If you’ve been in business long enough, you remember a time when customer service meant greeting physical visitors in a brick-and-mortar store. Then came the onset of the call center customer service movement, intended to provide additional layers of customer care 24/7. But those methods aren’t nearly enough to create an engaging customer experience in today’s digital environment.

Any organization interested in growing and scaling today should be adopting methods of authentic engagement using digital and virtual touchpoints. The transition to digital processes, including strategies for lead generation, customer journey, and end-user experience, is paramount. Understanding when, where, how, and why your target audience makes their purchasing decisions today will ensure that you can routinely engage at every relevant touchpoint. The only way you’re going to know those details is with business intelligence and data collection, which is where Power BI Reporting comes into play.

Identifying Customer Pain Points

Digital transformation of any company engagement strategy starts with identifying customer pain points. Today’s customer is bombarded with content and ads, none of which will make any significant impact on their purchasing decisions if they’re not solving problems. Start by identifying how your core offerings can meet customers where they have problems and then, be uniquely positioned as the solution.

At any given time, your target audience will need help with the following four pain point pillars:

• Financial: They’ll need help spending less, budgeting more, or improving their financial lives.

• Productivity: They’ll need help accomplishing something with a product, service, or solution.

• Support: They’ll need better support or service for something they’re already enjoying or needing.

• Process: They’ll need a product or service that allows for easier, more efficient processes.

To capitalize on these paint points, you’ll want to explore how your business can develop unique touchpoints, addressing each relevant need and problem-solving preference. From answering entry-level questions to providing complex solutions in meaningful ways, your company’s digital touchpoint strategy should always focus on your brand as the solution.

Anticipating What Your Ideal Customers Want

There are unique methods and strategies to consider when trying to anticipate what your ideal customers really want. Customer preferences change all the time. You don’t want to invest valuable time and resources into guessing when there are effective ways to stay ahead of emerging trends among your target audience.

Reading Online Reviews

Collecting and analyzing online reviews within your own organization and others can help you identify what clients value most in their experiences.

Conducting Customer-Facing Surveys

Don’t be afraid to develop survey strategies that ask your customer groups directly about what preferences they have.

Active Listening to Your Sales Teams

Your front-line sales team is a great resource for learning what objections and preferences your ideal customers have in real-time.

Building Libraries of Customer Persona Metrics

Collecting data and routine analytics will allow you to spot customer preference trends and touchpoint opportunities.

Ongoing Market Research

Another effective way to determine how to create business touchpoints for your target audience is through diligent and ongoing marketing research of your industry and customers. It’s market research that will allow you to see how your competitors are engaging customers, along with how your target prospects make decisions about similar products or services.

Some of the best ways to incorporate routine market research include:

• Defining your company’s buyer personas, and representing target prospects.

• Identifying persona groups to engage with as a priority.

• Preparing research-related questions for your market participants.

• Understanding your direct and indirect competitor strategies.

Once you know what data you’ll need to create those customer service-driven business touchpoints, you’ll need to implement systems and processes for collecting, analyzing, and executing on the data. That could be a very tall order for small businesses.

Integrating Your Systems

Knowing what to do about identifying your ideal customer pain point is only half the battle. Collecting the metrics and implementing the analysis reports needed by the appropriate employee requires another strategy. Power BI Reporting can help with all of the above, as well as provide seamless integration into your existing systems.

Power BI Reporting is a software solution that nabs all your unrelated data from various touchpoints in your business and transforms it into brilliantly coherent and intuitive reports and dashboards. It’s the resource every small and medium-sized business needs; a glue that connects all of those relevant customer touchpoints into actionable tasks your teams can execute.

Automating Your Systems

Aligning your digital touchpoints with your ideal customers is easier when you’re able to leverage the many advantages of automation. Strategically developing an automation strategy that meets those customer expectations is how you can maintain engagement, even during off-peak hours of operation. When a customer requests additional information, your automation can seamlessly deliver it, all without requiring manual oversight or engagement. You’ll find most customers prefer to conduct their own “homework” and find their own answers before officially engaging with a brand. Just look at how today’s consumers buy cars. Instead of relying on a sales agent at the dealership, car buyers are learning everything there is to know about their new rides before setting foot in a showroom. Many are making their vehicle purchases without visiting a dealership at all.

Offsetting Talent Gaps

For a small business with a minimal physical workforce, automation and software solutions designed for customer engagement are game changers in offsetting talent gaps. You won’t need a room full of call center representatives, for example, when you’re able to harness the digital power of automation, machine learning, and AI software. From this perspective, your company could save thousands by not needing to hire additional team members and instead, developing more robust digital touchpoints. And yes, even these automation and digital solutions present new potential risks. However, there are robust preventive measures businesses can take to safeguard data and the increased flow of it throughout various channels. The benefits far outweigh the challenges.

Digital transformation is what will secure a strong future for your business in the coming years. Your company’s growth and success both depend on your ability to remain connected and relevant to your customers.