Digital Marketing - Study Notes:
Becoming customer centric
CX is about becoming a customer-centric or customer first business that prioritizes the customer over every other factor and focuses all its digital attention on meeting their needs. Some organizations appoint a Customer Experience Officer, or CXO, with overall responsibility for the customer. However, every department, even those who don’t have direct interactions with the customer, need to think of the role they play in CX. A holistic approach to CX therefore necessitates the removal of silos by department or channel. CX is about everyone, and CX is everyone’s concern.
For those occupying the CXO role, it is essential that he or she brings the voice of the customer into the boardroom. For example, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos famously uses an empty chair to represent the customer at board meetings, and has said: “We see our customers as invited guests to a party, and we are the hosts. It’s our job every day to make every important aspect of the customer experience a little bit better.”
Digital, in general, and social in particular, are important elements of CX, as they facilitate customers engaging in dialog with businesses. And because that dialog can take place in a public, social realm, it can be amplified rapidly regardless of whether it’s a positive or negative experience.
When CX is implemented correctly, both B2B and B2C organizations can maximize customer satisfaction and improve the bottom line as satisfied customers tend to spend more and buy more frequently over shorter sales cycles. On the other hand, when CX isn't managed well it can have significant negative implications for the entire business. For example, according to the pioneering tech and global digital marketing agency DEPT®:
- 32% of global customers stop interacting with brands they love after one bad experience
- 92% would completely abandon a company after two or three negative interactions
- Only 1 out of 26 unhappy customers complain and the remaining 91% simply leave
- 13% go on to tell 15 or more people about their negative experience
Booking.com
For businesses who primarily sell to consumers and the general public, CX can be effectively optimized by providing simple ways to engage with the brand and make purchases.
For example, travel companies like Booking.com allow customers to reserve properties without the need to pay up front and to cancel without any penalty fees up to a certain date. They can also communicate directly with the property owner for certain inquiries like check-in time, extra beds, and other requirements. Booking.com then try to upsell attractions, tours, and events in the area at the time of your stay by curating the options in their mobile app and emailing them to you. You can also leave a review about your stay to get reward points which can be redeemed at a later stage.
All of this can be done seamlessly on desktop or mobile apps to cater for the device preferences of different customers. As you can see, from making reservations, to using the service, all the way through to leaving reviews and collecting reward points, Booking.com has shaped their business around delivering simple and comprehensive customer experiences which continually drive new and repeat bookings.
International Business Machines Corporation (IBM)
For businesses that primarily sell to other businesses, CX is the top indicator of strategic performance and requires special attention.
IBM is an example of a B2B brand with great CX. In fact, the IBM business model is built around its CX. When a customer signs up for services like IBM Cloud Storage, they are given access to a team of dedicated specialists to help them integrate the tech into their own office systems and utilize it to its full potential. By leveraging CX, IBM ensures that their customers are engaged with their product, meaning they are more likely to renew their contracts. IBM’s personalized account approach encourages both personal interaction and product awareness.
IBM boosted sales of cloud products by $19bn, or a +20% increase in profits in a single year through the successful implementation of their CX strategy. They did this by reaching out to customers who spoke of their positive experiences with IBM, and got them to promote the service to their own customers. This simple action of identifying brand promoters and connecting with them and their network as a result of their excellent customer experience had a massive impact on the performance of the business.
At an enterprise level, the IBM case study is a prime go-to example of providing a highly personalized B2B CX and matching the internal capabilities of your organization to your clients' needs. Then, by reaching out to your promoters, you can amplify this experience throughout their networks and generate more sales.
Clark Boyd
Clark Boyd is CEO and founder of marketing simulations company Novela. He is also a digital strategy consultant, author, and trainer. Over the last 12 years, he has devised and implemented international marketing strategies for brands including American Express, Adidas, and General Motors.
Today, Clark works with business schools at the University of Cambridge, Imperial College London, and Columbia University to design and deliver their executive-education courses on data analytics and digital marketing.
Clark is a certified Google trainer and runs Google workshops across Europe and the Middle East. This year, he has delivered keynote speeches at leadership events in Latin America, Europe, and the US. You can find him on X (formerly Twitter), LinkedIn, and Slideshare. He writes regularly on Medium and you can subscribe to his email newsletter, hi, tech.
Bill Phillips
Bill is an international facilitator, trainer, and team coach. He has successfully coached CEOs, board members, directors, executive teams, and team leaders in public and private companies, NGOs, and UN organizations in 15 countries across four continents. He is also the creator of Future-basing®, a highly potent process for building strategy, vision, and cooperation.
Will Francis
Will Francis is a recognized authority in digital and social media, who has worked with some of the world’s most loved brands. He is the host and technical producer of the DMI podcast, Ahead of the Game and a lecturer and subject matter expert with the DMI. He appears in the media and at conferences whilst offering his own expert-led digital marketing courses where he shares his experience gained working within a social network, a global ad agency, and more recently his own digital agency.
Cathal Melinn
Cathal Melinn is a well-known Digital Marketing Director, commercial analyst, and eommerce specialist with over 15 years’ experience.
Cathal is a respected international conference speaker, course lecturer, and digital trainer. He specializes in driving complete understanding from students across a number of digital marketing disciplines including: paid and organic search (PPC and SEO), analytics, strategy and planning, social media, reporting, and optimization. Cathal works with digital professionals in over 80 countries and teaches at all levels of experience from beginner to advanced.
Alongside his training and course work, Cathal runs his own digital marketing agency and is considered an analytics and revenue-generating guru - at enterprise level. He has extensive local and international experience working with top B2B and B2C brands across multiple industries.
Over his career, Cathal has worked client-side too, with digital marketing agencies and media owners, for brands including HSBC, Amazon, Apple, Red Bull, Dell, Vodafone, Compare the Market, Aer Lingus, and Expedia.
He can be reached on LinkedIn here.
By the end of this topic, you should be able to:
- Discuss the impact of customer journey stages in a marketing strategy
- Identify the key touchpoints, channels, and tactics in an omnichannel strategy
- Assess the impact of customer experience (CX) on business performance
