Digital Trends 2018 – UX and the Customer Journey
Continuing our series of blogs from the Digital Intelligence Briefing published by Econsultancy and Adobe, we take a look at what the 13,000 marketing, creative and technology professionals had to say about user experience.
Having looked at the customer-centric approach that organisations are taking, it’s hardly surprising that this has had a knock-on effect where data, content and user experience are involved.
The fuel that drives digital experiences
According to their Digital Intelligence Briefing, Econsultancy found that organisations saw creating compelling content for digital experiences one of their top three most important opportunities.
In fact, when asked to rank seven specific areas, almost half of organisations saw content and experience management as their top strategic priority for 2018.
Not unexpected when you consider that content is pivotal in delivering a great customer experience on digital platforms; everything from advertising and website copy through to email marketing, blogs and social media.
The dual focus of content and data
Organisations are not only recognising the importance of content but also the data that it can help to drive into an organisation’s digital platforms.
The next most important areas of priority for organisations were analytics and audience and data management.
This serves as a reminder that content is only really part of an effective digital experience when it has a strong foundation in data and analytics, ensuring that it’s being used at the right time through the right touchpoint on the customer journey.
Especially in relation to understanding how individuals research online, what platforms they and which devices they are searching from.
Optimising the customer journey across multiple touchpoints
Businesses can use online data to optimise their offline experiences and vice versa.
In fact, organisations saw the need to orchestrate experiences effectively across different channels and points of engagement as the most crucial aspect of their digital marketing for the future.
This is especially relevant when you consider that our last blog focused on the fact that organisations with well-designed user journeys were 57% more likely to have exceeded their business goals.
Key to the optimisation of this user journey is the effective use of data.
The Content Imperative
Just over half of marketers said that processes which allowed them to create and share high-value content across multiple platforms were essential when it came to a positive customer experience.
Investing in technology that allows companies to automate, optimise and personalise their messaging is now vital.
According to the research, organisations with tools that allowed for streamlined workflows when it came to content and their website applications were 62% more likely to have exceeded their business goals.
Data Access and Control
By optimising their customers’ online experience, businesses can access a wealth of data, which is clearly of great value to them.
However, the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has meant that organisations across the UK and beyond need to balance their growing requirement for data-driven marketing with the need to remain compliant.
The ability to store customer data safely and securely will become an increasingly important part of the customer journey.
In fact, people are likely to take this into account when they make the decision to do business with someone.
Data-Rich, Content-Heavy, Secure Websites
To future-proof their digital platforms, organisations will need to ensure that they can offer their customers plenty of relevant content on a website that harnesses their data safely.
Only then can they say that they have a truly optimised online customer experience.
If you’d like to see how our team of designers and developers can help your business create a data-rich, content-heavy, secure website get in touch today.
Posted by Leigh Taylor on
7 September 2018 at 3:00 PM
Categories:
Digital MarketingDigital trendsWebsite Design & Development