Three decades into the data revolution, we find ourselves asking an existential question: What happened to the promise of customer 360?
The ability to get more customer data was supposed to fundamentally change the relationship between customers and brands. Companies were going to be able to offer targeted, meaningful engagements that would multiply average deal size and slash time to close. Predictive algorithms would make it possible for brands to give their customers everything they needed — before they knew they needed it — sending customer loyalty and lifetime value (LTV) through the roof.
So what went wrong?
When digital transformation became a common objective, most organizations treated it as nothing more than a perfunctory series of boxes to check if they wanted to keep up with the competition. Even as companies invested in expensive tools to generate and consume data, they still struggled to see the promised value in those investments. In fact, a shocking 77% of organizations report that customer insights have failed to become a source of growth and competitive differentiation.
Realizing the promise of customer 360 requires a change in the way we think about customer data. The companies who thrive will be the ones who adopt a holistic perspective and treat data as a long-term strategic asset that underpins every business decision. In short, healthy businesses will be the ones who prioritize data health.
