SHOW ME YOU KNOW ME: Playing to Win by BuildingRelationships at Scale 21. We introduced this theme and shared ndings from the 2013 Global Consumer Pulse Research in The Digital Customer: Its Time to Play to Win and Stop Playing Not to LoseMany organizations have invested millions of dollars in the latest tools and practices in an efort to engage customers, but they just cant increase satisfaction and loyalty. In fact, the $5.9 trillion global Switching Economy is composed of dissatised customers continually looking for new providers that can better address their changing needs. In the US alone, that Switching Economy is estimated at $1.3 trillion.1Accentures Global Consumer Pulse Research of more than 13,000 consumers in 33 countries revealed that a majority of consumers (61 percent globally and 51 percent in the US) have switched providers because of poor experiences. Overall, an overwhelming majority of consumers (85 percent) said they switch providers because companies simply dont make it easy to do business with them. For years, most companies have been playing not to lose when it comes to building and developing their customer relationships. It is time for companies to start playing to win (see sidebar Playing to Win), and one crucial component is developing relationships at scale.By relationships at scale, we mean how companies can use digital technologies to develop greater intimacy with customers to build lasting, trusting relationships. It is about reinstating some of the benets of historic in-person relationships, i.e., picture the local grocer many decades ago. But that intimate relationship disappeared for much of the industrialized world. Face-to-face interactions with providers were largely replaced by global call centers and web pages leaving many consumers feeling they were treated with indiference and lack of personal attention. To counteract this, we discuss four steps companies can take todevelop relationships at scale.RELATIONSHIPS AT SCALE: HOW COMPANIES CAN USE DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES TO DEVELOP GREATER INTIMACY WITH CUSTOMERS TO BUILD LASTING, TRUSTING RELATIONSHIPS.3The feeling of indiference and being just one of thousands of faceless customers has contributed to less loyalty: On average, just 23 percent of consumers said they feel loyal toward their providers across all the industries covered by our survey. One-third of consumers said they consider shopping around for better deals, which means providers are vulnerable to losing a signicant percentage of their customer base.Our survey provides strong evidence that this is the case for many consumers around the world. For instance, fundamental to building relationships at scale is having the service and support experience match the promise a company makes to customers upfront. Yet fully half of consumers we polled said they were not satised with how their providers deliver on this promise. Consumers were equally frustrated with how well companies lived up to the Barriers to Todays Relationshipsexpectations they set during the marketing and sales processwith 79 percent saying they nd it frustrating or extremely frustrating when companies promise one thing and deliver another, more so than any other issue.One of the biggest impediments to building relationships at scale is the issue of privacy and trust. As personal data becomes much more available to companiesand, indeed, is often readily given to providers by customersthe opportunity for that data to be misused increases exponentially. Thats why companies need to double down on protecting consumers privacy and the use of personal data, lest consumers punish them for what they perceive to be a breach of trust. In fact, 75 percent of consumers said they nd it frustrating or extremely frustrating to realize that companies they deal with during the marketing and sales process cant be trusted to use the personal information consumers gave them.Furthermore, consumers wariness of companies use of personal information is preventing many from using companies online channels to get more information on providers and their ofers. Thirty-six percent said they dont use online sources to learn about providers products and services because they dont trust those companies and are afraid they will track their activities and spam them later. Twenty-two percent said the same about their reluctance to use online sources to learn about companies customer services and support. In both cases, consumers would be more motivated to use online sources if they could get assurances that companies wouldnt spam them and, instead, companies would use personal information to tailor the channels to suit consumers needs and preferences. This view is far more prevalent among consumers in emerging markets than mature ones.79% of consumers nd it frustrating or extremely frustrating when companies promise one thing and deliver another.75% of consumers nd it frustrating or extremely frustrating when realizing their providers cant be trusted to use the personal information given to those providers. 4Ultimately, companies need to remember that customer relationships are fragile and can break quickly when a company missteps. In fact, often companies do not get a second chance. For instance, after they have had a bad customer service or support experience, 52 percent of consumers said they shifted a portion of their spend to another provider and the same percentage said they quit doing business with that provider immediately. Amazingly, 82 percent of consumers said their previous service provider could have done something to prevent them from switchingfrom something as simple as resolving their issue on the rst contact to contacting them proactively to let them know about ways to enhance their experience with the company, recognizing and rewarding consumers for doing more business with the company, ofering better service and support options via consumers mobile devices, and ofering consumers preferential treatment. Companies also need to be aware that these relationships begin before an individual becomes a customer, i.e., they are formed and shaped during the marketing and sales process. Thus, any negative interactions have the potential to short-circuit promising relationships. Indeed, after a bad experience with the marketing and sales practices of a company, 60 percent of consumers stopped engaging with or doing business with that company immediately and 66 percent started to also look at or engage with other companies they had not yet considered.5Playing to win means being offensive minded. It means making bets and taking calculated risks that pay off in a big way: superior competitive differentiation, greater customer retention, or higher customer revenues and value. It also requires companies to adopt a new model (see Figure 1) that is aligned with how consumers behave in todays digital world. Companies that play to winand, as a result, are noticed and valued by customersbase their customer blueprint on five core elements, one of which is relationships at scale (see Figure 2). Figure 2 Customer-driven Blueprint for Digital ExperienceAccenture 2013 Global Consumer Research: Playing to WinHyper-relevancePredict their behavior one step aheadRelationships at ScaleCreate new approach to intimacy for allSeamless ExperienceGlue it all together toavoid breaking the flowInherently MobileGo and surprise them where they areNaturally SocialEngage customers as they want to be engagedBrand content & channelsOpen content & channels Discover

Purchase

Use Consider Promise Delivery EvaluateFigure 1 Accenture Nonstop Customer Model6Companies should start by recognizing that data about customers and about their context is the foundation of relationships. Relationships develop over time along multiple interactions, which essentially are an exchange of data and information. Todays technology not only enables but also accelerates interactions between companies and consumers. Companies that want to transform their transactions into true customer relationships, using technology to reach scale, need to enact the following:Break Down Data SilosDespite companies best eforts over the past decade, customer data remains frustratingly fragmented, housed in silos across multiple functions and databases. With data thus dispersed, companies cannot create a strong relationship with their customers because they lack the full picture of each customers history and interactions with them. To create customer relevant relations at scale, companies must break down those silos. Doing so typically requires not only new technologies to make data accessible to those who need it when they need it, but also new governance that supports the blurring of the articial boundariesand barriers among marketing, sales, service and other customer-facing functions. Importantly, governance also needs to include data protection. Data capture requires stewardship; companies need to take extreme care with each customers information and prove that they respect the value of what the customer has shared.How to Build Relationships at ScaleRecognize Data is Fluid Not StaticJust like anything in nature, customers dont stand still. Their needs, expectations and behaviors change (seemingly constantly) over time. Thats why companies need to avoid falling into the trap of treating data as staticfocusing on customers at a given moment in timeand, instead, gather and use data across the lifespan of the relationship. In doing so, companies can evolve along with customers needs with more agility and thus, remain relevant throughout the diferent stages of their lives. Furthermore, diferent data moves at diferent speeds and need to be treated as such. As data velocity increases in the world of digital interactions, companies must be quicker to react to opportunitiesembracing the mantra that speed is more important than precision.A German utility introduced a new approach to customer segmentation. Rather than dening static segments based on deep customer analytics, it implemented an agile segmentation approach, enriching segment insight along a continuous cycle of iterations. As a result, treatment strategies along marketing campaigns were constantly rened in a test and learn modus.Take Measured Risks Its not uncommon for companies to be paralyzed into inaction by the idealistic pursuit of perfection: They are reluctant to take any steps out of fear that incomplete or inaccurate data will make them look bad in the eyes of customers. But leaders do just the opposite. They embrace imperfect data and use it to test ways to increase value to customers, and ultimately, build greater loyalty. They see it as an opportunity to enrich their data, and they use their inherent agility to change their interactions with customers based on what they learned from their tests. Todays technology enables companies to take risks at the individual level but reap rewards at scale.Digital optimization of websites across devices illustrates this in one way. Being able to test web-page layout options with large numbers of consumers eventually facilitates optimized sites for customer segments, even if all segment members did not receive the optimal site. Utilize Indirect AccessThough common wisdom tells us that the shortest route between two points is a straight line, this does not always apply to todays customers. To build a relationship with a customer, a company may nd that going direct to that customer is much less efectiveand more difcultthan interacting with someone who inuences that customer. Thats especially true today, as digital channels enable customers to be more connected to and part of a variety of networks. Thus, building relationships at scale often requires analyzing and understanding key inuencers in a customers network and generating insights to include in the companys customer engagement strategy. For many organizations, this will mean investing in social media listening tools and technologies to obtain a better understanding of customers networks and participate in their networks information exchange.A US-based auto manufacturer tapped into inuencers to drive the uptake of its newest electric car. Customers with high inuence were identied and then invited to a test drive. Their feedback on the experience was then shared through social media.7As our research has shown, most companies clearly have not been taking full advantage of their opportunities to develop customer relationshipsand are paying the price in terms of customer willingness to consider competing ofers. Companies insistence on playing not to lose has rendered them more vulnerable to being cast aside in favor of more attractive providers.ConclusionRead Accentures perspective based on our research and client experience:Masters of the Digital UniverseAccenture Technology Vision 2014The Digital Customer: Its Time to Play to Win and Stop Playing Not to LoseIT Governance: Spinning into ControlDigital Transformation: Re-imagine fromthe Outside-inThe reality is that companies need to strive for the kinds of personal relationships that were typical years ago, between shoppers and the corner store. Specically, they need to rethink their digital strategies to ofer more efective and engaging communication, create more tailored products and services, provide more customized experiences and build trust. Companies that do this will become more adept at delighting customers, and nurturing authentic personal relationships that can help drive revenue growth.Copyright 2014 AccentureAll rights reserved.Accenture, its logo, andHigh Performance Delivered are trademarks of Accenture. This document is produced by consultants at Accenture as general guidance. It is not intended to provide specific advice on your circumstances. If you require advice or further details on any matters referred to, please contact your Accenture representative.Contact Us To learn more about how Accenture can help you,visit www.accenture.com/strategy or contact ourmanaging directors:Robert Wollan Senior managing director Accenture Strategy,Sales & Customer Services Lead robert.e.wollan@accenture.comSaideep Raj Managing director - Accenture SaaS leadand Cloud Computing NA lead saideep.raj@accenture.comMichael Malinchock Managing director - Accenture Technology lead for Sales & Customer Services michael.g.malinchock@accenture.comJoin the Conversation; Follow Us on Twitter: @E2ECustExpAbout AccentureAccenture is a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company, with more than 293,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries. Combining unparalleled experience, comprehensive capabilities across all industries and business functions, and extensive research on the worlds most successful companies, Accenture collaborates with clients to help them become high-performance businesses and governments. The company generated net revenues of US$28.6 billion for the scal year ended Aug. 31, 2013. Its home page is www.accenture.com.