5 Digital Experience Trends Every Organization Must Be Aware Of In 2021

By Author: Digital Experience
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Personalization of customer experiences has been one of the key areas of focus for most organizations in the past few years. According to research conducted by Accenture 91% of the users are more likely to shop with a brand that offers personalized recommendations. In another study by the Segment, 71% of the consumers were frustrated that shopping experiences were not personalized and a whopping 98% of the customer base were ok with the brand saving customer’s details for future purchases.

These statistics clearly prove that personalization of customer experience is the way to go for all brands. Interestingly, since the pandemic, there has been another huge shift in buying patterns and consumer interactions, and more and more users are opting for digital mediums over physical stores. With this trend, it is imperative that organizations make a strategic shift to concentrate their personalization efforts towards digital channels of interaction.

From basics like using customer’s names in emails to keeping track of previous interactions, digital experience personalization has come a long way in the past couple ...
... of years. Digital personalization today is about curating an experience for the customer which is more likely to create familiarity and comfort for the user, which includes but is not limited to creating:

1. Personalized recommendations of products and offers which will be of interest to the customers.
2. Track of customer’s preferences, previous orders, and preferred mode of payment
3. Track of plans subscribed to previously and history of search

There is substantial data to prove that effective personalization measures reduce instances of cart abandonment, which incidentally is one of the biggest roadblocks faced by most e-commerce sites.

While the need for better personalization of digital experiences has been clearly established, a major concern and points of discussion in data privacy and safety of consumer details. There has been plenty of debate on the safety of customer data and how it is used by digital platforms, especially when it comes to dynamic ads, and it is extremely important for brands to carefully strike a balance between giving customers a better interaction digitally which includes recommendations and discounts based on user history and set preferences, and at the same time ensuring data security and communicating the measures taken for data privacy to the customers at each step.

To help brands strike the right balance between security and at the same time create experiences digitally, which not only offer the right products and solutions but also create a place of comfort where the customer is more likely to return for repeat purchases, here are a few suggestions which are a worthy consideration in 2021:

Formation of a habit loop
To start with, let’s understand the meaning of a habit loop. Simply put, a habit is something one is accustomed to and is likely to return for. Something that is unknowingly training our mind, and subconsciously finds a way to enable the consumer to achieve their short and long-term goals. A habit loop taps into human nature and the habit-forming impulse, and create a feature that is likely to form a habit that brings the customer back to the platform, without even realizing the dependence.

Say, for example, a birthday notification by Facebook has become critical to the social interactions of its users, and most of them subconsciously depend on the app for the same. Another great example of it is regular notifications by apps, which remind customers of exclusive sales and discounts, hence bringing in the customer who otherwise may have given the latest products, a pass.

Three key elements of a habit loop are A cue, a routine, and a reward. A cue is something that triggers interest in the customer, like a notification of a new feature. Routine is the consumers respond to the cue, like in this case the customer logs in to the app to check the new feature. The reward, as the word describes, is the value the consumer derives from the cue.

Another example of a habit-forming loop is a notification or email from your local grocer about stocking up fresh produce, when the customer visits the site or app, they are rewarded with the freshest produce which may otherwise be unavailable. And when continued over a period of time, forms a purchase cycle, which makes the customer a regular visitor and buyer.

1. Artificial Intelligence

When it comes to digital customer experience, artificial intelligence is the buzzword. Right from welcome interface to product recommendations, predicting the next step, and recalling payment and delivery preferences, AI is fast becoming indispensable for the creation of a good digital experience platform.

Apart from appropriate personalization, AI is also extremely helpful in identifying trends, shortlisting recommendations according to consumer demographics, creating chatbots, and a lot more.

1. Optimization for mobile users

More and more users are now using mobile devices as opposed to desktops, which also explains the surge in apps. It is extremely important for all brands to design a user interface that is optimized for mobile devices, and ensure ease of navigation and transaction.

Another important aspect of mobile is timing push notifications and other user communication for better reach,

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