have experiential opportunities to show
case their solutions. The era of blind
trust is long over. The youth are doubting
Thomases – they must see and experience
to believe.
The youth are also very inclined to
equitable partnerships. Unlike before
when buyer–seller relationships were
uneven, today’s customer is desirous of an
equal footing partnership, where all bets
are laid on the table and transparency is
a priority.
Should there be a perceived imbalance
where the brand is seemingly taking on
any level of superiority, the customer
of tomorrow will flounce off with nary
a backward glance. The phrase ‘this
relationship is not working for me’ is on
the lips of the younger customer and the
what’s-in-it-for-me is not a debatable
standpoint. It must be clear from the
onset.
The relational human touch however,
continues to be important to human
beings at all stages of life, and the youth
are not exempt. Tomorrow’s customer will
continue to crave this, but with the only
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difference being the channel through
which the relationship is conducted.
Digital online platforms with minimal
physical contact or need for physical
travel, and through which the same
concern, care and consideration may
continue to be expressed, will continue to
be very popular with this group.
Communication
that
stimulates
heightened sensory awareness will also
continue to be well received by this age
group. The more flashy, noisy, fast paced
and jazzed up the communication, the
more audio and video oriented and less
written, the more image based and less
prose, the more attracted the younger
customer will be to it.
All
these
must
be
put
into
consideration when designing customer
experiences, putting together customer
communication, formulating the flow
of customer events, and reaching out to
these customers to address their various
needs.
Youthful thinking needs to be
incorporated into the 2019 customer
experience planning, without which
brands will be conducting a self-directed
monologue rather than a dialogue with
this significantly important customer
group.
Consistency Of Change
The wise words of Heraclitus, the pre-
Socratic Greek philosopher that “Change
is the only constant in life” have come
home to roost for the customer experience
fraternity who must grapple with the fact
that the need to switch direction and
change is here to stay.
The era of developing three to five year
marketing and customer experience
strategies is over, because within a single
year, and with the fast paced technological
advancement witnessed in current times,
constant change is inevitable.
No matter how beautiful the plan, how
well thought out it is, how attuned it is
to address the current needs, there will
need to be an inbuilt switch for change,
because in the here and now, progress will
be impossible without change.
The environment is changing, customer
needs are changing, the legal and