Will Last Year's Expert Insights Echo in 2024?
Martechvibe curates the wisdom of leading martech and CX experts on trends from AI and super-apps to phygital experiences and navigating generational shifts.
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The year 2023 was predicted to be marked by an economic slowdown, amidst which it was challenging for brands to maintain customer growth and retention.
Updating their martech stacks with disruptive technologies like AI and ChatGPT, finding a balance between human and technology resources to sustain the customer-first approach, and tending to different generations of customers have been a long ride for brands. Marketing teams have focused on trends like first and zero-party data, emphasising hyper-personalisation while offering privacy and making the most of super-apps. Some brands leveraged technology to merge online and offline experiences to offer new phygital stores to their customers, bringing down cart abandonment rates with innovation.
In the thick of all these rapid changes, what has remained constant is how customers view the values reflected by a brand. All said and done, the customer experience in 2023 has been characterised by automation and hyper-personalisation for an aware and informed customer. As we move to another year of customer trends and expectations, here is what experts have had to say about the martech and CX landscape.
Dr Marcus Collins
Clinical Assistant Professor of Marketing at the University of Michigan – Stephen M. Ross School of Business
Companies often focus on value propositions – like a car going faster or a razor being sharper – but this is not emotionally charged. Focusing on why a company does what it does, its conviction and driving belief is far more powerful.
This allows people to find congruence between the company’s values and identity, making the company a receipt of their identity.
Annette Franz
Founder and CEO of CX Journey Inc
It seems there’s this resounding “battle cry” that customers are in control because they are more informed than ever. That’s simply not true. If you look at their frustrations and expectations, that contradicts what they are looking for.
They want to provide feedback, and they want you to use that to understand them better and design and deliver the experience they expect.
Andrew Clayton
Group Head of CX, Close Brothers
I get frustrated when brands collect feedback but do nothing about it. It is critical to demonstrate that they take each customer’s feedback seriously and respect the time customers take to provide it.
I like to see a culture of ‘you said / we did’ as an embedded part of a continuous improvement culture in an organisation.
Donata Peksa
Head of Brand Experience at HSBC
One of the roles of neo-banks is to challenge the status quo, reject traditional canons, and better reflect our world. The boldness to challenge conventions, defy the norm and put new ideas has traditionally helped create some of these iconic brands and ignited a change that revolutionised the banking landscape.
Jaslyin Qiyu
Head of Client, Digital Channels and Content Marketing at Citi Singapore
Customers are becoming more discerning yet willing to spend on higher quality items and experiences beyond just the tangible bread-and-butter things. Even the older generation of consumers seems to have taken on a ‘YOLO’ mindset towards money and spending on wants versus needs.
Companies need to look at trade-offs without sacrificing the customer experience delivery.
Stefanie Pipenhagen
Senior Manager, CX Europe at Lemonade
Committing to a double bottom line — using business as a force for good is something the younger generation expects and appreciates. Financial companies whose services are tied with the extra benefit of giving back to charities
customers would like to support is a good approach.
Christian Gleich
Metaverse consultant and Ambassador at the European Blockchain Association
Marketers have followed customer trends in their target group by trend scouting and research – in the best case, they were part of making the trends. It’s the same with emerging technology: research the tools and how they
work, try it out, and play around with it! Invest time to catch up with the tools’ actual status and your audience’s knowledge. Meet them halfway and share their interest.
Reedev Taneja
The International Head of Analytics and MarTech at TBWA
90% of consumers are motivated by convenience rather than the benefits. Once consumers get that, they start to expect more. That’s where the value-added benefits come into play because if they consolidate the
spending from five different brands into one app (super-app), they also need to feel the benefit apart from the convenience they get in return.
Rodger Werkhoven
Creative Director at OpenAI and Executive Creative Director at Io
Many of the concerns stem from the fear of the unknown. To a significant portion of the population, AI is a complex and somewhat abstract concept, leading to apprehension, especially given its rapid evolution. Concerns over job displacement further fuel this unease.
As AI systems become more sophisticated, there’s a growing sentiment that they might replace human roles, causing unemployment. However, it also paves the way for new roles and opportunities previously non-existent.
Dharmin Ved
Founder and CEO of 6thStreet.com
Instant gratification is key in the phygital store. Picture this: You can browse the products on the in-store tab and try your items in our smart fitting room, which lets you exchange sizes without leaving it, and you can walk out with your purchases right away. Marketers can play
this up by highlighting the convenience factor. Plus, we offer exclusive in-store deals and make transitioning from online browsing to in-store shopping a breeze. It’s all about making customers feel like they can get what they want immediately.
Vanja Ljevar
Chief Data Scientist at Kubik Intelligence
Data science and behavioural science are like mac and cheese — one goes well with the other. Data science can provide valuable customer insights, using descriptive and predictive analytics to extract data-derived behavioural
insights intelligently. This serves as a basis for psychology-based nudging techniques that resonate most with customers and give companies’ ultimate competitive edge.
Joseph Michelli
The CEO of The Michelli Experience
There are inevitably differences between generations, and it’s important to pay attention to them. However, sometimes, we tend to overestimate these differences and inadvertently create divisions among people.
We need to study our customers, and generational factors are just one component of that. You’ll find individuals with very different motivations and value structures within any generation. When discussing gender differences, it’s crucial not to reinforce stereotypes.
Mike Aoki
President at Reflective Keynotes Inc
Simplify your CRM system so agents find information quickly rather than having to babysit their computer system. There will be long gaps in customer conversations while agents try to find relevant information in all
databases. Simplifying computer systems and processes can free agents to focus on empathy. It is difficult to sound empathetic with a customer when you are fighting with your computer!
Michel Lambert
Founder & CEO at eComInterim
Invest in both tech and people—this is not “either, or”. Technology helps companies leverage data better, but people will be better off at understanding the insights and developing engaging creatives. The allocation should match the expected tasks.
Ishan Singh
Director of Engagement and Retention at OSN+
Knowing your numbers and acting fast are the two most critical functions for reducing churn, regardless of the industry. Identifying the causes of churn, whether due to offerings, products, prices, or seasonality, and addressing them early with the next best offering is key.
Your chance of winning back customers fades as you move away from the churn date.
