The potential is real in the digital era for the Customer Experience to be transformed.

Yet, advertised claims don’t always meet growing customer expectations and too many organizations have turned inwards to their digital transformation task list and are moving away from, not towards, the customer.

This phenomenon was eloquently described in an Agile conference talk – ‘Guerilla Re-transformation’ – a few years back.1 John Sullivan described how the organization had to rethink its strategy in all areas. This aligns with what those of us who work in this space see all too often:

  • The signs and symptoms of disconnection from customers are now common
  • Organizations become ego-centric instead of purpose-driven
  • They pay a high price in loss of goodwill but can correct this (and even prevent it)
  • Digital transformation can either improve ‘Customer Experience’ or as readily destroy it
  • Customers love it when you get it right – you reap compounding rewards in a world of social media

Not too long ago, discussions were about the digitization shift towards the customer.2 Growing consumer power is evidenced by sentiment spreading via hashtags and by crowds funding ventures sooner than any traditional lender. Crowd power is even evident in recent moves by Face Book and the British government to act on public concerns.

Opinion counts and critical thought mass is reached sooner than before. Recently, a local school requested all parents to keep children off social media at all times (hardly a surprising reaction with the dark side of this form of social interaction highlighted in the Netflix series “13 Reasons Why”.)

Marketing as a discipline has always focused a business on customers. Today, technology advances have provided brain research insights into just how visceral and powerful is this thing called the ‘Customer Experience’. “Neuromarketing should be considered as a legitimate and important area for future research, which will allow us to more fully understand human behaviour…..” 3,4,5

You have to wonder where the real power now lies:

  • with business using neuromarketing research to sell services in new and innovative ways, or
  • with the customer, who with one online comment (tweeted and re-tweeted) can seriously (even fatally) damage business reputation (even if the comment is untrue or at least unfair)

The Power Anomaly

Speaking for myself, I do not feel in any way more powerful as a customer. It seems as though businesses have simply expanded their complaint-handling process when they fail to deliver on what they promise. Has advertising now become the ultimate form of fake news? In my experience, digitization simply creates more barriers to connection.

I was sad listening to an interview with an author, Sean Bythell, who owns the largest second hand bookshop in Scotland. When one of his staff forgot to check the box on Amazon that confirmed the shipping of 40 orders, his account was suspended. Try as he might, he could not connect with anyone to restore the account. His business was held ransom by algorithms and the subsequent loss in annual revenue of £12,000 was a salary for a staff member. Many readers had come to know the staff through his book ‘Diary of a Book Seller’. No difference to Amazon; a world of difference to a business owner, his staff and their community.6

In the race to get things done, many organizations have forgotten why and for whom they do them. Those who provide an awful customer experience still continue to peddle their wares charging ridiculous sums to annoy and frustrate, at a time when customer and crowd power would suggest that this simply cannot happen.

 Digital Powerlessness

Having enjoyed the awesome convenience of online banking for over 13 years, I was very confident last month helping my elderly mother register for online banking with the bank where she has been a longtime customer.

There were so many barriers to access that after repeated attempts and numerous conversations with the help line, she eventually got access but by then was so ‘over it’ that she said she would prefer to physically go to the local branch to do her banking.

This is quite a bizarre choice given that said branch always has long queues, persistently ignored by disinterested staff who seem unaware they are being paid for a service.

The even weirder thing is that 100 meters along in the same mall, you can see customers of a competing bank having an entirely different experience. They are smiling, relaxed, happy and enthusiastically and quickly served. I subsequently found out that this other bank (used by another family member) has facial-recognition account access and provides an easy and hassle-free online digital experience.

How is it possible that the first bank can still make huge profits, charge an arm and a leg for disservice and continue to treat customers with indifference? (Perhaps neuromarketing research can explain consumer choice of years of chronic purchasing pain over the couple of hours of acute pain involved in changing banks.)

Digital Power Surge

As consumer power and digitization continues to grow, perhaps there will soon be a power surge as people from my mother’s generation are replaced by customers who simply will not wait for digital ‘re-transformation’.

I predict that within a few years, the only businesses that survive will be those that actually deliver what they promise.

Circa 1974:
“If we want to know what a business is, we have to start with its purpose……There is only one valid definition of business purpose: to create a customer. The customer is a foundation of a business and keeps it in existence. The customer alone gives employment.……

ACTION POINT: Find out what needs your customers want fulfilled today. Determine how well your products are meeting the needs of your customers. That is the purpose of business.” Peter F Drucker7

Digital or otherwise, this will not change.

Sources:

1 Guerilla Re-transformation. John Sullivan. Agile NZ 2015 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgXZkWtpng8

2 Three Digital Transformation truths and one great myth. Charles Araujo. November 21, 2017 www.institutefordigitaltransformation.org/three-digital-transformation-truths-and-one-great-myth/

3 Lindstrom, Martin (2009) Buyology. Random House. London https://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=19324362434&searchurl=tn%3Dbuyology%26sortby%3D17

4 Lindstrom, Martin. (2011) Brandwashed. Crown Publishing Group https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/101774/brandwashed-by-martin-lindstrom-foreword-by-morgan-spurlock/9780385531733/

5 “What is ‘neuromarketing’? A discussion and agenda for future research”. Nick Lee, Amanda J. Broderick, Laura Chamberlain. Feb 2006. ScienceDirect http://iranarze.ir/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/7421-English-IranArze.pdf

6 ‘Diary of a Bookseller’. Interview with Sean Bythell by Kim Hill. 10 February 2018 https://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/saturday/audio/2018631471/shaun-bythell-diary-of-a-bookseller

7 The Purpose of a Business is to Create a Customer. August 13, 2012 by Whitney Hess. https://whitneyhess.com/blog/2012/08/13/the-purpose-of-a-business-is-to-create-a-customer/

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