Back to Basics in the World of the Digital Customer Experience

George Aveling is Group CEO and International Partner of TMI, TACK International in Malaysia and digital learning consultancy, Elementrix. He is a mentor to senior leaders, an organisational leader, writer and a well-respected consultant. Hailing from the land down under, this self-confessed durian and chilli-padi lover has made Malaysia his home for the last 13 years.
I find it tedious to try to understand much of what has been written in this digital world. It’s full of jargon. It’s confusing. It seems to focus on the technology, and not on the customer. Let me string a few words in this new language to you…

‘We need to ensure that customers get personalised, omni-channel, seamless, integrated experiences that are consistent across all touchpoints”.
No wonder people like me are confused in this new world of digital writing!

I can’t help but get the impression that “digital” customer experience, has become dominated by digital rather than where it should start – with the customer.

Back to basics in the digital world – 3 key customer needs. The starting point for any sort of customer experience – digital or otherwise – is to stick to the fundamentals:

All true great customer experiences are firmly rooted in understanding what customers want, and then delivering on them.
Are there a set of “generic” needs that customers have that every digital experience must satisfy?

In this article, I share 3 fundamentals. These fundamentals are driven by the psyche of the modern customer.

Here goes…
Modern customers want it NOW – anytime, anywhere! We are in the world of instant everything.

Instant gratification is one the “instants”. Customers want to be able to interact with organisations to transact business anytime, anywhere. They may be at home.

They may be on a train. They may be at a coffee shop. They may be in the bath.

They want to feel empowered to be able to interact with your organisation NOW. The world of digital expands the range of possibilities for customers to do this – mobile, web, kiosks, and even conventional channels like contact centres and retail shops.

These many possibilities, in digital-speak, are the omni-channel options given to customers.
Ah, now I “get” the meaning of “omni-channel”! Customers are time poor – make it quick and easy to use.

If you are like most people in this modern world, you wake up in the morning with a to-do list that seems to be way too long. And, you are continually rushing to get things done.

You are time poor. When done well, the digital customer experience can make it quick and easy for the customer to interact with the organisation and to transact business.

I value digital buying experiences where I can take a picture of my credit card, saving me valuable time in filling out any credit card details.

I love it when I use the auto-gate to avoid having to go through a human immigration officer at international airports. I love it when I can do a self-check in with some airlines in Europe, saving me time that would otherwise be spent in a queue. Less queue equals more coffee time. I like that idea!

And, by the way, these are examples of seamless customer experiences, enabled by technology.

Modern Customers are confused by choice – make it easy to buy. There are so many choices available to us in virtually anything that we can buy. It’s confusing.

Enter digital. It can make it easy for us to make informed selections. Amazon does this by including lots of information on books we are checking out, including reader ratings and comments. Amazon makes it easy for us to buy. It’s even sort-of pleasurable.

And, then, they use a light form of personalisation by making it easy for you to buy more product – they let you know which books other buyers like you have purchased. Amazon.com simplifies my decision process, amid all of the information that I have to carry in my head! Thank you, Amazon!

It always starts with the customer. The world of digital may seem a long way from the world as you once knew it.

But, when you boil it down, great digital experiences make it easier, quicker and more efficient to deliver on the customer experience fundamentals. The wrong place to start is with the technology.

The right place to start is with your customer and to work back to the digital experience. Do this, and you will have a good chance of winning in the world of the modern customer.
Until next time.
George is speaking and driving the coming Digital Transformation Conference on July 19.

Is the Customer at the heart of your Digital Transformation?
On 19th of July, MARKETING will be organising a conference on Customer-Centric Digital Transformation (#DTCX2018) to help you answer that question. The conference will be driven by Paul Stewart who authored the best-seller ‘Branded Customer Service’ and currently is the Special Advisor, Strategy & Transformation for  P. S. Thinking. Drawing from his 25 years of diverse experience as a Chief Economist, CEO and consulting in organisational change, transformation and innovation Paul will be sharing his learnings and current trends in this realm.
He will be joined by key thought leaders in the areas of transformation, data analytics, customer service, branding, marketing, digital, human resources and more! Some of the key names who will be joining us include:

* Imran Kunalan Abdullah, Advisor/Principal Consultant – Digital Talent Development & Leadership and People Analytics
* George Aveling, CEO, TMI Malaysia
* Laurence Smith, Head, Asia Region, SmartUP
* Falko Leonhardt, Principal Consultant Transformation Strategy and Change, TMI
* Mohd Adam Wee Abdullah, Group CMO & Chief Customer Experience Officer, CIMB Group
* Rene Werner, Chief Customer Service & Customer Experience Officer, Celcom Axiata Berhad
* Noelle Lim, Director, BFM Edge Education
* Vigneswaran Sivalingam, Director of Operations, Teledirect of Telecommerce
Get ready to be inspired by case studies on transformation, honest conversations on driving change and actionable insights you can take back to implement in your organisation.
Date: 19th July 2018
Time: 8.30 am -6.00 pm
Venue: Sime Darby Convention Center, Bukit Kiara
For more information on DTCX 2018:
Click to visit DTCXJuly19 Microsite.
Download PDF Programme here.
Contact Amira [email protected] | 03 7726 2588
Book your spot early to avoid disappointment!