“The higher the expectations about unselected alternatives, the lower is the level of satisfaction with the chosen good.”
― Michael R. Solomon, Consumer Behaviour: A European Perspective.
The advent of technology has helped marketers in many ways than one. The world is aware that the single most important thing for businesses across the globe is – the customer. Thus, when it comes to marketers, it is the same – the target audience needs to be pleased.
Technology is a great way of helping a marketer achieve her or his goal. This can be noted in all the moments of truth in the customer’s journey – from zeroth moment of truth, i.e., searching online about the product to the final moment of truth, i.e., buying the product. Technology has enabled marketers to understand the customer behaviour and preferences to a greater extent and thus, enabled them to engage their customers and bring forth meaningful products. This has been done in several ways.
First, technology has helped cater to a customer’s need for personalisation. A customer is no more seen from a general view but rather seen as a unique individual with a certain set of likings. These are tapped using AI and ML, along with mapping what the customer’s internet journey is like and also by social media listening tools, to help understand a customer better. Therefore, providing the customer with personalised content and products that help cater to their needs and wants. This helps the customer to stay engaged with the brand for longer.
Second, technology helps build brands as more ‘human’ than they ever were. This means that because of access to information symmetry and social media presence of brands – the brands today speak to people in a more ‘personified’ manner, as if, they were the customer’s best friend or a next-door-neighbour.
Third, due to technology, there is a better customer relationship or post-purchase journey which helps in customer retention. With the availability of technology, the brands are available for feedback and problem redressal 24x7 and these are later ‘flashed’ on the brand’s social media pages to ensure the message spreads that the brand is quick in taking actions.
Technology has helped marketers in many ways, the best being that from the marketing of one-to-many, marketers have shifted to one-to-one.