Shruti Shukla articles

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Shruti Shukla
Group Product Marketing Manager, Business Apps and Global Industries
Published 
3 min read

Zero-party data is more valuable than ever for customer experiences 

The new era of digital has ushered in a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, as well as make-or-break challenges. Fast-moving organizations are seizing the moment to capture a sizable audience. But keeping customers is more difficult than ever. Organizations, facing mounting privacy regulations coupled with wary customers, are moving beyond third-party data to zero-party data for powering customer
Published 
4 min read

The most important customer experience metrics (that you’re not tracking yet) 

Marketing professionals go to great lengths to understand customers. Detailed personas are written to identify the motivations, interests, and buying patterns of prospects and customers. But all too often, these personas—and their resulting customer journeys—are informed by data points important to the organization, not the customer. You cannot claim to be customer-centric, customer-first, or customer-obsessed

Create a sense of purpose with hyper-personalized experiences 

Volunteers and donors are the lifeblood of the non-profit world. Their contribution is often immeasurable, with life-changing impact to the individuals and communities they help. Although they should be treated the same way as a valued customer, in reality, they encounter less than inspiring experiences. The moment they opt-in, or donate time or money, they
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3 min read

Customer journey orchestration: The next frontier of connected experiences 

A decade ago, marketing was focused on guiding the customer through predictable stages of awareness, consideration, and purchase. We were relatively assured that if we reached x number of eyeballs, we could expect y number of responses and z number of conversions. That world no longer exists. Eighty-one percent of consumers1 want to purchase from
Published 
4 min read

Top 3 customer data platform trends for 2021 

Despite significant headwinds in 2020—a global pandemic, economic downturn, and technology budgets clipped—customer data platform (CDP) growth is booming. Businesses are charging full steam ahead on digital transformation efforts as their customers have dramatically moved toward online channels. According to a McKinsey Global Survey of executives, organizations across sectors and geographies are likely to report

The power of CDPs: building customer trust and loyalty in retail 

Truly engaged, always connected The events of 2020 have left a lasting impact on the retail industry and retailers are fueling rapid innovation with development and rollout of new technologies. The global pandemic has shifted how customers buy, as well as renewed recognition of the critical value of technology to customers. Convenience, flexibility, and personalization

Unify ecosystem-wide data with a flexible customer data platform 

In today’s digital economy, delivering an exceptional customer experience across every touchpoint has quickly become a competitive differentiator. Most organizations realize if they hope to remain successful they must effectively leverage the vast amounts of data available to them in order to support the personalized engagement that customers expect. According to McKinsey, organizations that harness

Connecting patient journeys and personalizing healthcare with Microsoft CDP 

Customer data platforms (CDP) aim at helping improve business outcomes in many industries—from delivering better brand experiences in retail and consumer goods to optimizing engagement and fundraising for nonprofits. In the healthcare space, gaining a 360-degree view of the patient and having a unified view of health records, past interactions, and communication preferences empowers front-line support

Retail perspectives, pt. 2: rethink customer experiences 

Customer experience is more important now than ever before. The coronavirus pandemic has forced consumers to adopt new habits, reevaluate priorities, and shift consumption. Increasingly, transactions have moved online, and companies are limited to virtual engagement. Buying trends are changing rapidly as consumers face many uncertainties and at the same time expect brands to react

What’s in store for retail with the customer data platform 

According to industry analysts, 2020 will bring exciting innovations that promise to reshape the retail industry. Let’s take a look at the opportunities and explore the data challenges resulting from these trends. Augmented reality (AR) takes the stage Technology is catching up with expectations, with second generation augmented reality tools that make the technology more
Published 
2 min read

Nonprofits optimize donor engagement with Dynamics 365 Customer Insights 

Nonprofit organizations rely on donors and volunteers to sustain and expand their missions. But they must compete with other nonprofits for the contributions of these valuable supporters. To secure and retain necessary funds and resources, nonprofits must appeal to the interests of their supporters. Some are interested in improving children’s health, while others want to