New Delhi: Companies can derive value from big data by effectively managing customer relationships and safeguarding their trust, said John Rose, senior partner and managing director, the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), New York, at EmTech India 2017, a conference on emerging technologies organized by Mint and MIT Technology Review in New Delhi on 9-10 March.
Addressing the event, Rose said, “Half or more customers do not trust the companies or entities they bank or shop with, in the context of their personal data.”
Rose, who is the former global leader of technology, media and telecommunications practice at BCG and became a BCG Fellow in 2014, has been working on helping companies foster trust among their consumers in order to gain access to—and unlock value from—the ever-widening stream of complex, fast-moving Big Data that is generated online.
His presentation at EmTech focused on how customer trust matters in Big Data and how the misuse or perceived misuse of customer data can lead to financial and reputational damage for brands.
“Trust is not a generational issue; it is important for consumers of all ages,” said Rose.
According to a study he cited, the lack of alignment between companies and consumers about data privacy has real consequences. When consumers perceive data misuse—when they are unpleasantly surprised by the collection or new use of personal data—they either reduce their spending drastically or boycott a company’s products and services altogether, the study noted.
“There is around 33% drop in spending during the first year when US consumers perceive a data misuse. Out of the 33% customers, 18% totally stop spending whereas the remaining 15% reduce spending,” he cited from his findings.
Explaining the consumers’ perspective on privacy and data usage, Rose said, “Consumers take a wider and much less legalistic approach to these issues.”
“They want to be informed about how companies gather and safeguard data about them, and they want to understand the different ways in which companies use personal data. Additionally, they want that information delivered in clear language,” she added.
