Latest news with #Customers
Forbes
16-07-2025
- Business
- Forbes
As Data Breaches Soar, C-Suite Looks to Customer Data Management
Customer data management (CDM) best practices have never been more crucial to today's brands as they face escalating data breaches, which come with severe brand trust, balance-sheet, and customer retention issues. Throw rising competition, increased customer expectations, and a growing need for improved decision-making into the mix, and the need for strong CDM practices makes its own case. Companies need to move, store, and analyze party data so that they can effectively target customers and offer deep personalization. Most importantly, data security is especially critical to brands and businesses today – a data breach can cost companies millions within moments and break customer trust for a lifetime. The complication of data breaches create a heightened demand for corporate accountability related to data security Customers are expected to hand over their data today in most interactions with brands and businesses, but consumer frustrations are mounting as more and more data breaches and hacks occur. The calls for accountability are coming from both the consumers, as well as legislators, with good reason. For many businesses, manual data-gathering efforts using Excel spreadsheets work—up to a point. As the company grows, however, so does the data and the need to make sense of it. This can quickly become unwieldy and unhelpful: Organizations can easily get lost and overwhelmed in large data sets and lose out on potentially valuable insights that help them stand out to their customers and improve the customer journey. That's when it's time for a big change—enter customer data management strategies and solutions. Winding path-to-purchase requires deep customer understanding Unlike past decades, when channels were separate and siloed, today's path-to-purchase is a long and winding road. Multiple touchpoints, both online and off, need to stay connected— including email, CRM, e-commerce, social media, and retail POS. That means it's essential for organizations to deeply understand the customer at every stage. Customer loyalty will soon depend on a company's willingness to protect customer information with the same fervor they pursue revenue. Making sense of the data allows customers to be valued more A range of cloud-based solutions are now commonly used for customer data management that serves as the centralized, beating heart of the effort to improve customer acquisition, satisfaction, and retention; improve customer visibility and targeted communication, and boost data quality. Ultimately, businesses need customer data management to work towards achieving a single customer view that allows them to provide the seamless customer experience that consumers have come to expect, as well as calculate important metrics such as the Customer Lifetime Value (CLV). However, it's not just about the technology: It's about the strategies, policies, and actions that make customer data management an effective effort that helps drive growth. Customer data management best practices: 7 important points brands should consider Following are seven best practices for customer data management: Data needs to be managed with internal standards and policies, to ensure that the organization handles data assets properly throughout the data lifecycle. Make sure the entire company is aligned, across the board, in terms of what data is collected, data points, and how it will be tracked and used. Data protection regulations, such as the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) are on the rise. The right customer data management platform should make compliance with customer data regulations easy and straightforward. It's important to determine what specific types of data are most effective to serve your customers and achieve your marketing goals. There are a variety of data categories and industry-specific data to consider, from your customer's identity data, loyalty program information, and online transactional data to demographic information, social media data, and qualitative data about attitudes and opinions. Not only are data leaks and breaches becoming more costly every year—the average cost of a data breach in 2024 was $4.9 million—but these events can also severely impact a company's reputation, as well as its bottom line. If you aren't steering the security ship and communicating your commitment, you run the risk of falling into consumer doubt. After all, customers want to know their information is safe. It's essential to choose a customer data management platform that has the right security standards and practices in place. According to an IBM report, 83% of companies suffer from data inaccuracy. Not only is outdated, inaccurate data not useful, but customer satisfaction and decision-making may suffer and lead to rising costs. The key to good customer data management is making sure customer data is regularly cleaned: That is, validating and updating information including email addresses, phone numbers, and addresses, as well as removing duplicates and deleting unnecessary contacts. Forbes noted that companies now house an average of 15 silos of customer data. It doesn't have to be that way: Don't allow useful data such as call-center information, sales leads, emails, or finance communication to become useless, trapped in department and technology silos. Data needs to be securely shared and accessible, in ways that promote collaboration, problem-solving, and improved decision-making. A complete, omnichannel customer journey includes customer profiles filled out with profile, activity, event, demographic and behavioral data, as well as data related to intent and perception. Getting to that goal requires robust end-to-end customer data management solutions that are highly scalable and can store billions of profile and consent records. It's not enough to have customer data or even a holistic profile. Identity data must be collected and managed appropriately throughout the entire customer lifecycle. That means providing a frictionless customer experience with flexible registration, secure interaction touchpoints, and simplified authentication based on real-time, data-driven insights. The future of customer data is bright—and unified Today's buyers are in control. With a quick click or swipe, they can abandon a brand and make a quick move to the competition, or they can remain long-term loyalists. That means customers —their wants, their needs, their preferences, their expectations—need to be at the heart of every business. Companies have to understand how to gather and analyze the right data in order to collect insights that help them deliver meaningful, seamless experiences to their buyers. This is the promise and power of customer data management best practices: With the right platform that integrates with a company's existing sales and marketing technologies, customer data management helps brands deeply understand their customers through a holistic, unified, centralized, real-time view of data. But organizations also need to follow best practices and prioritize successful strategies in order to make customer data management successful. Effective data management is a promise to customers and an investment in your future. The first step is deciding to take control. You can do that today. This post was first published on The Future of Commerce and is republished here with permission.
News.com.au
12-07-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
$7 Aldi Bulk Buys kitchen item Aussies begging for returns
A popular kitchen item from a German supermarket chain is finally back on shelves after customers begged for its return. Aldi's popular Bulk Household Special Buys range is back from July 16 and it is set to feature the fan favourite Goliath 300m Cling Wrap. The cling wrap retails for $6.99. Customers have been begging for the item's return, with some revealing it had lasted them more than two years. 'Finally finished the 300m cling wrap after two years and three months,' one Aldi fan revealed. 'And then hubby bought the 600m today. Guess we don't need another box for four-and-a-half-years.' Another declared the item 'worth it' after purchasing it for her family of six. 'You can see they lasted us a while and still looks like there is a fair bit on each roll. I'd hate to think how many 30m rolls at Coles or Woolworths I would have bought at that time for $5 I would have bought in that time.' The cling wrap was given a 78 per cent rating by CHOICE after it noted no pulling or tearing with use, and a 'good sealing performance'. Other items in the Bulk Household Special Buys include the $10.99 Baking Paper 90m. the $16.99 Aluminium Foil 150m, $24.99 Laundry Powder 5kg and the $7.99 Super Strength Dishwashing Liquid 3L. In 2022, customers were stunned to discover there was a cling wrap cutter hidden at the end of the roll. 'Whoever the clever person was that mentioned the cling wrap cutter … a thousand thanks,' one woman shared, after being directed to it by another fan. In a second image it showed if customers opened the side of the box, it was hidden inside the roll. Hundreds of social media comments rolled in, with many stunned at the revelation. 'OMG I just found it after using the cling wrap for at least six months,' one person said. 'I just wasted a bit just to see how easily it cut.' The Goliath Cling Wrap 30m, which retails for $1.65, comes with a standard cutter and is part of the every day range. However, the 300m is part of the Special Buys and the cutter is found inside the tube.
The Independent
10-07-2025
- General
- The Independent
McDonald's Snack Wrap returns with some changes
McDonald's has reintroduced its popular Snack Wrap to the menu after a nine-year absence. The returning Snack Wraps are available in Ranch and Spicy flavors, each priced at $2.99. The new wraps feature the chain's McCrispy Strip, shredded lettuce, cheese, and either ranch dressing or Spicy Pepper sauce, all encased in a tortilla. Many customers have voiced disappointment regarding the absence of previously popular flavors like Honey Mustard and Barbecue, and the use of McCrispy Strip instead of the original Chicken Selects. First launched in 2006 and credited with boosting sales, the Snack Wrap was discontinued in 2016 due to its perceived complexity in preparation.
The Citizen
09-07-2025
- Business
- The Citizen
FSCA issued fines to the value of almost R200 million last year
The FSCA is an independent institution established to ensure a fair and stable financial market where consumers are informed and protected. The Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) issued fines for various contraventions of financial laws last year to the value of almost R200 million, with an increase of 59% in new cases between 1 April last year and 31 March this year. According to the FSCA Regulatory Actions Report, the authority debarred 131 people, issued 107 public warnings, referred 14 enforceable undertakings to the police, finalised 633 investigations, suspended 24 licences, withdrew 382 licences and issued 13 directives. This was the third edition of the report, which aims to advance the FSCA's strategic objective of upholding confidence and integrity in the financial sector by increasing the visibility of enforcement activities, deterring misconduct, and raising awareness of regulatory requirements. The report also reflects the FSCA's ongoing efforts to embed the principles of Treating Customers Fairly across the sector and to take firm action against misconduct. These efforts are essential to building and maintaining trust in financial institutions and markets. ALSO READ: FSCA fines Middelburg insurance broker R1 million and debars her for 15 years FSCA protects integrity of financial institutions Gerhard Van Deventer, divisional executive for enforcement at the FSCA, says to support these objectives, the FSCA implemented mechanisms aligned with the Protected Disclosures Act and ensuring confidentiality and anonymity where required, including a dedicated whistle-blower hotline, a protected disclosure protocol and flexible reporting channels to facilitate the submission of information to enforcement teams. Van Deventer says financial customers must be able to rely on the integrity of licensed institutions, and the FSCA acts decisively where conduct poses material risks, as reflected in the number of debarments and licence withdrawals. Cases involving unregistered insurance business increased by more than 134%, with most linked to the funeral parlour sector, Van Deventer says. The report details a range of enforcement actions, including the imposition of 51 administrative penalties amounting to R119 829 523. R82 443 540 was imposed for contraventions of the Financial Advisory and Intermediary Services Act, while a total of R68 million was imposed on the investigated parties in the N-e-FG matter, where funds were invested without the consent of clients. Penalties of another R16 985 000 were imposed for contraventions of the Financial Intelligence Centre Act for failing to implement measures to stop money laundering and terrorist financing. ALSO READ: FSCA fines 2 pension fund bosses R30 million each, debars them for 30 years FSCA's key objective to protect financial customers Van Deventer says the FSCA's key objective is the protection of financial customers, and therefore, 131 individuals were debarred, mostly for dishonest conduct and false policies. 'This marks a decline from the previous period, likely due to targeted interventions and greater public visibility.' Suspensions and withdrawals of licences were done to protect financial customers. Van Deventer says the FSCA can suspend a license where the non-compliance can be remedied, and the number of suspended licences decreased significantly, while licence withdrawals, on the other hand, increased markedly. 'This shift is primarily due to the process cycle for suspensions and withdrawals related to the non-submission of statutory returns. Over 90% of licence withdrawals were due to non-submission of returns, while the rest were linked to serious misconduct.' Van Deventer says contraventions of the Financial Sector Regulation Act, including impersonation of FSCA personnel and unlawful association, are part of a growing global trend in online harm. ALSO READ: FSCA's Regulatory Actions Report shows impressive numbers of enforcement FSCA identified these risk areas with heightened risk He points out that the report underscores several heightened risk areas that will inform the FSCA's enforcement priorities in the year ahead: Online harm, including social media scams, signal providers and finfluencers. Misuse of financial licences to front unauthorised operations. Regulatory examination fraud. Misleading advertising and inappropriate product claims. Non-compliance with AML/CFT risk and control frameworks. Since crypto has been recognised as a financial product, a dedicated investigation team has been investigating unlicensed crypto traders. By 12 May this year, the FSCA received 453 licence applications, with 264 approved, 109 voluntarily withdrawn, and 11 declined. The FSCA launched 36 crypto investigations and closed 21, while 15 are ongoing.
Forbes
01-07-2025
- Business
- Forbes
The Genius Of Amazon's 'Value For Money' AI Reviews
The Genius of Amazon's 'Value for Money' AI Reviews Amazon has struck a rich marketing vein with its AI-generated summaries of product reviews, a feature the company first introduced in 2023 and appears to have become ubiquitous. To relieve shoppers of having to slog through endless screens of individual product reviews (Amazon reported more than 1.5 billion submitted in 2022), it now posts a short paragraph at the top of the list that distills all the blather into a few generalizations. For example, the AI blurb for a product with more than 120,000 reviews and averaging 4.6 stars: 'Customers find this electric toothbrush to be a premium product that delivers thorough cleaning with its scrubbing action and leaves teeth feeling polished and fresh. They appreciate its four different settings and consider it good value for money.' Review summaries can also be brutal. For a particular waffle iron that earned an average of 4.2 stars, the AI blurb nevertheless mentions: 'While the appliance makes great waffles and grilled sandwiches, customers report issues with heat control, taking a long time to heat up, and experiencing breakage problems, particularly with the thin plastic base.' The summary for a popular brand of casual shoe: 'Value for money opinions are divided, with some considering them a great buy while others say they're not worth the price tag.' The concept of value for money has been around for decades, largely used in the government sector to discuss policies and budgets for programs such as public housing, to gauge efficiency and effectiveness. Governments want to know, for example, if underwriting affordable housing will reduce social safety-net costs. Value for money suddenly gained traction in the consumer sector this year, and has become a frequent mention in the AI blurbs on Amazon. A Google Trends search finds a huge spike in mentions began in February, a month in which consumer confidence collapsed and grassroots movements like 'No Buy 2025' encouraged spending boycotts. In the consumer economy, value for money is hard to define because it is personal. But it is becoming a big deal, especially in the U.S. where tariff uncertainty has fanned renewed inflation fears, housing remains unaffordable, and shoppers have loaded themselves up with debt. According to a recent McKinsey & Company report, State of the Consumer 2025, 'Consumers are redefining what value means to them.' Consumer-facing companies that aren't paying attention do so at their peril. Brand loyalty is losing power and more-value-for-the-price is becoming an expectation. Look what happened to Starbucks a year ago after consecutive quarters of disappointing results, same-store sales, and earnings. As we noted here at the time, Bloomberg reported that the company 'is bleeding customers who no longer want to shell out for high-priced coffee drinks.' One of the big winners in a value-for-money economy has been Aldi, the quirky grocery store chain we covered here recently. The surge in sales of private label goods versus national brands is driving up profit margins at major retailers and changing how they market the value-for-money message. Value for money is here to stay. A recent report by accounting giant Deloitte, based on a deep data dive, found that, 'Today, 4 in 10 Americans are value seekers—defined as surveyed consumers who exhibit three or more cost-conscious, deal-driven, or convenience-sacrificing behaviors each month across grocery/retail, restaurants, leisure travel, and automotive.' Consumers in 2025 are no longer just looking for deals. With the proliferation of competing promotions that lack real urgency, for retailers every day needs to be 'prime day.' And because shoppers are heavily influenced by reviews, a 'good value for money' mention on Amazon is marketing gold.
