciated by all is self-deceit.
RETAIL
Shifting Winds of Retail
Quick-Take: 77 percent of U.S. shoppers want to be able to try on clothes again in fitting rooms this year.
A twist can boost cosmetic brands
Quick-Take: Cosmetics traditionally have been sold to women as a way to conceal flaws, but new research shows that marketing beauty brands as a creative medium for self-expression gets greater acceptance.
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