Australian consumers demand personalised CX

While businesses are increasingly under pressure to cut costs amid the tight economic climate, new research published by Twilio suggests that investment in digital customer engagement increases brands’ revenue by an average of 90%.

The company’s fourth annual ‘State of Customer Engagement’ report found that 79% of Australian consumers report that personalised experiences increase their loyalty to brands.

Meanwhile Australian consumers spend an average of 19% more on brands that personalise the customer experience.

But Australian brands are also under urgent pressure to address increasing concerns around consumer privacy, security and personal data tracking, with the research suggesting that 30% of Australian consumers had their data exposed or stolen as a result of a cyber attack on a brand in the last year. Furthermore, 52% of Australian brands experienced contact centre fraud over the same period.

Australian brands are responding to the challenge, with 98% planning to implement zero trust or first party data to protect consumer privacy and improve the customer experience.

The stakes are high, with 29% of Australian consumers having stopped doing business with a brand after their expectations for trust and privacy weren’t met.

Yet Australian brands also frequently overestimate how well they are meeting consumer expectations for communication preferences as well as protecting customer privacy. Nearly half (47%) of Australian consumers reported being frustrated with their interactions over the past year, up from 42% the year before.

Twilio CMO Joyce Kim said brands are increasingly facing conflicting priorities. “In this macroeconomic climate, every business is looking to do more with less budget,” she said.

“This research reflects what we’re hearing across our customer base, which is that when brands use first-hand data to personalise engagement with customers, it saves companies meaningful marketing spend and increases lifetime value. For brands facing growing headwinds, this means ROI today.”

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