While we have more exciting innovations to share, we鈥檝e dedicated this event to celebrating our customers鈥� achievements.

AI Meets CX: Personalized, Engaging Experiences

In a fast-paced market, delivering the right message at the right time is crucial. When AI meets CX, businesses can create personalized, engaging experiences at every touchpoint. But these seamless experiences require a blend of people, processes, and technology, supported by integrated data.

Intelligent Customer Journeys with Business AI

At 麻豆原创 CX LIVE in 2024, Christian Klein, CEO and member of the Executive Board of 麻豆原创 SE, emphasized the transformation of customer experience through business AI, moving from reactive to proactive engagement and AI-driven insights. Companies like the San Jose Sharks are leveraging AI to drive personalized experiences and exceptional customer value.

San Jose Sharks: MVP Experiences

The San Jose Sharks are embracing digitalization and AI to create MVP experiences throughout the customer journey. By integrating vast amounts of data from various sources such as hockey games, concerts, food, and merchandising, they form a holistic view of their customers. The Sharks鈥� use of 麻豆原创 CX solutions, including 麻豆原创 Emarsys Customer Engagement, 麻豆原创 Sales Cloud, 麻豆原创 CX AI Toolkit, 麻豆原创 Customer Data Platform, and 麻豆原创 Customer Data Cloud, significantly enhanced customer engagement. This strategic approach led to impressive results, with season membership renewal rates increasing to 87% and open rates soaring from 26% to 80%.

Online Metals: AI as a Game Changer

Greg Raece, president of Online Metals, believes that AI will revolutionize the company鈥檚 sales approach. With a diverse customer base ranging from hobbyists to Fortune 500 companies, Online Metals is constantly evolving to meet emerging trends and ensure customers receive the right materials quickly and hassle-free. Raece firmly believes that AI will change the way Online Metals sells to customers. To better engage customers and enhance its online merchandising and sales strategies, Online Metals has joined forces with 麻豆原创. Using 麻豆原创 Commerce Cloud and 麻豆原创 Emarsys Customer Enagement, it successfully increased conversions, average order value, and website traffic.

Unleash Potential with a Harmonized Suite

Captivating customer experiences require visibility into the back office, front office, and everywhere in between. Companies like Universal Destinations & Experiences benefit from the seamless integration of 麻豆原创 CX solutions with existing ERP systems, helping to enhance overall customer experience.

Universal Destinations & Experiences: Omnichannel Excellence

For Universal Destinations & Experiences, making people happy is priority number one.
When planning its new resort in Beijing, China, Universal wanted to focus on the full guest journey 鈥� before, during, and after their visit. It needed a scalable platform with true omnichannel capabilities to support its diverse business, including theme parks, food, and retail. By leveraging 麻豆原创 S/4HANA with 麻豆原创 Commerce Cloud, Universal is creating a seamless and immersive experience for millions of guests, allowing them to live out their movie dreams.

Nokia: Elevating Wireless Technology

Nokia, once known for its iconic phones, now leads in telecommunications innovation and is partnering with NASA to further advance wireless technology. To ensure efficiency and accuracy in delivering complex solutions, Nokia digitized its order management processes. By integrating 麻豆原创 S/4HANA with 麻豆原创 Commerce Cloud and 麻豆原创 Order Management Services, Nokia achieved faster deliveries, precise invoicing, and seamless billing, securing a competitive edge and driving ongoing success.

MACO Group: Efficient Sales Transformation

With thousands of global customers and 25,000 products associated with 40,000 components, door and window seller MACO Group has a wealth of data. The construction industry has been disrupted by global events, prompting MACO to digitize its operations for more efficient and effective sales. MACO鈥檚 transformation involved combining its 麻豆原创 S/4HANA and CRM capabilities with 麻豆原创 Sales Cloud, enabling it to move faster and with greater accuracy.

New Strategic Partnerships

麻豆原创 CX solutions continue to help add value and bring business AI to life through innovative collaboration and integration. At 麻豆原创 CX LIVE in 2024, we announced two new partnerships with Gainsight and ChannelEngine.

By integrating 麻豆原创 Sales Cloud with Gainsight, companies can unify data and intelligence for a comprehensive customer view and a seamless journey. With human-first AI capabilities, automation, and standardized workflows, Gainsight and 麻豆原创 customers can dedicate more time to clients and less to administrative tasks. Learn more.

The integration between ChannelEngine and 麻豆原创 Order Management Services can enable merchants to increase revenue and profitability by automating and optimizing third-party marketplace operations. 麻豆原创 users can now effortlessly activate over 950 new sales channels and expand into global markets. Learn more.

A Future-Ready CX with 麻豆原创

麻豆原创 customers are rapidly leveraging AI-powered solutions to create superior customer experiences, improve operational efficiency, and drive business growth. By integrating 麻豆原创 into their operations, they are driving innovation and achieving measurable success. 

Our approach is simple yet powerful: connected, insightful, adaptive, and industry-tailored. By prioritizing responsible innovation, especially in handling customer data and interactions, we can ensure our AI solutions are built on trust, privacy, ethics, and security. I鈥檓 proud that 麻豆原创 is integral to our customers鈥� achievements, and the 麻豆原创 CX team remains committed to delivering products and features that drive outcomes and delightful customer experiences.

I invite you to view the full 麻豆原创 CX LIVE in 2024 event and .

Ritu Bhargava is president and chief product officer for 麻豆原创 Industries and Customer Experience.

But Harrods鈥� most important channel is still its flagship store.

鈥淲hen we talk about luxury and the importance of experience, the store is core to what we do,鈥� Erik Rasmussen, head of 麻豆原创 & Data Analytics at Harrods, told 麻豆原创 on the NRF 2023 showfloor. 鈥淗aving that single flagship store is still absolutely crucial to Harrods鈥� DNA and something that we expect to drive going forward for a long time.鈥�

Harrods鈥� flagship store is about 1 million square feet (about 93,000 square meters) of retail space in Knightsbridge, an upscale London neighborhood known for grand Victorian and Georgian homes, fine dining, and, of course, high-end shopping. This single, full-line department store offers food, fashion, homeware, furniture, and technology 鈥� and it reaped 拢2.4 billion in sales last year.

鈥淪o, small footprint but massive business,鈥� Rasmussen said, noting that the flagship store alone carries more than 400,000 products from about 4,000 brands. 鈥淎nd incredible things [are] going on every day.鈥�

To keep incredible things happening, Harrods and 麻豆原创 invested in the Single View of Customer project, an analytics initiative to help Harrods better understand how customers interact with the brand. When Harrods can accurately anticipate what shoppers will want, it can deliver memorable experiences that make delighted customers say, 鈥淲ow!鈥�

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How to “Wow!”

鈥淗arrods is a unique model…A lot of other retailers will have a smaller selection of products in store and an endless aisle online,鈥� Rasmussen said. 鈥淎t Harrods, the most complete shopping experience is still to come into the store because of the variety…[and] the different experiences you have.鈥�

Indeed, Harrods rewards shoppers at its brick-and-mortar flagship store with expert associates and a truly impressive array of products. For instance, in the furniture department, you can see examples of each piece and then choose your very specific model based myriad variables, such as size, headboard style, and even jewelry configuration.

鈥淲ith one single product, you can very quickly get into things like 10,000 different permutations,鈥� Rasmussen said during a presentation at 麻豆原创鈥檚 NRF booth. 鈥淲hen you think about that spread across an entire product assortment 鈥� spread across all the brands that we carry 鈥� you suddenly start to find yourself in a really challenging data management perspective.鈥�

To conquer that challenge, Harrods consolidated all the relevant data from vendors and others into its backend, according to Rasmussen. Harrods鈥� digital technology team then built a Web app that lets shoppers personalize furniture from start to finish 鈥� from browsing to home delivery.

鈥淎 lot of heavy lifting that we had to do on the backend 鈥� it鈥檚 not easy to make this work,鈥� Rasmussen said. 鈥淏ut from a customer experience, ultimately it becomes pretty seamless.鈥�

Investing in Customers 鈥� And Single View of Customer

It鈥檚 vital that Harrods get better acquainted with the roughly 2.5 million consumers registered in its loyalty scheme, according to Rasmussen. Of the 400,000 or so unique customers who shop in store each year, the top 0.1%, roughly 400 people, account for about 20% of Harrods鈥� sales.

A 2021 implementation of 麻豆原创 Customer Activity Repository and 麻豆原创 BW/4HANA laid the foundation for much of Harrods鈥� analytics, according to Rasmussen. And, as a high-value 鈥� as opposed to high-volume 鈥� business, Harrods鈥� enterprise resource planning (ERP) system and data warehouse could analyze every individual transaction.

鈥淭his type of investment 鈥� giving us the right insights, the right analytics, the right visibility 鈥� has really empowered our teams,鈥� Rasmussen said. 鈥淜nowing that information 鈥� and we let that feed things like the Single View of Customer platform or our data science initiatives or replenishment 鈥� is fuel to the things we can do to drive our business.鈥�

Such drivers include reactivation campaigns, as happened with a shopper to whom Harrods offered a free pastry with a 拢50 purchase, according to Rasmussen. The customer made a qualifying purchase, received the complimentary gift, and then promptly returned to the salesfloor to spend another 拢30,000.

鈥淚f we can reactivate those types of customers across the entire 2.5 million [customers], the opportunities for our growth will be enormous,鈥� Rasmussen said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 something that we鈥檙e already seeing pay dividends, and we鈥檙e really excited to see what we can develop for the future.鈥�

The Future Is Still Experience

Predictive analytics will be a big focus for Harrods, especially identifying new shoppers who might be similar to its high-value customers, according to Rasmussen. Data from 麻豆原创 Marketing Cloud, 麻豆原创 Customer Data Cloud, and 麻豆原创 Service Cloud can help Harrods spot 鈥� and serve 鈥� its next big spenders, alongside transactional information through 麻豆原创 Customer Activity Repository and analytics via 麻豆原创 BW/4HANA.

鈥淗ow can we take a customer who might look like they鈥檙e spending 拢2,000 and realize that they are customers who should be spending 拢200,000?鈥� Rasmussen said in . 鈥淕et them the right personalized service within either our personal shopping department, our concierge service, or a stylist to make sure that we can nurture them more quickly.鈥�

And, again, this seamless customer experience is made possible by a lot of work on the backend. But it鈥檚 worth it, according to Rasmussen.

鈥淭he two things I take away from what we鈥檝e done at Harrods are one, customer experience comes first,鈥� Rasmussen said. 鈥淪econdly, I think we鈥檝e really benefited from the strong partnership we鈥檝e made with our technology partners, 麻豆原创 being one of them. We鈥檙e making sure that we can invest with them, co-innovate with them, and…we鈥檙e collectively moving towards giving the customer the absolutely best experience.鈥�

Whether it鈥檚 streaming services, cell phones, or robotic lawn mowers, today鈥檚 consumers are more than happy to enjoy the convenience of buying high-tech products and services online. In a matter of mouse-clicks, they can configure a product and select whether to buy, lease, or subscribe 鈥� depending on their personal preferences.

But things are very different when it comes to buying a new car. A found that three out of four consumers still prefer to purchase from an authorized vehicle dealership. Yet it also revealed that there was a growing appreciation of the benefits of virtual purchase processes. Consumers would like to see buying a new car become like buying a new cell phone.

鈥淥ur assumption is that there will always be people who visit physical dealerships to 鈥渇eel鈥� a car and test-drive it,鈥� explains Bj枚rn Schick, CXO and member of the executive board of smart聽Europe. 鈥淏ut it won鈥檛 be long before they become the minority and more people start configuring and ordering their cars online 鈥� in just a few quick steps.鈥�

Direct-to-Consumer (D2C) Vehicle Sales Are Booming

How soon that happens, Schick says, will depend hugely on whether suitably attractive offers are available. Increasingly, customers are willing to sign contracts online if they can obtain a favorable short-term lease or subscription deal on transparent terms. They then have a tendency to be more adventurous in their choice of car model and color.

鈥淭hey鈥檒l quite deliberately opt for a sportier model, maybe, or bright yellow paintwork,鈥� says Schick. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 because the focus is not on the vehicle鈥檚 resale value when the contract ends, but on the customer鈥檚 preferences.鈥�

Many of today鈥檚 market players 鈥� both established and new 鈥� are well aware of the business opportunities behind this change in consumer habits. They are muscling their way into online channels to claim their share of the rapidly growing D2C vehicle market. Alongside electric car pioneer Tesla, brands including NIO and Polestar are showing the way 鈥� and automakers across the world are following their lead.

Direct Sales on a Single E-Commerce Platform

smart Europe also sees strong prospects for its own new-vehicle business here and is aligning its entire company infrastructure accordingly. smart Europe is a wholly owned subsidiary of smart Automobile Co., Ltd., a joint venture established in 2019 between iconic German vehicle manufacturer Mercedes-Benz, which transferred its smart brand to the partnership, and Chinese automaker Geely. The aim of the joint venture is to offer all-electric smart models on a new e-commerce platform for climate-conscious, city-dwelling consumers for whom the online world is second nature.

鈥淥ur business model is based on direct business with consumers, whom we address through an omnichannel approach so that we can sell our cars virtually and physically on a single platform,鈥� explains Schick.

Car dealerships play their part in this business model too. 鈥淲e see them as a key element in our sales strategy,鈥� says Schick. 鈥淭heir role is changing, but it鈥檚 just as important as before. As a newly formed company, we鈥檝e got the chance to reinvent and recalibrate our dealership model.鈥� Dealers will no longer own vehicles themselves and sell them, but will serve as brand ambassadors for (joint) customers at the physical retail touchpoint and as sales and service partners. They will arrange test drives, hand vehicles over to their new owners, and invite customers to events targeted at particular client segments. In short: car dealerships as we know them today will no longer function chiefly as sales outlets, but as agencies that showcase the brand.

麻豆原创 Commerce Cloud as the Process Backbone for smart Europe

The foundation for this innovative style of cooperation is smart鈥檚 new e-commerce platform, which can be accessed not only by smart Europe employees and dealers but, for example, by repair shops as well. They can each see the data the customer has given its consent for them to access. The new platform will become operational at the end of 2022, coinciding with the launch of the first new smart #1.

Central to the platform is , on which all of smart Europe鈥檚 e-commerce transactions will run, from product configuration to payment. 鈥溌槎乖� Commerce Cloud lets us map all the country-specific tax and legal requirements so that we can manage all the processes for our business across Europe on a single platform,鈥� explains Schick.

Coupled with 麻豆原创 Customer Data Cloud, 麻豆原创 Commerce Cloud also plays a key role in delivering hyper-personalized content on the front end because, when the two solutions are integrated, they push relevant data for a given set of parameters by country and customer segment. This means that, on the new e-commerce platform, someone who is sporty, adventurous, and has an eye for design will see different content and journeys than, say, someone with a different psychographic profile, such as an 鈥渋nformation seeker.鈥�

Accurate and Secure Consent Management Built In

麻豆原创 Customer Data Cloud and 麻豆原创 Commerce Cloud form the backbone for authenticating and verifying customers and for managing customer consent. The 麻豆原创 Customer Identity and Access Management solutions help ensure that all customer consent statements relating to being contacted or to personal data being processed are handled accurately and securely and 鈥� most importantly 鈥� in compliance with GDPR (the EU General Data Protection Regulation).

The major advantage of 麻豆原创 Customer Data Cloud is that it records all customer data centrally, including conventional data like the personal 鈥渟mart ID鈥� that identifies any smart customer at any touchpoint and relevant product data as well. The digital key is an example of how this data can be used: owners of an all-electric smart can opt for a digital key to operate their car and can even share the key with friends via an app. The vehicle-locking mechanism, consent to the transfer of data, and so on are managed on the central platform.

鈥淭his shows that the new platform is much more than a marketing and sales tool,鈥� says Schick. 鈥淚t is practically part of the product.鈥�

Enhanced 360-Degree View Supports New Business Models

More product data comes from the 麻豆原创 Digital Vehicle Hub application, which serves as the digital twin of any smart car. The application contains not only technical data about a vehicle, but also provides insight into wearing parts that need replacing and about driver behavior. Connecting these two layers, customer data and product data 鈥� each of which allows a panoramic view of their object 鈥� creates 360-degree visibility into both the customer and their vehicle. This in turn opens the door to scores of new digital services, product enhancements, and personalized customer offerings.

鈥淗aving opportunities like this on the horizon makes working with 麻豆原创 particularly compelling,鈥� says Schick. 鈥淲e鈥檙e on an innovation journey, interacting closely with 麻豆原创 on what else the solutions might be able to do in the future.鈥� smart Europe鈥檚 aim is to deliver on its vision of becoming an urban companion for its target market 鈥� for all of their vehicle-related service needs.

鈥淥ur motto is 鈥榯ry, learn, adjust, repeat!鈥欌�� says Schick. 鈥淲ith that in mind, we鈥檒l keep moving steadily along the road to our destination 鈥� but always be ready to change lanes if we need to.鈥�

Top image courtesy of smart Europe.