Making every touchpoint count

How can customer loyalty be nurtured at every touch point of the buying process?

As customers become more aware of the technological capabilities of their own consumer technology, their expectations for a personalised experience have increased in every aspect of their lives, including the B2B environment. They expect consistent information to be at their fingertips, regardless of the channel they choose to engage with.

“Although many companies have tried to implement an omnichannel strategy, few have truly succeeded,” says Heinrich de Leeuw, Managing Director, SEIDOR in South Africa. “There is also a perception that building a comprehensive experience for the customer would require an insurmountable amount of time and resources, which has stopped some companies from making the attempt.”

However, De Leeuw adds, customer loyalty can be created through ERP solutions at every touch point – any direct or indirect contact a customer has with a business. It starts with data, which is an essential component of any omnichannel strategy. Integrated ERP allows manufacturers to offer customers a seamless experience – and not just an end product.

“Deploying a data-backed strategy to engage consumers in a personalised way reveals insights that provide a clear picture of who your customers are, what they want and the specific products they care about.,” De Leeuw says. “With that information, manufacturers can deploy omnichannel tactics to more deeply and accurately target customers, providing them with the always-on communication and product visibility they demand.”

Creating the best experience for customers, however, has to be achieved without having an impact on trust. Privacy requirements must match customer expectations and measures put in place must build trust through transparency around personal data.

“Investing in customer data management can help organisations to ensure they provide transparency for customers,” De Leeuw says.

A single view of the customer

A successful omnichannel strategy is dependent on a single view of the customer. That is the basis for delivering exceptional customer experiences. With the customer at the centre of what a business does, it becomes possible to provide a consistent and “human” voice across all platforms, so that the best service is provided along every step of the customer journey – or at every touchpoint.

Companies need to have a clear understanding of each touchpoint, how it works, how it competes and how it can be improved. There are three requirements for every touchpoint:

• It must humanise the experience
• It must be transparent about the customer’s personal data, and let them have control of that data
• It must monitor and adjust the customer experience as and when required to improve the experience

Putting the customer at the centre and making every customer touchpoint human is the key ingredient to successful digital transformation,” say De Leeuw. “It is about understanding the impact that a business has on the customer at each touchpoint, and how this may affect the relationship in the long term.”

“Research shows that investing in customer experience has enormous business benefits,” he adds. “That’s why we advise our clients to invest in ERP technology that can elevate their operational efficiency and enhance customer loyalty at every moment of engagement.”