Prof Steven Van Belleghem is an expert in customer focus in the digital world. He’s an award-winning author, and his new book, Customers The Day After Tomorrow, is published December 2017. Follow him on Twitter @StevenVBe, subscribe to his videos at: www.youtube.com/stevenvanbelleghem or visit: www.stevenvanbelleghem.com
Thanks to the ever-evolving social media effect, the customer now has a voice; an opportunity to verbalise and thus influence the customer experience. But Professor Steven van Belleghem says social media wield far more heft than mere comment on company performance. Here, he discusses the potentially sinister side of influence.
First, computer cookies as data collectors and now AI, bots and myriad automation – they are all bringing a level of ease and convenience to our lives as consumers; offering targeted ads, using our locations and preferences for relevance, saving us our valuable time. But they also offer unease and concern . . . followers or stalkers, assistants or snoopers? Just how far can technology – and brands and even governments – go when it comes to gathering and using data? It’s all about ethics, says Steven van Belleghem, delving into the great privacy & technology debate.
The way we were, as consumers, has changed beyond recognition – ask your gran about the tiny corner shop, or half-day closing! Now, we have e-commerce and the ability to buy anything, anytime we like. But how about tomorrow’s world – and how will marketers and e-retailers cope with the ever-increasing demands of the savvy e-shopper? In this interview by Steven van Belleghem, an expert practitioner shares his online shop expertise and view of the future: