With a bombardment of technologies hitting the loyalty marketing space every day, there exists a temptation for brands to spread themselves too thin in trying to leverage too many of these tools at once. Often, however, the key to engaging customers lies in the opposite approach: Simplifying customer experience to the core of the brand promise, and leveraging that identity to create loyalty.
In line with this thinking, brand strategy firm Siegel+Gale released its annual Global Brand Simplicity Index, ranking brands according to the simplicity of their customer experience efforts.
The index was created as a result of the direct correlation between simplicity and success of customer experience.
“Our seventh Global Brand Simplicity Index demonstrates more powerfully than ever that brands that embrace simplicity are more profitable,” said Howard Belk, co-CEO and chief creative officer, Siegel+Gale. “The research shows that businesses that haven’t been providing a simpler customer experience have left an estimated $86 billion on the table! Ignoring that kind of ROI is crazy.”
Topping the chart for a fourth straight year is grocery chain ALDI, a distinctly minimalistic brand focused on a streamlined experience at lowest possible prices. Rounding out the top five were Lidl, Google, Netflix, and IKEA.
The benefits of a simplistic customer experience are both plentiful and measurable: 64 percent of surveyed shoppers indicated that they would pay more money for simpler experiences, while 61 percent said they would be more likely to recommend a simple brand.
Streamlined CX is a core tenet of leaders within the space, and market disruptors are leveraging this opportunity now more than ever before. As a result, startups are honing the customer experience to focus on what sets them apart from more established brands in the space.
“Disrupter brands possess a common characteristic—they place simplicity at the core of their customer experience,” said David Srere, co-CEO and chief strategy officer, Siegel+Gale. “The recent billion-dollar acquisitions of Dollar Shave Club and Jet.com are further proof that simplicity drives brand loyalty and financial gain.”
For companies looking to drive unique customer experience, sometimes the answer isn’t the latest and greatest in technology, but rather finding a core identity and leveraging it to find customer engagement.