WHY IT MATTERS: Digital Transformation

Technology is the future of customer experience. These statistics show the grow of new technology and how it impacts everything about the future of customer experience.

The golden era of AI is here. But how can organizations best harness the technology and integrate it seamlessly into their CRM? This MIT report explores the next-gen powers of AI for CRM. Download the whitepaper for a deep dive on how Salesforce Platform, embedded with Einstein, turns customer data into predictive insights to deliver the most personalized, intelligent experiences for both customers and employees.

Daisy Intelligence is one such artificial intelligence vendor. The Toronto-based company focuses on retail merchandise planning: promotion, pricing and demand forecasting optimization. We spoke with Gary Saarenvirta, CEO of Daisy Intelligence with the intention of finding answers to the following questions:
Why might grocery vendors or supermarkets need AI?
How can retailers leverage AI for optimizing merchandising decision making?

Majority of websites are generic, one-size-fits-all, and unvarying. And email isn’t much better with manual input, static cadences, and fixed content. Marketers and audiences deserve better, though. As big data, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, and deep learning become larger influences and more attainable, now is the time for digital marketers to seize upon the potential these technologies offer. Brands can now build custom on-site and email experiences for individuals that are automated and personalized by incorporating predictive modeling, journey mapping, and algorithms.

The most anticipated slide deck of the year is here. Key takeaways:

• Global smartphone growth is slowing: Smartphone shipments grew 3 percent year over year last year, versus 10 percent the year before. This is in addition to continued slowing internet growth, which Meeker discussed last year.
• Voice is beginning to replace typing in online queries. Twenty percent of mobile queries were made via voice in 2016, while accuracy is now about 95 percent.
• In 10 years, Netflix went from 0 to more than 30 percent of home entertainment revenue in the U.S. This is happening while TV viewership continues to decline.
• Entrepreneurs are often fans of gaming, Meeker said, quoting Elon Musk, Reid Hoffman and Mark Zuckerberg. Global interactive gaming is becoming mainstream, with 2.6 billion gamers in 2017 versus 100 million in 1995. Global gaming revenue is estimated to be around $100 billion in 2016, and China is now the top market for interactive gaming.
• China remains a fascinating market, with huge growth in mobile services and payments and services like on-demand bike sharing. (More here: The highlights of Meeker's China slides.)
• While internet growth is slowing globally, that’s not the case in India, the fastest growing large economy. The number of internet users in India grew more than 28 percent in 2016. That’s only 27 percent online penetration, which means there’s lots of room for internet usership to grow. Mobile internet usage is growing as the cost of bandwidth declines. (More here: The highlights of Meeker's India slides.)
• In the U.S. in 2016, 60 percent of the most highly valued tech companies were founded by first- or second-generation Americans and are responsible for 1.5 million employees. Those companies include tech titans Apple, Alphabet, Amazon and Facebook.
• Healthcare: Wearables are gaining adoption with about 25 percent of Americans owning one, up 12 percent from 2016. Leading tech brands are well-positioned in the digital health market, with 60 percent of consumers willing to share their health data with the likes of Google in 2016.

• 70% of retail decision makers globally are ready to adopt the Internet of Things to improve customer experiences.
• 73% of retailers rate managing big data as important or business-critical to their operations.
• 78% of retailers say it is important or business-critical to integrate e-commerce and in-store experiences, so an omnichannel experience is delivered to every customer.
• 87% of retailers will deploy mobile point-of-sale (MPOS) devices by 2021, enabling them to scan and accept credit or debit payments anywhere in the store.
• 90% of retailers will implement buy online, pickup in store by 2021.