What about the customer?

Constantly speaking to vendors about their product offerings gives me a good overview about what could be, basically what the ideal situations are concerning how organizations can use technology to enhance their overall customer experience. Consequently, I live in a dream world – on the one hand knowing what technology exists and how it should/could be implemented (i.e. the use of an MDM or CDI hub to create one view of the customer), and on the…

Constantly speaking to vendors about their product offerings gives me a good overview about what could be, basically what the ideal situations are concerning how organizations can use technology to enhance their overall customer experience. Consequently, I live in a dream world – on the one hand knowing what technology exists and how it should/could be implemented (i.e. the use of an MDM or CDI hub to create one view of the customer), and on the other hand dealing with large organizations on a daily basis that have no clue that they are missing the boat (my bank for one!).

With the abundance of technology you would think that a person wouldn’t have to change their address three times when they move and be told that credit card information is housed separately (making that time number four), that Internet banking is limited because your accounts and disparate portfolio items can’t be connected, or that certain bills can’t be paid online or through an ATM (every once in awhile a person has to vent)…I definitely don’t consider myself a millenial, but do realize that if a bank or other organization thinks of a person as an account and not as a person with diverse needs, wants and interests, then as the current population ages and the business world is replaced by people who are used to interacting with technology in a way that they control as opposed to having access to only incomplete and archaic processes and information, many leading organizations will be replaced by companies that actually value their customers.

Although many organizations say they value their customers (because without them they couldn’t exist), the reality is that based on the lack of customer centric processes guiding my personal interaction with a leading Canadian financial institution that is probably good compared to most of their competitors, a general gap exists between the lip service and actual attention to detail regarding the value placed on the customer experience.

I’m obviously biased because I constantly think of what could be, but as people start to interact with technology differently, their expectations also change.  Hopefully, organizations will also start to change to focus on how customers interact with their environment as people and not as various account numbers, etc.

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