Big data refers to large amounts of data, stored by companies, that are unable to be processed by traditional data processing. The number of sources of data is ever increasing. This has led to an exponential growth in the amount of structured and unstructured data being created and is fast becoming the norm for companies every day. Big data is relative to the amount of computing power a company has. A small company may consider big data thousands of gigabytes, while a large enterprise may consider big data hundreds of terabytes. In order to gain a competitive edge, organizations, big or small, must learn to utilize their data effectively.
Big data is often spoken of in conjunction with broad terms like predictive analytics and behavioral analytics. Data analytics programs are used with more specific tools like data mining to gain insights from large amounts of data, which will enable businesses to make predictions and conclusions that will aid an organization in making effective business decisions and increase share of wallet.
In order to build good customer loyalty, employee loyalty needs to come first. Making sure employees are engaged at work is vital. As the saying goes, “The fish stinks from the head down.” Employees are the ones that pass loyalty down to the customers. It’s important that employees are invested in the values of the company and are trained in order to produce the most loyal customers. Evaluating the connection employees have with the company can be done through using a Voice of the Employee (VoE) program.
Research shows that 73% of a customer’s love for a brand comes from great service and more than 70% of buying experience comes from how the customer feels they are being treated. It’s no secret that obtaining the loyalty of customers is a strategic imperative. While there are a myriad of tips and tricks to acquiring and holding on to customers, what it essentially boils down to is trust. Customer loyalty can be analogous to a marriage. Like any good marriage, it requires lots of trust, work, and communication. Below are a few guidelines to employ when interacting with customers.
- Analyze what is and isn’t working. Improve what isn’t
- Exceed customers’ expectations
- Establish a personal relationship with every customer
- Follow the rules: Golden Rule (do unto others as you would want to be done unto.) and the Platinum rule (interact with others as they want to be interacted with.)
- Share your values
- Be Transparent
- Admit when you make a mistake. Take responsibility and resolve issues.
- Ask for their feedback.
- Take action on feedback
- Earn a reputation for being consistent and reliable
- Be flexible.
- Surprise them
There is no shortcut to earning customers that trust a company. Loyalty is built on trust. A Company has to be worthy of that trust—by building positive, genuine relationships and experiences with customers.
There are many ways to measure customer loyalty. From using the Net Promotor Score (NPS) and Customer Effort Score (CES) to analyzing customer retention and negative churn. Here are few other ways to that loyalty can be discerned:
- Repurchase Ratio-How many repeat buyers vs. one time buyers?
- Upselling Ratio-How many people who’ve bought multiple products vs those who’ve only bought one.
- Customer Loyalty Index
- Activity Time-How much time does your customer spend with your product?
- Visit Frequency-How often does your customer return to your product?