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Articles by Sam Somashekar
Apple Keynote
Apple’s “Time Flies” keynote will take place tomorrow, September 15, live from Apple Park: https://www.apple.com/apple-events/ I have been following Apple keynotes for many years (since at least 2005) and they often generate irrational expectations for disruptive innovative products. Over the past few years, pundits have regularly questioned Apple’s ability to innovate while continuing to grow the iPhone business in a competitive smartphone market.
Better Customer Experience Correlates With Higher Revenue Growth In Most Industries
Does customer experience really matter to business success — or is CX just the latest flavor of hype? Recently, Forrester completed a six-month research effort aimed at answering that question by examining the relationship between superior customer experience and superior revenue growth. Why did we pick revenue growth as the measure of business success? Because it’s the No. 1 priority of global business leaders recently surveyed by Forrester.
Walmart Is Currently The World's Largest Retailer, But Alibaba And Amazon Are Closing In
Global B2C eCommerce grew by 10% in 2017 to reach US$1.8 trillion, driven by online sales from brick-and-mortar stores and marketplaces. Marketplaces Grow Their Share Of eCommerce Fifty-six percent of global B2C eCommerce occurred via marketplaces in 2017. As Amazon’s latest earnings report highlights, global retail marketplace performance is strong and isn’t showing signs of slowing down.
Three Ways CMOs Are Using Agile in Marketing
SiriusDecisions has conducted primary research to assess the state of agile marketing There is lots of confusion in B2B about what agile marketing really is We have identified three levels of agile marketing proficiency in B2B marketing organizations We see many trends in marketing, and one that’s getting a lot of attention right now is “agile marketing.” We hear about it from our clients, and there are plenty of references to agile in the buzzword universe.
Seven Actionable Takeaways From the SiriusDecisions 2017 Buying Study
SiriusDecisions conducted a survey of 868 buyers around the world to understand their buying preferences Buyers came from 15 different industries, and from organizations varying in size from less than $50 million to more than $3 billion Findings encompass buyer roles, engagement levels, decision drivers, content preferences and interaction preferences SiriusDecisions conducts a global buying study every two years to understand buying preferences across different regions, industries and buyer...
The Human Side of Digital Marketing
Even though digital marketing is pervasive, there is a human side to the B2B purchasing process that should not be ignored The average number of interactions required to facilitate a B2B buying process ranges from 15 to 19 To design a marketing mix that attracts and engages buyers, B2B marketers must understand the target persona human and non-human interactions Digital is pervasive; after all, it’s the buzziest buzzword in B2B today.
Nokia “Connects” Network Services To Customer Experience
Nokia’s services division recently hosted an analyst event where it elaborated on the interlinkage between network services and network infrastructure. Of course, network services matter to businesses and telcos because they help technology managers to better manage infrastructure complexity and to modernize network infrastructure with the goal of making networks faster and more reliable.
Mobile Becomes A Key Success Imperative For CIOs
Forrester survey data highlights the urgency for the CIO to complete the mobile mind shift. In the age of the customer, great mobile solutions are the basis for catering to clients, empowering employees, and optimizing supplier and partner relationships. Yet, the mobile mind shift has its roots in the consumer environment. Most of us have gone “mobile native” over the last few years, having grown accustomed to using apps on our smartphones and tablets at home.
Three Tips for Using Design Thinking in Product Management Activities
Commercial growth can be hindered by offerings that do not effectively address the most important customer needs Design thinking focuses on empathizing with users to understand needs and iteratively developing concepts to create the most effective solution for addressing those needs Product managers should integrate design thinking into activities that involve needs identification and offering design Back in 2009, Airbnb was on the brink of shutting down.
B2C Firms Must Prepare As Consumer Buying Enters A New Era
For B2C firms to succeed in the dynamic world of commerce, they must constantly evolve to meet changing customer expectations, adapt to shifting behaviors, and prepare for unpredictable economic and catastrophic events. Over the next decade, four factors will fundamentally drive how firms must evolve to meet consumer buying demands.
Three Changing Buyer Expectations That Portfolio Marketers Must Watch
The dynamics between vendors and buyers is shifting rapidly, and even more so with the COVID-19 pandemic Understanding the expansion of buyer expectations will be instrumental for portfolio marketers to meet their needs and successfully progress them along the buyer’s journey Join us at Summit EMEA in October to learn what actions to take to address these rapidly changing buyer expectations Even before the COVID-19 pandemic changed the world, the dynamics between vendors and buyers was...
CX SF 2019: Are You Designing For Everyone In Your Target Market?
When we design for the “average” person, we design for no one. One of my favorite books, The End of Average, opens with the story of how, during World War II, the US Air Force faced a high death rate — pilots were unable to control their planes, which led to crashes, often fatal. The reasons remained a mystery for years until a young lieutenant named Gilbert Daniels discovered that the core problem was the design of the cockpit.
Supercharge Your Employee Experience With Video
Enterprises have heard their employees’ calls for increased flexibility, and now more than 25% of US information workers work from home at least weekly. But with subpar technology solutions and little face-to-face interaction, home or remote workers end up frustrated and out of the loop. Video provides a platform to engage, train, and communicate effectively with all employees, particularly remote ones.
Forrester’s Key Takeaways On SAP Following The SAP SAPPHIRE Event
Forrester VP and Research Director Allen Bonde interviews VP and Principal Analyst Liz Herbert on takeaways from SAP’s SAPPHIRE event. Also, check out our recent report on SAP and whether SAP is a good fit for your digital business.
Shopify Buys Handshake To Boost B2B Commerce Chops
On Thursday, May 23, TechCrunch broke news that Shopify quietly acquired Handshake. Shopify is widely known as a B2C/DTC platform, and its Shopify Plus offering is aimed at a B2B audience. Handshake brings Shopify a more advanced set of B2B capabilities. How advanced?
Revenge Of The Nerds? Marketing Ops Takes The Stage
During the SiriusDecisions 2019 Summit (May 5–8, Austin, Texas), I will join Sirius Research Director and new colleague Jeff Clark in presenting the Future Vision session on marketing operations. Here’s why I’m so excited about it: Marketing operations professionals haven’t exactly been sitting at the cool kids’ table throughout the last decade. For much of that time, they have been associated with assembling landing pages, building reports, and pressing “send” on email campaigns.
Vital Partnership Or Unholy Alliance? Decoding The Software/Service Provider Relationship
Software vendors such as Adobe, Salesforce, and SAP and experience agencies such as Accenture Interactive, MRM McCann, and VMLY&R need each other to survive. And you need them to work well together to build you great — and differentiated — digital experiences. The worst-case alternative is project failure and maybe losing your job. But how they actually work together is a mystery. Do they work for your best interests?
Getting On The S/4 Bandwagon (Or Not)
Historically, SAP has not been as renowned for innovation as some of its pure SaaS competitors, like Salesforce. But between a steady stream of SaaS (and now data) acquisitions, a notable and ongoing effort to simplify the product portfolio, and clear messaging around marrying the X (experience) and O (operations), SAP’s own digital revolution is well underway. But are customers keeping pace? On the S/4HANA front, the answer is not so much.
The Future Of Department Stores
Department stores can enjoy a bright future — but to do so, they must change to survive and thrive in the face of fierce competition from brands’ direct-to-consumer initiatives. Synchronizing supply and demand to sell inventory at full price is one issue. But the department store’s bright future depends on enticing customers through the doors in the first place. European consumers have great affection for department stores, although they too have been lured by the charms of online players.
Join The Progressive Web App Movement
Now that Apple supports the progressive web app (PWA) standards that Google pioneered, it’s time to join organizations such as eBay, Financial Times, Flipkart, Starbucks, and West Elm in the movement to build progressive web apps that combine the discoverability and reach of the web with the experience and engagement of an app. As a digital leader, it’s your responsibility to spark a progressive web app movement at your firm to bring applike experiences to your mobile web.
Emphasize Emotion In Your Holiday Customer Service
As the holidays approach and the post-holiday return rush quickly follows, a few things will occur simultaneously: Hundreds of millions of customers will make purchases, total holiday retail sales will push the $720 billion mark, and millions more will send odd, ill-fitting, or unwanted gifts back from whence they came. It’s in this frenzy of purchasing where empathy is often lost — and it’s all the more important when customers can actually find it.
Mapping: The Power Hidden In Plain Sight
I’ll bet you know that Google is reinventing mapping from the ground up, swinging for the stars with layers of data, intelligence, and real-time insight. But I bet you didn’t know that there’s a US three-letter agency dedicated to maps . . . or that we’ve already identified 109 mapmakers and vendors of one kind or another . . . or that Snap Map has slipped into your kid’s world without you noticing (see graphic) . . . or that Uber, like Apple, is making its own maps so that it can control its own destiny.
A Tantalizing Sequel To Web CMS Is Coming Soon
After months of research, I am excited to publish our evaluation of the web CMS market (Forecast, Now Tech, and Forrester Wave™). Thank you to all the folks who worked so hard to make this happen!I firmly believe that enterprise customers need thesesolutionsto be theirpartner and platform to build, deliver, and optimize amazing experiences on channels such as web and mobile.
Industry Ecosystems Will Be The Next Frontier In SaaS
Nearly 20 years after SaaS giants such as Salesforce and NetSuite made their foray into the world of enterprise applications, we still see SaaS disrupting the traditional software world at a fast pace. SaaS growth remains high — with legacy software vendors pivoting to more (or all) SaaS and new disruptive vendors entering markets as primarily (or only) SaaS. But there is one important frontier still on the horizon: SaaS ecosystems, especially those specific to an industry.
Five Questions To Ask About Digital Studios Before Your Next Project
Virtually all global services firms have invested in digital studios, and for many agencies, it’s just the way they’ve worked for years. But despite these investments, many services buyers don’t know what digital studios are — never mind how they can utilize them.
Beyond The Hype, AI Will Spark A Marketing Renaissance
Marketing technology (martech) vendors are heavily pitching AI. However, AI per se is not new and won’t solve CMOs’ problems overnight. In fact, many marketers use AI without even knowing it, when they use AI-powered algorithms for programmatic ad buying! The reality is that AI will scale existing data-driven marketing approaches and give modern CMOs the ability to personalize branded experiences in real time at scale.
Can Creative Entrepreneurialism Save The Agency Business Model?
Jay Pattisall, Keith Johnston, and I have been probing the reasons behind the financial woes of agency holding companies such as MDC Partners, Publicis Groupe, and WPP. What’s going on? Why is the agency holding company business model struggling while consultancies like Accenture and Deloitte see their experience agency revenues soar? What has changed? It would be easy to say that agencies have been slow to embrace the shift from marketing services to experience and transformation services.
A Digital Experience Agency By Any Other Name Would Smell As Sweet
With apologies to Juliet and to Will, let me ask, “What’s in a name? that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet . . . ” Romeo And Juliet (II, ii, ll. 46–47) Juliet meant that it didn’t matter that Romeo was from a family enemy, the Montagues; she loved him anyway.
Digital Transformation And Automation Shake Up The Tech Services Market - Are You Ready?
US tech consulting services spend is growing at 8.3% — but that’s not good news for all services firms. Twice a year, my colleague Andrew Bartels publishes Forrester’s US tech market outlook, covering tech spending on everything from CIO staff salaries to systems integration for licensed apps. For the first time, Liz Herbert and I published a complementary report taking a deeper dive into what US tech services spending tells us about the health and direction of the services market.
Why We Use Tech Tools: To Coordinate Tasks
This is an amazingly accelerated time to be alive. During my nearly 50 years on the planet, we have increased by many orders of magnitude the knowledge that we have about our own existence. Research into the ultimate origins and functions of things, ranging from life itself to skills and traits like language or culture, has flourished.
Adopt The “Spirit Of Agile”-Beyond Software Development
There are two types of Agile people in the world: Capital “A” Agile people equate “agile” with Agile software development methodologies or frameworks. Agile requires specific roles, processes, and deliverables. You have to do Agile, to be Agile. Lower case “a” agile people subscribe to the underlying values of Agile development, but most often use the term by its dictionary definition. Businesses can be agile. Because of the two interpretations, the word tends to trip people up in conversations.
Top Customer Service Trends For 2018
Great customer service is not just about cutting costs or making operations more efficient. Instead, it’s a systematic reinvention of established technology, data, and operations — leveraging automation, data, and agents together to exploit each of their unique strengths. This year, I see 3 broad customer service trends that organizations must consider as they fundamentally transform their operation: Customers demand fast service anywhere, anytime.
Web Summit 2017 Points Toward A More Reflective Tech Crowd
Web Summit 2017 took place from November 7 to 9 in Lisbon. It can come across as a chaotic event without any clear direction, and, as at last year’s Web Summit, there was no single overarching theme. But this is its very strength. Web Summit throws an extremely wide spectrum of topics at you. It is only by listening to many sessions and talking to many attendees from all sorts of backgrounds that a mosaic picture of the state of the technology world can emerge.
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