Creating data driven experiences with Adobe Commerce
In any competitive landscape, those who go further, do more and push the boundaries of what is possible stand to triumph.
This certainly rings true in online retail and marketing. Businesses today have access to so many marketing and promotional resources that it is fairly easy to get with the program, provided you put the effort in.
But those who embrace change and seek to continually enhance how they engage with their current and prospective customers will always give themselves the chance to move one step ahead.
Data plays a huge role in understanding what customers want and delivers insight into how best to deliver it. But with customers demanding more, data-driven marketing is only going so far. Moving towards data-driven experiences is an approach that can deliver a greater level of engagement for your customers, and attract more people to your business.
Our friends at Adobe Commerce recently ran a webinar on this topic. Our latest blog provides some shared insights on how best to move towards data-driven experiences.
The online retail shift
2020 saw a 35% increase in customers making at least half of their purchases online. Though undoubtedly accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, this is a substantial shift towards online retail.
Though increased digital spending may be new to some customers, most are not just shopping online blindly. 91% of consumers are more likely to shop with brands who recognize, remember and provide relevant offers and recommendations based on their interests.
Already, results are being seen for businesses who adapt to these changes. Revenue growth of 56% has been reported for retailers who monetize insight through a deeper understanding of what customers want and need.
The fact of the matter is consumers are becoming increasingly open to new digital offerings. This is causing a ripple effect within businesses, with 77% of CEOs saying they will change how they engage with customers. This is also seen in an expected 83% increase in digital ad spending over the next 5 years, while 60% of CMOs are looking for more customer data.
Such statistics are indicative of a real shift towards digital retail not just being a core tenet of your business, but vital to understanding your customer demographic more effectively. This also places greater importance on taking what a business offers online to the highest level possible. This is fundamental to moving beyond data-driven marketing, and towards data-driven experiences.
Adapting to this change
Every business wants to do the best they can in every arena they enter. But some challenges typically stand in the way when it comes to data and the customer experience.
A lack of focus, siloed datasets, and scaling personalization are classic issues faced when it comes to moving from simply delivering marketing driven by data, to a truly engaging and personalized experience for online visitors – something Adobe refers to as the business of experience.
Other issues include mapping the full consumer journey, measuring the outcomes of these efforts, and driving true lifetime value.
When it comes to making the transition towards delivering true experience, Adobe advises following a few key pillars. These center on defining, designing, deploying and delivering the business of experience, and leaving behind the idea of customer experience in its classic form.
Typical customer experience initiatives use data in siloed and fragmented forms. This offers limited insights. Communication is usually centered on products or specific channels, limiting the ability to personalize the experience for customers.
Additionally, teams leading these efforts are often siloed around specific functions, while operations are all too often manual, inefficient and costly.
What needs to change in order to deliver the business of experience? According to Bregman, key tenets of this approach include:
- Data that offers democratized insights and real-time predictive models
- Omnichannel experiences that are personalized at scale
- Teams with combined skillsets and artificial intelligence/machine learning-powered operations
- Business decisions that are informed by data.
How Adobe supports the business of experience
According to Bregman, being able to get customer data into the first-party database is the most important part of understanding a business and making it grow. From there, being able to enrich data from third parties is key to success. This information can help develop a deeper understanding of how customers are getting interested in and deciding on products.
Consideration should be given to what might be appealing to a customer when they visit again. This can be specific products of course, but also elements such as content should form part of these considerations. Providing messaging that is consistent with customer needs and gives food for thought is a great way to enhance the experience.
Providing ways to incentivize customers who are already keen to buy from your business is also key. By finding ways to help customers stay loyal to a brand throughout the buying journey, it is possible to enhance revenue by 25-30% per visit.
Measuring success
One of the most important elements of the business of experience is measurement. Measurement has to be part of the culture of the business. It is vital to stay on top of the progress of initiatives and tracking data to see the effectiveness of what you are doing.
There are a few things to stay mindful of. What is the business really looking to learn? How do you optimize in real time and make sure the value of what you do is based on priorities for the business?
This requires a shift in business mentality. Staying on top of the data you need to deliver true experiences is vital to gaining the right insights. Understanding data science methods to launch products and embrace new tactics can allow a business to actively utilize data insights to inform positive business decisions.
Delivering the business of experience
The business of experience is all about having the right structure in place, and the rewards can be significant. Take a look at the Adobe page on our website for more on how Adobe can support this, and if you have questions, simply contact our team.
