Major retailers work hard to capture data from their customers. They review and use this data to ensure constant connection and a personalised approach in their communication with the aim to retain customers and increase sales. Really knowing your customer allows you to have more effective marketing conversations with them, and in turn increase sales.
Do you really know your customers?
Collecting customer data helps build deep insights and an individual profile, enabling a more personal interaction, whether it be face to face or through online communication or social platforms.
As customers, we know how valued we feel when we use a provider who gives us an experience that shows they really understand us, they care about us and have our best interests at heart.
So, what are the deep customers insight you should know about your customer? Some are quite simple but powerful none the less.
Basic Insights:
• Full name
• Postal address
• Email address
• Gender
• Date of birth
• Family status
• Profession
• Income or annual holiday budget
Knowing these, means you can tailor your personal communications to your customer in the manner they prefer to receive information – in person, via email or by mail, and present holiday suggestions that are more likely to suit their needs based on their profession, age and gender. For example:
• To a female customer who is single with no children, under 26 and works as a school teacher, you could send holiday specials for departures over the school holidays to destinations not targeted by families but curated for young singles.
• Having customer postcodes allows you to delve deeper into the demographics of that suburb and target holidays suited to the average age and income – data which is available from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. You may find you have many customers located in the same postcode and be able to further refine your knowledge of what they like from past dealings with them.
Deep Customer Insights:
• Favourite holiday destination
• Preferred style of travel
• Bucket List holiday destinations
• Social platforms used
What can these Deep Customer Insights provide to you? You can tailor your communication based on their likes, aspirations, potential budgets and type of holiday required given their family commitments, and you can connect with them across multiple channels which suit the way they search and shop in the retail space.
How can you use these Deep Customer Insights?
• Send your customers hot specials to their special place that they love going to. Keep them connected and let them know that when they are next ready to travel there, you are already across the best deal.
• Imagine being able to tick off a ‘Bucket List’ destination for your customers just because you knew it was somewhere they wanted to go and were able to send them deals and snippets of information that resulted in them booking the trip.
• Imagine if you could send your customers a personally-curated product based on the deep customer insights you have – that is gold!
So, what next? What if you don’t have that level of detail? Don’t worry, just start collecting these deep customer insights today and ensuring your data - your customers - your future are aligned and in tune with each other.
Words by Nicola Strudwick, General Manager Sales