Letting AI and customer data guide your strategy

Is your business using customer data to support an existing narrative, or are they using it to take them wherever they need to go? Letting AI and customer data work together may be the solution you've been looking for.

Don’t be your own worst enemy 

Although telling insights are more readily available for businesses than ever before, many leaders dilly-dally when it comes to actually taking action based on the data. But why is that? Bias, of course.

Sometimes, the findings simply don’t align with what the brand has already assumed or communicated with the customers. Other times, manifesting the findings seems impossible. However, by disregarding contradictory customer data, companies are at risk of failing to deliver the customer-centric experiences they need to survive.

Untouched data helps no one

Accessibility of data is important, but not if it just sits there. At least 80 percent of today’s data is dark and unstructured, meaning it can’t be read or used in computing systems. In other words, tons of improvements that could potentially upgrade the customer experience aren’t getting back to businesses. Not only that, but companies get so caught up in collecting the numbers and stats that they forget to use it. 

Those who adopt data-driven marketing have a competitive edge and increased profitability. According to Forbes, these businesses are six times more likely to be profitable year-over-year. The purpose of customer data isn’t just to educate stakeholders, it’s to guide companies toward actionable insights that benefit the customers, and therefore, the bottomline.  Acquisition is less than half the battle. Taking the findings to guide future process changes is what makes a real difference.

AI and customer data: Allow the insights to take you by surprise

Justifying the status quo is a no-no. Rather than diving into things with a fixed mindset and preconceived notions, it’s important to allow the insights to lead the way—even if the path is windier than expected or in the complete opposite direction. Leveraging data to transform the customer experience is the difference between a brand that makes it and a brand that is always a few steps behind the competition. 

Be prepared to have things like who your customers are, how they use your product and how they interact with you throughout the customer journey challenged. It’s okay to admit you were wrong, or to realize that things have simply changed. It isn’t okay to ignore the findings to appease your organization's ego. 

Enable AI for a better customer experience

Secure an unadulterated understanding of the customer journey using AI. AI-powered analytics tools take those telling data points and transform them into business recommendations. Learning to facilitate AI to iterate and reiterate processes using data means retraining the team’s psych to start searching for unexplored solutions. AI platforms such as Tethr allow the everyday practitioner to gather actionable insights based on customer interactions. 

AI-enabled customer journey analytics can sift through an endlessly complex data space, uncovering business opportunities organizations never even imagined were out there. With a powerful AI tool at your disposal, prioritizing these insights can take precedent. 

Fortify your decision-making process with the union of AI and customer data

The road to releasing the reins and allowing data to lead the way is not without challenges. However, if your goal is to improve the customer experience (hint, it should be) remember that following through with actionable insights is proven to upgrade the customer journey. Legacy structures might get trumped and past visions might crumble, but embracing data means you can get one step closer to closing the gap between what customers expect from your product or service, and what they’re actually experiencing.