Many businesses and organizations have extended their operations online in the past decades. In the age of digitization it is a must if they want to stay relevant and appeal to their customers. A huge percentage of people have access to the Internet nowadays, and many of them go online when they search for products and services they want or require. According to Thunderhead and MyCustomer‘s article, “Why customer journey orchestration should be at the core of digitisation and digital transformation”, customer journey orchestration is the way to go when building online presence and making the digital transformation. This means that organizations should adopt a customer-led approach in their operations.
About Customer Journey
The main point of the article is that customer-led approach is what organizations should aim for when making the digital transformation. According to the article, Thunderhead and MyCustomer aren’t the only ones that think using customer journey initiatives is a step into the right direction. 61 % of the US and UK based businesses thought that it would positively impact customer loyalty. Around 50 % of the responses anticipated an increase in revenues and customers. In another poll that appeared in the article, 85 % of the people believed customer-led journeys are ‘essential’ today. (Thunderhead & MyCustomer.)
I believe customer-led approach is one of the best to choose from. Customers are valuable for businesses, so they should be taken into consideration when making decisions concerning the future. On the other hand, it is important to note both Thunderhead and MyCustomer focus their business around customer journeys and helping other businesses to successfully achieve it. This means the article has most likely been written to show customer journey orchestration and customer-led approach in the best possible light. It doesn’t mean the approach isn’t as good as it is presented as, but you should keep in mind that it isn’t the only approach worth looking into.
Flaws in Customer Journey Programs
The article states that, in one survey, 82 % of organizations said they “have adopted a customer-led approach in their journey planning”. However, only 13 % of have actually successfully done it. A big reason for this is the organizations’ inability to use all customer data sources. This leads to problems in the long run, as they don’t have all the information they need to orchestrate and deliver unique experiences to their customers. (Thunderhead & MyCustomer.)
If organizations don’t utilize all of the relevant data in their journey planning, it is understandable how their approach might fail. At the same time, it is somewhat confusing to me. Maybe it’s because of the lack of further information about the survey. I wonder how they measure the success. 13 % is a small number. One possible reason for the small percentage is that some of the organizations have only recently adopted the approach. This would explain why they haven’t been successful, as they’ve not had a long to fine-tune their plans. Of course, without examining the original survey, it is impossible to tell.
Benefits of Customer Journey Orchestration
While belief doesn’t always correlate with reality, the article also brings up research and experiences to back up the claim. The article quotes a research paper done by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) on the benefits of customer journey orchestration. These benefits include:
- Improved customer satisfaction
- Efficiency gains
- Increase in revenues
- Sustainability
Sustainability in this context means more employee engagement and lower employee turnover. Thunderhead also has concrete evidence of customer journey orchestration working. Their customers had, for example, reduced call volumes by 25 % and increased ticket sales by 6 % with the approach. (Thunderhead & MyCustomer.) This is a good sign to those who would like try it themselves. Most of these benefits I had anticipated myself but what I hadn’t thought about was the stability it can bring. It makes sense, I suppose, and stability in turn can also affect efficiency positively, considering the firm won’t have to spend money on training new employees as often.
Conclusion
Customer journey orchestration or customer-led approach has many benefits when making the digital transformation. Out of all the different approaches, it is one my favorites compared to brand-led approach for example. It just makes the most sense to me. Of course, that doesn’t mean it’s the only one that works. This particular article had been written by two businesses that offer services in helping others adopt the customer-led approach, so it tries to present the subject in a positive light which is important to keep in mind.
References
Thunderhead & MyCustomer, 2022. Why customer journey orchestration should be at the core of digitisation and digital transformation. Viitattu 6.2.2022