Last year, 2016, is in our rearview mirror, so it’s time to look to the trends in 2017 that will change how we do business: For instance, in my travels around the country to conventions and keynote speech engagements, I’ve noticed that the faces of the audiences keep getting younger, regardless of the industry.
While it’s no secret that millennials have taken over the workforce — according to Census Bureau data, they are now the largest living group — how we groom them for leadership is a test many of us will face in 2017. Sure enough, a Bersin by Deloitte report has predicted that 2017 will be a disruptive year, during which more than three million company chiefs are set to retire, leaving those jobs wide open for up-and-coming young professionals.
So, here’s my advice: Plan ahead. Give your young employees the tools to be leaders now. Don’t wait until you have a void to fill to train them. That’s valuable time you’ll be wasting; and, in business, wasted time is hardly a valued commodity.
Here are five more trends that will be making a splash in 2017.
1. Elevated customer engagement
We have already seen a shift on how brands engage customers — in person and digitally. Customer engagement will continue to dominate as merchants move to a more digital-based business model. Relationships matter, and we have forgotten that intimacy can exist in a digital environment through data, responses and personalization.
Customers want brands to become experts on them and to be treated as though they matter — which they do. Already, some retailers are delving into personalized services; for example, Nordstrom is offering fashion advice; and home improvement stores like Lowe’s and Home Depot have instructional sessions.
If companies show that they’re personalizing their experiences, rather than just selling something, those actions will build trust, curate the quality of the product and deliver value.
Takeaway: Understand that the process is always about the customer, never about the salesperson, the brand or the store. This should be a rule, never the exception.
2. Customer data collection
How do you help people become more productive? Give them a higher level of service. To do that, study what customers consume and how they consume it, and use that information to give them what they want. Sounds simple enough, but not everyone has learned this lesson.
Brands have always collected data on their customers but are only now learning to use it to their advantage. The Internet of Things (IoT) is one way to increase customer engagement and provide brands a way to build stronger relationships. Loyalty programs provide multiple points of interaction through objects already available in our environment.
These programs have the ability to help companies make decisions based on large amounts of customer data from a wide variety of channels; this data provides consumers personalized and real-time/live answers.
An example: I almost always fly United and the airline knows my flying habits. Through my customer data, it can personalize my experience and the treatment I receive. The more the airline knows about me, the more amenities…