Omnichannel Experiences Continue to Lead
Customers want a consistent experience regardless of the channel of communication, be it social media, email, or telephone. As such, businesses must work their way toward establishing boundaryless omnichannel customer journeys from one end
to the other. Such an effort must be fortified with AI to make suggestions, offer resolutions, or simply engage based on customer interests and preferences.
Demand for Multiple Payment Options
As digital payments become the norm, customer expectations have also expanded in this segment. Digital trends are pushing businesses to think beyond card payments or Cash on Delivery to offer an array of payment options.
Accepting payments through digital wallets or floating an attractive “Buy Now Pay Later” (BNPL) scheme through partnerships with financial companies can help eliminate barriers in the way of a successful purchase. AI-led insights can be deployed at this stage for fraud prevention and for authorizing payments.
A Cry for Ethical and Sustainable Products/Practices
Modern-day customer journeys and purchase decisions go beyond basic parameters like specifications, availability, and cost. Consumers have become increasingly socially and environmentally conscious while assessing brand value.
In fact, 77% of buyers consider sustainability and/or environmental responsibility at least moderately important while making purchase decisions. As such, businesses will have to revamp their products and services to respect this customer behavior. Such an ambitious journey can be charted using an AI engine that can make a well-rounded decision on what needs to change – from marketing to the actual product.
A Continued Reliance on Product Recommendations
Influencer marketing continues to remain an integral part of the customer journey, with a penetration rate of 78% to 92%, depending on the age bracket. The fact that 36% of consumers would try a new product based on an influencer post shows how it has molded customer behavior beyond the awareness stage.
Even the most unapproachable customer demographic which is those 60+ years old, social media platforms like Facebook and the communities therein are forging purchase decisions to date. Against this background, AI-powered tools like Locobuzz could be the bridge between your brand and the right social media platform or influencer for the best results.
Humanize Your Brand
The recent digital trends in customer behavior entail that consumers want brands to be more human and relatable. They want to be enthralled by memes and stories that they can connect with emotionally and engage with meaningfully. Unfortunately, meeting this demand could come at the cost of scalability as your business growth gets directly coupled with the human resources available. On the other hand, AI-powered solutions such as chatbots could help strike the perfect balance with a distinct personality, trainable humor, and induced empathy.
Closing Thoughts
The digital trends are all pointing at AI being the new messiah for staying ahead of the customer behavior curve. AI-led insights can enrich the customer journey with great value, which will be profitable for customers and businesses alike. A unified customer experience management platform like Locobuzz can prove to be instrumental in driving growth.
