How will you deal with changing customer needs as an organization in 2021?

The world has changed and probably won't change back to the way things once were in the short term. But this doesn't have to be bad news for your organization. The National Customer Drivenness Monitor already showed in mid-2020 that customer drivenness was increasing at 51% of organizations. Organizations seem to be listening more to customer needs and responding to them, because the customer experience is also more positive (40%) than before.

Organizations seemed to temporarily overperform

A crisis requires rethinking. What needs to be changed within your organization right now? What services do customers need? Organizations had to think and act quickly in March 2020. Initially, many organizations tried to keep doing what they were already doing. On top of that, they made decisions that involved additional work. Many organizations seemed to be temporarily "overperforming.

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Increasing customer experience in COVID period

Organizations proactively sought new ways of contacting customers and customized services. Customer contact generally changed from face to face to digital. The internal structure of organizations also underwent a number of changes. For example, many employees were forced to work from home and online. At the same time, due to social conditions, customers most likely had lower expectations of organizations. This may have led to customers being more positive toward many organizations at the beginning of the COVID pandemic, and customer perception increased.

All in all, in the short term these changes created a positive effect on the customer-driven nature of organizations. But how do you discover which changes you should structurally implement as an organization in the long term and which ones you should not? Which service investments are wise to make before 2021?

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Research important in uncertain times

During uncertain times, ongoing research into customer needs is enormously important. All the more so if you are considering implementing changes in service provision that will entail costs. Blauw knows how complicated and time-consuming research can be and honestly: all the extra time you can use as an organisation these days is only too well spent. That is why Blauw is ready to provide you with quick and practical research solutions. Together we will discuss which research method is most suitable for your issue.

1. Validate customer journeys

Between the moment the customer discovers your service or product and the moment the customer continues to enjoy using it, the customer goes through all kinds of steps. This is called a customer journey. Blauw helps you gain in-depth insight into each step the client takes. This enables you to discover where the opportunities for developing the service lie, so that you can respond to them proactively. As a result, more customers will buy your product or service and existing customers will become ambassadors.

2. Monitoring customer experience

With structural customer feedback, you arrive at concrete improvements for service delivery. This is what continuous monitoring of customer experience can do. Blauw helps you set up a Voice of the Customer approach with an attractive dashboard and advises you on the use of the right measurement instruments.

3. Research community

An online research community allows you to connect directly with your target audience. At any moment of the day you can enter into a conversation with customers in a casual and fun way. Blauw helps you set up such a research community. You can suggest topics or issues yourself, but you can also let your clients talk to each other in order to discover the blind spots within your organisation. We process the results in a clear and action-oriented manner, enabling you to quickly and easily gain more knowledge about the perception of your target group and the position you occupy therein.