In a recent article on loyalty programs, solutions provider Colloquy stated that that 81% of consumers know that their data is an asset to organizations but that 67% of those same consumers do not feel they are getting any benefit for sharing it.

In our opinion, this shortcoming isn’t just indicative of loyalty programs, but of marketing generally. Which is a major problem at a time where marketing’s number one asset is data.

Marketing today – including in the financial services sector – is more than ever about a clear exchange of value: value for data. Organizations need to be fully transparent in how they are using consumer data to provide relevance and value to their target audiences, leveraging the data-driven insight to create superior customer experiences. At the same time, these same institutions need to demonstrate their commitment to the highest levels of data privacy and security principles. These elements are the building blocks of sustainable customer relationships and only once these are in place will consumers’ trust in the brand increase, prompting an increased willingness to provide more personal information.

Conversely, if the value is clearly not there, consumers are increasingly willing to shut the data ‘tap’ off.

This relationship is clearly dynamic and symbiotic, where either side of the exchange is dependent on the other. Overlay this with the imperative of providing customer experience excellence at every point of consumer interaction and you soon realize the complexities involved.

Data needs to be treated both as a gift and opportunity to provide customers with increased relevance. Within this context, marketers within the financial services sector have the distinct advantage of being able to  access comprehensive information about their customers. The imperative is now to get clarity around exactly what their value exchange is because without it, the chances of success (and access to more data) is slim.

Tags: Industry