Navigating Shifting Customer Expectations
IThe modern consumer is more multifaceted and complex than ever before. They are influenced by various factors like social, economic, and political events. This makes it increasingly difficult for businesses to keep up with customer behavior changes.
An Accenture survey revealed that 95% of C-level executives believe that customers are changing faster than their businesses can keep up with. This is because consumers are responding to several factors that are driving them to make changes. For example, 72% of consumers are impacted by external factors like inflation, which affects their purchasing behavior. Moreover, the hybrid lifestyle of making purchases both online and in-person has emerged, with 33% of adults shopping in stores less.
Furthermore, customers are increasingly concerned about social and environmental responsibility, with more than two-thirds of Americans concerned about climate change. They expect their peers to adjust their purchasing habits accordingly, indicating the need for companies to consider their values and ethical principles.
Given these changes, it's clear that businesses must understand their customers' multi-dimensional needs to stay competitive.
Our team helped a business concerned about shifting customer expectations to analyze and prioritize emerging customer segments to create a growth trajectory. We identified critical business competencies such as business analytics, specialized sales, and process design necessary to establish a new service line. This approach proved successful, resulting in a sixfold increase in revenue and profit margins over the last three years.
What we learned was that businesses must focus on personalization and convenience to provide a seamless customer experience across multiple channels. According to Gartner, 86% of B2B and 72% of B2C consumers expect companies to know their information during an interaction. A convenient experience can help retain customers, with three-fourths of customers willing to pay more for convenience, and 68% more likely to return to a brand if the customer experience was convenient. An omnichannel experience has also become a must-have for organizations, with McKinsey revealing that consumers expect this from companies across all touchpoints. We certainly agree at Growth Innovation Strategy Group.
And interestingly, Gartner reports that 75% of companies expect to use AI to make smarter data-driven decsions. In this era of popular AI services such as ChatGPT, this imperative can be as simple as optimizing content and journey mapping for better segmentation and personalization.
But the key isn't robots. It's people. With the right, customer-focused strategy in place, businesses can keep up with the changing consumer environment and achieve success like our new business venture did.
As you build out your plan, ask yourself:
How has your organization prepared to keep up with the changing demands of complex modern consumers? What do they expect you to do?
Have you considered the impact of inflation and market uncertainty on your customers' spending behavior? Are you equipped to make smarter purchases to combat inflation and maintain customer loyalty?
Are you providing a truly meaningful customer experience across multiple channels, including personalization and convenience?
