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4 Strategies for Becoming a Customer Centric Company

3 minute read

When you think about your favorite brands and companies, what keeps you going back for more?

Whether companies sell a product or service, or market to consumers or other businesses, one thing remains true: most successful organizations focus on their customers above anything else.

This is called customer centricity, and it certainly has its benefits. Customer centric companies can expect to see:

✅ Higher profitability
✅ Improved engagement, loyalty, and advocacy
✅ Increased innovation
✅ And happier employees

Keep reading for our top strategies to adopt customer centricity and open the gates to organizational success.

#1: Utilize data and analytics to understand customers 

Salesforce research shows two-thirds of customers expect companies to understand their needs. This places a great responsibility on organizations to proactively get to know their customers and make beneficial changes.

That’s where data and analytics come in. Utilizing an effective data and analytics strategy is crucial for customer centricity. Data eliminates the guesswork around what customers want by reporting in real-time on sentiments and trends, which businesses can analyze for actionable insights.

This may be easier said than done. Only 16% of organizations characterize their data as “very good,” and additional research has shown nearly half of newly created data records have at least one critical error.

To remedy this, companies need to enhance their data management by adopting a common data language, breaking down silos, and prioritizing clean, organized, and accurate data.

From there, organizations can implement analytics systems to glean insights including customer motivation, desired product features, future demand, potential disruptions, and more.

Read: 7 Reasons to Embrace Supply Chain Analytics 

#2: Make customer centricity a core value  

Common obstacles to achieving customer centricity are a lack of knowledge, resources, and commitment. Leaders may have a vision of customer centricity, but a vision means nothing if the rest of the company lacks the right tools and guidance.  

Customers notice, too—76% of customers expect consistent interactions across departments, yet 54% say it often feels like sales, service, and marketing don’t share information. Adopting customer centricity as a core value and ensuring each employee is equipped with the right resources can reduce the disconnect between strategy and execution. 

To ensure customer centricity is prioritized throughout the business, leaders can:

1. Hire employees who prioritize service and continuous improvement
2. Empower employees to suggest process changes
3. Offer specific guidelines and expectations to teams
4. Collect and distribute customer performance data and feedback
5. Recognize and reward positive action

Hard coding customer centricity into an organization’s DNA keeps everyone on the same page about putting customers first in all decisions.

#3: Focus on personalization

With the rapid rise of products and services going digital, personalization is key to building relationships with customers.

And customers no longer want personalized experiences—they expect it. More than three-fourths of consumers surveyed by McKinsey reported feeling frustrated when not offered personalized communications, products, or services.

It’s a win for companies, too. Organizations that excel at personalization generate 40% more revenue than similar companies.

Personalization is a great place to start with customer centricity because some tactics are less complicated to implement and can go a long way with customers.

Examples of personalization tactics include:

• Checking in post-purchase
• Giving relevant product/service recommendations
• Tailoring messaging to specific needs
• Engaging with customers throughout the buying process
• Making the sales process simple and human
• Customizing communication efforts

Adopting these personalization strategies allows companies to test the waters before fully diving into a customer centric operating model.

#4: Consider transformation initiatives

You’re ready to implement a data and analytics strategy, make customer centricity a core value, and jump-start personalization tactics. Now, where do you start?

Becoming a customer centric organization is a big undertaking with many moving parts. Small changes can be made to set the strategy in motion, but comprehensive transformation initiatives enable you to truly embrace the customer at every step of your business.

It’s easy to see why 95% of business leaders rely on outside help to drive successful transformation. Working with external consultants allows companies to harness the power of outside expertise with specialized experience, which often leads to a faster ROI.

Catena Solutions is here to help you with your customer centricity goals. Get in touch to learn more.