Customer experience optimisation is becoming increasingly vital for organisations, says a report from research and analysis company Econsultancy and omni-channel and tag management outfit Ensighten.
But due to the vast and complex datasets businesses are required to manage, 62% say they often feel “overwhelmed” by the volume of information coming in.
The findings, based on a survey of over 600 companies and ad agencies conducted between November and December 2014, found that customer experience optimisation is important for 41% of organisations.
Unfortunately, the report also found that a staggering 85% of companies are unable to fully utilise the information available to them, and only 3% have a “strong capability” in using cross-channel or cross-device data for either real-time website or mobile app personalisation.
Boaz Ronkin, SVP of product at Ensighten, stated that not only do marketers continue to struggle with large data and tech silos, they also face a shortage of talent to overcome them.
New era of marketing
A large majority (94%) of the study respondents said customer experience optimisation will result in higher engagement and conversion rates, with 66% citing brand perception as another critical factor.
However, there is certainly room for improvement, with only 17% of participants ‘thoroughly’ looking to enhance their visitor retargeting and a mere 9% looking to deliver omni-channel personalisation.
Nevertheless, 47% of participants said they “thoroughly ensure complete visitor privacy” and the same proportion monitor website performance, indicating that businesses are beginning to grasp the importance of their customer data.
“We have entered a new era of marketing, with data and marketing technology now affording unprecedented opportunities for developing a more customer-centric approach,” said Bola Awoniyi, research analyst at Econsultancy.
“Focusing on developing customer experiences can create a more loyal and engaged customer base which is an extremely valuable competitive advantage in today’s fast-paced commercial environment,” he added.