Every customer is unique. They have individual needs, preferences and desires. That means a consumer-centric approach has to be at the heart of any modern business-to-consumer (B2C) marketing strategy.
We all know that relationships are vital to any business. So why do some businesses ignore those relationships in favour of a scatter gun approach that shoots out communications like clowns from a cannon? By building a customer-centric strategy, you not only tell your audience that you value them as a group, you help nurture an environment that shows you value them as individuals. That’s a powerful sentiment in today’s world, and we can prove it.
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There are all sorts of buzzwords and jargon around the strategies that utilise customer-centric marketing. But whether you call it inbound marketing, customer-centric marketing, or super-duper-great marketing, here are five key ingredients you need to include to unlock success.
Make it personal
Personalisation is the foundation of client-centric marketing. It’s not just enough to know who your audience are, you need to work to address them as unique and valued individuals. As recently as a decade ago that might have seemed like an intimidating proposition, but with the wealth of data we have at our fingertips today, that personalisation opportunity is within your grasp. A name on an email, a retargeted advert taking into account your customer’s interests, a Facebook post that meets with the unique personality of your audience. Embedding the right customer focus helps ensure you’re building the right message.
This tangible personal experience builds tangible business results. A study showed that 88% of consumers admitted personalised content positively impacted how they felt about a brand, with the majority of respondents also saying it improved trust and brand loyalty. On the other side of that equation, when presented with personalised deals or discounts, 63% of millennials, 58% of Gen X, and 46% of Baby Boomers are open to sharing their personal information with businesses.
Personalisation isn’t just a shiny ribbon on top of a parcel. It’s a fundamental opportunity to engage your audience in a meaningful way.
Build relationships
Personalisation is about a static moment in time, but building relationships is about sustaining that customer focus over time.
The idea of being customer-centric is to help nurture positive relationships. That means you can’t just focus on pinpoint moments of conversion at any stage of the customer journey. You need to add value to that experience through helpful content, positive interactions, and continued positioning as a brand that works to meet customer needs while aligning with their values. 22% of Gen Z—the highest percentage among all generations—leans on influencer recommendations to form a connection with a brand.
These relationships aren’t just about understanding what your customer wants, it’s about showing them what you stand for. Edelman’s 2023 Trust Barometer Special Report, titled “The Collapse of the Purchase Funnel,” underscores the growing importance of brand trust in consumer purchasing decisions. The study reveals that 88% of consumers consider trust a significant factor when choosing brands, ranking just behind value for money (91%) and quality (89%).
Develop data for people
We’re swimming in a world of data, from Google Analytics to Facebook advertising profiles. But that information is only as good as our ability to utilise it. When it comes to a customer-centric strategy, you need to develop a structured approach to data that allows you to see, and cater for, the individual.
There is no doubt that this approach raises questions of privacy. Those questions are best addressed than left to fester. It’s essential you access only that information which is freely and legally made available to you by customers, and that you store such information in a safe and secure way. Protecting personal data is vital for earning consumer trust, with 83% of consumers considering it a top priority. While 80% demand assurances against data sharing, only half feel informed about how their data is handled, and 71% worry about its security on social media platforms.
What does that mean for you? It means that developing data that is truly designed for people must tread the tightrope between personalisation and privacy. Make sure you understand the individual, but have processes in place to keep that individual’s data safe.
Learn to respond
The ability to respond is an essential part of customer-centric marketing. Think of it like having a conversation. One person talking to another is just a lecture, or an argument, or a sign of unidentifiable madness.
You need to be able to respond to your customers in a way that helps build that conversation. That means recognising what they say, acknowledging that they’ve said it, and responding from the perspective of your business. Southeast Asia stands out for its high social media engagement, with users spending significantly more time on these platforms compared to the global average.
In Indonesia, social media accounts for almost half (44.3%) of internet users’ online time. Notably, 63.9% of Indonesian users actively seek out brands on social media, surpassing the global average of just under 50%. This extensive use of social media in Southeast Asia underscores the importance for brands to maintain an active and responsive presence on these platforms to meet consumer expectations.
There’s sometimes a misconception that being responsive just means doing what your customer wants, and be damned with the business implications. That should never be the case. This whole idea of customer-centric marketing is based on building the kind of relationship that means even when you’re apologising for not being able to meet a customer’s needs, they recognise and respect you for being honest in your response.
Be prepared to react
A crucial final part of customer-centric marketing is about reacting not just to your customers’ immediate needs, but to the changing desires and circumstances of their existence. Some brands are lucky enough to grow with customers through their own life cycle. But can you honestly say that your attitude as a teenager is the same as that of your adult professional life?
We’ve said it already, but this is all about relationships. Relationships evolve, which means understanding and reacting to changes in those around you. With the right structures in place to understand your customer, you should have the understanding that allows you to evolve and meet that need.
Take the example of iconic global success story Netflix. They transformed from a small DVD rental service in the 1990s to a multibillion dollar global cloud-based service provider by understanding and responding to the changing needs of their customers. That’s the value of being responsive to your audience.
The reality today is that customers expect businesses to not only understand but also exceed their expectations.
- Connected Journeys: 79% of customers expect seamless interactions, yet 55% feel siloed communication persists.
- Personalisation: 73% expect better customisation, but 61% feel treated as just a number.
- AI Safeguards: 74% are concerned about unethical AI use, with 80% wanting human validation.
- Data Protection: 79% are protective of personal data, and 71% trust companies that explain its use.
Understanding and addressing these needs is now essential to compete.
What does that mean for you? If you want to deliver marketing that converts to real business value, you need to adopt a customer-centric approach that shows you value them first.
