Salesforce released the fifth edition of its State of the Connected Customer report that shares insights from nearly 17,000 consumers and business buyers across 29 counties, including 650 individuals from India, on the new digital-first customer engagement landscape.
Key insights of this year’s State of the Connected Customer report include:
- A trust-based economy has emerged. As customers navigate a rapidly changing world, questions of trust, values, and integrity are increasingly impacting their relationships with companies. 92% of respondents in India believe that trust becomes important in times of change
- Digital acceleration is sparking demand for personalisation at scale. Customer engagement is decidedly digital-first, but brands are under pressure to merge online and offline interactions into a personalised experience as in-person interaction re-emerges. 80% of respondents in India have purchased products in new ways since 2020.
- New realities are testing brand loyalties. As priorities and behaviours shift, established brand loyalties are undergoing tests of strength. 72% of consumers have switched brands at least once in the past year.
Arun Kumar Parmeswaran, SVP and MD (Sales and Distribution) Salesforce India, said, “Be it a consumer or a business buyer, organisations need to understand individual customers to earn, build and maintain ‘Trust’ which is the ultimate currency of customer engagement.”