With technological development, consumption habits have been transforming, and business strategies have been changing with them. More and more businesses place their trust in growth models that are based on personalizing the customer experience. To study these behaviors, consumption habits, and user preferences, technologies such as CDPs (Customer Data Platforms) are fast becoming essential tools that allow us to obtain an overall perspective of customers and their needs. Specifically, these platforms allow us to collect and manage customer data to create marketing strategies and improve customer service.

But for many businesses, it is complicated to adopt a customer-centric mindset. This approach puts the customer as the main business focus. If there is a problem, the business must focus its efforts on solving it and identifying (from the start) the impact of a negative customer opinion on the business. There many cases where a negative customer comment about a product or service has gone viral and caused a business to lose the trust of its audiences. “Unless we understand to what extent the customer’s relationship with the brand has evolved, we will not be able to offer them a satisfactory experience,” explains Fernando Herranz, E-Commerce Director at Casa del Libro. However, for many large companies, it is complicated to maintain close contact with their customers. Their structure tends to be more hierarchical and difficult to modify, and bureaucracy slows processes down.  Sometimes a single problem involves many departments, and this causes delays and complicates resolution procedures.

So, how can big brands adopt a customer-centric mindset? To anticipate customers’ needs and wants, we must work towards achieving a 360° vision and have full knowledge of their needs and wants. To do this, we need to break down the invisible walls that separate different departments and encourage information sharing between the different areas. This way, specific profiles for each of their buyers can be created and optimized to improve the company-customer relationship. “Personalization is anticipating the customer’s wants, which must form part of the overall experience and involve all aspects of the business. To do this, we need to unify the data collected through different channels and analyze it using artificial intelligence and big data tools,” says Rafael Sánchez, E-Commerce Director of Carrefour Spain.

The challenge is to correctly compile data and retrieve truly valuable information from a complicated universe of numbers, trends, and percentages. These insights need to be combined with the emotional side that guides every one of us ­­— we don’t always follow a mathematical pattern. Therefore, by combining data and emotions, we can personalize strategies and create an emotional link between the customer and the brand.