Do You Have a Customer-Obsessed Mindset?
Day 1 at #VMFZA, Martech leaders share key learnings on how marketers can put customers at the centre of their marketing strategy How do we engage customers better? It starts with designing marketing campaigns that put customers at the centre of design and planning. But that’s easier said than done. Marketers need to stop looking […]
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Day 1 at #VMFZA, Martech leaders share key learnings on how marketers can put customers at the centre of their marketing strategy
How do we engage customers better? It starts with designing marketing campaigns that put customers at the centre of design and planning. But that’s easier said than done. Marketers need to stop looking at Martech as just tech but as an important tool to action strategy, says Audrey Naidoo – Head Digital Marketing, Absa, South Africa. Naidoo is joined by Hazel – Chimhandamba – Executive Head Of Marketing, Cell C, South Africa and Sadika Fakir – Integrated Media And Digital Director, Tiger Brands, South Africa, on a panel to discuss what marketers can do to create a lift in engagement.
Excerpts from the discussion;
How can organisations create a customer-obsessed mindset?
Audrey Naidoo, Head of Digital Marketing at Absa
“Today’s conversation is pertinent to every brand and much needed in terms of guiding marketers into the future, basically because of the unknowns and uncertainties we are facing as marketers. We need to acknowledge that marketing has always been obsessed with customer experience. But the pandemic has been the tipping point in terms of what has changed the dynamics of consumer behaviour. We can only be customer obsessed if we know our customers beyond the numbers. Tech is a key enabler and needs to be used smartly to drive customer insight for the organisation, and data becomes the glue.”
Hazel – Chimhandamba – Executive Head Of Marketing, Cell C, South Africa
“Brands can’t claim to be customer-centric in the absence of an organisation strategy that is centred around the customer data. Further to this, an organisation needs to understand the customer segment that they serve and understand the needs of those customers. Only then, can they start to deliver customer value propositions that differentiate them from competitors. Every employee needs to take ownership of the customer and try to deliver it against the ultimate customer experience within their portfolio.”
What is the best way to leverage customer data to improve customer experience?
Audrey Naidoo, Head of Digital Marketing at Absa
“Previously, we needed to understand that marketers were consumers of data and now we are becoming owners and we controlling the data, so the top of the agenda should be how do marketers on the first-party data strategy, which is critical to understand how to enhance the customer experience, so it’s important that data should be used as the marketing utility and all of us to get close to the customer. So how do we cut through the clutter, grab attention and drive the growth agenda.”
What are the common challenges in actioning this strategy?
Sadika Fakir, Integrated Media And Digital Director at Tiger Brands
“Every category is at a different phase. Telcos and finance are ahead of the curve, given that they already sit with customer data from banking or mobile. When you talk about consumer goods, on the other hand, we don’t have tangible data because our products are distributed to other distribution channels. One size doesn’t fit all. How do we solve this?”
