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RESEARCH, ANALYSIS & TRENDS

that marketer face: 49% of consumers surveyed said 91% of the respondents consider a higher degree
they were frustrated when companies failed to provide of transparency as crucial for more trust.
personalized and fitting shopping experiences. At the
same time, however, 54% of respondents said they had 3. Clear commitment to privacy: Through easy-to-
concerns about the use of intelligent services due to the understand privacy policies and openness about
protection of their personal information. privacy practices, companies can demonstrate that
they care about protecting their customer data and
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) plays treat that information as an asset.
of course its part here as well with its main objective of
standardizing the processing of personal data for better Since our culture is shaped by constant connectivity
protection. Still, there is mistrust of collecting and storing and instant gratification, me” and “now” have become
data. The reason for the fear of data abuse may date the magic words at every stage of the purchase
back to historical events that sparked a fundamental process. “For 84% of customers, being treated like a
distrust in the use of personal information - or may come person — and not a number — is very important to win
from more recent events, such as the data scandal their business. Another 70% say connected processes
around Facebook and Cambridge Analytica last year. are very important to win their business (such as
However, more important than the actual trigger for loss seamless handoffs between departments and
of confidence is the question of how companies can channels, or contextualized engagement based on
restore consumer confidence. earlier interactions). This means that the marketing,
ecommerce, sales, and service teams that have
To provide the experiences that customers expect and to traditionally concerned themselves only with one part of
demonstrate a 360-degree understanding of each the customer journey must now consider every
customer, companies need a new breed of tech as well customer touchpoint” Salesforce states in its report.
as a heap of data, the study State of the Connected
Customer of the software provider Salesforce claims, The key is to win (back) consumers' trust which can be
naming three areas that companies should focus on to achieved by considering the three core points
face the personalization/privacy dilemma: mentioned above that pave the way to a personalized
customer experience.◊
1. Control: For 92% of customers, the ability to control
which personal information is collected makes them By Daniela La Marca
more likely to trust a company with that information.
Building trust, and balancing personalization with
privacy, will be key for companies to meet customer
expectations in the ‘Fourth Industrial Revolution’.

2. Transparency: Businesses should clearly identify
the purpose for which data is needed and how it
helps to create a personalized customer experience.

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