It isn’t news to any marketer that the events of the past few years – Brexit, the aftershocks of the pandemic, the acceleration of digital transformation - have dramatically impacted buyer behaviours. More recently, the war in the Ukraine, inflation at a 30-year high and a slump in the pound have created greater insecurity for businesses and individuals alike.

With budgets tight and buyers on a quest for value, loyalties are stretched, and purchase decisions delayed in an uncertain economic environment. Harvard Business Review recently reported that “between 40% and 60% of deals end up lost to customers who express their intent to purchase, but ultimately fail to act.”

Businesses have overcome many challenges in the past few years, but this continued onslaught is tough for even the most resilient. So where should businesses focus to ensure they keep pace with changing buyer behaviour?

Provide a sense of purpose

Research by IBM shows that 77% of consumers consider sustainability and environmental responsibility to be at least "moderately important" brand values.

Buyers today are looking for a sense of purpose when they approach your brand. They want to do business with a company that operates ethically and responsibly, so if they see these credentials front and centre as they approach, they are more likely to engage with you.

Whether B2B or B2C, brands need to communicate their sense of purpose clearly as a fundamental starting point for any customer engagement.

Be available in the right places

Channel preferences have diversified dramatically with some buyers using social media and messaging apps routinely, whilst others stick resolutely to more traditional channels such as email and the phone. What is more, it isn’t a simple case of demographics; channel preferences are shifting and vary depending on each buyer’s specific needs at different times and points in their customer journey.

Unless you have a robust multichannel approach you can’t hope to reach and service customers in the places they choose to spend their time. The customer experience across those channels must also be consistent and seamless so it meets the expectations of buyers on their journey with you and differentiates your brand.

Stay human

A new report based on research with 218 UK organisations and 1,000+ consumers shows respondents much more strongly in favour of speaking to a human employee than expected, with 72% preferring human interaction and only 13% choosing automated self-service.

Buyers post-COVID may be more comfortable with online self-serve and messaging apps but are often inclined to want to speak to a human in more complex, urgent or sensitive situations. What is more, in a less certain environment behaviours continue to shift and recent research shows that for more complex transactions, individuals are less willing to self-serve than they were even 12 months ago.

And, as the cost-of-living crisis deepens further, there is greater likelihood that buyers will be looking for empathetic human support. Despite the potential gains from digital transformation, brands must be prepared to infuse a human touch across the customer journey and maintain their human face.

Utilise your data

At a time when loyalty is stretched, your database is a strategic asset. It provides the foundation for existing and potential relationships and holds insight that can help you identify your most valuable customers and understand their needs. Refreshing and enhancing your prospect and customer data will enable you to refine your segmentation strategy, ensuring you are targeting the right prospects and aligning your strategy with customers with the highest potential value.

This insight will also equip you to anticipate the needs of your most valued customer segments, design a customer experience that meets their needs and fine-tune your loyalty and retention programmes to keep them with you longer.

Embrace customer centricity

As individuals and businesses grapple with current uncertainty and ongoing shocks to the economy, they will continue to adapt their behaviour and purchase habits. Over the coming months more than ever a customer-centric approach is vital to ensure your strategy stays in sync as those behaviours fluctuate. Only with an accurate, up-to-date understanding of the interests, needs and motivations of your target customer, can you evolve your strategy to keep pace.

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