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On the closing day of DSAGLIVE 2021 (September 20-24), the customer played the leading role. More specifically, the question of how companies manage to put their customers at the center of their business strategy and thus achieve considerable benefits. DSAG Board Vice Chairwoman Daniela Meisenheimer reported that the need for companies to address this issue is high and that demand for customer experience solutions among DSAG members has increased sharply in the recent past.
Make customer centricity a reality in your organization
The coverage of DSAGLIVE 2021 at a glance:
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DSAGLIVE 2021: Targeting customer needs
Increased customer expectations
One of the main reasons for this development is the increased expectations and demands of customers. Not least because of the Corona pandemic, buying behavior has shifted significantly toward the digital sphere. Due to strong competition, companies are under pressure to reach customers in the best possible way and demonstrate customer proximity. Accordingly, a new need has arisen in terms of customer loyalty and satisfaction that must be met. After all, loyal and satisfied customers ensure increasing sales.
The customer must take center stage
For companies, this realization has various consequences. Customer centricity should be firmly anchored in the corporate strategy. In addition, process chains need to be adapted. It is a matter of rebuilding the relevant corporate processes around the customer. Numerous departments in the company play a role in a holistic customer experience – not just those that are in direct contact with customers. Accordingly, it is important that the exchange of information between departments works. In many places, there is still room for improvement here.
Other characteristics of customer-centric companies are a high degree of personalization and automation at all touchpoints, as well as seamless process integration. In addition, it is also about creating a new awareness among employees, a mindset that includes the willingness to leave familiar processes behind and be open to change.
SAP’s Customer Experience portfolio
Looking at SAP’s Customer Experience offering, Daniela Meisenheimer drew a positive conclusion. In recent months, she said, SAP has significantly expanded its CX portfolio and added helpful functionalities. Software and technology are important enablers for customer proximity and, with optimal UX, user-friendliness and speed, lay decisive foundations for the design of the various touchpoints within the customer journey.
Alexander Kläger, Managing Director of SAP Germany, also rated the customer experience at DSAGLIVE 2021 as a key differentiator that helps companies stand out positively from the competition. The task of companies, he said, is to create positive, surprising, authentic and sustainable customer experiences along the customer journey. One challenge that stands in the way of realizing true customer proximity in many cases is insufficient information and insights about customers. This makes it difficult to understand, anticipate and respond to customer needs.
Knowing what the customer wants
The customer experience starts when a customer first becomes aware of a company – not just at the first “real” customer contact. Holistic experience management, as enabled by SAP Qualtrics, can help gather valuable information about what experiences customers want, putting customer relationships on a new footing. Gathering such information is one thing. At the same time, however, companies must be able to interpret the data they collect, draw the right conclusions from it, and implement appropriate measures. If companies manage to act in a customer-centric manner and place customers at the center of their business strategy, they benefit in many ways: They increase their own market value, strengthen customer loyalty and reduce the costs of customer acquisition.
