Transforming customer experience at scale: Deploying salesforce service cloud to modernize U.S. retail operations

<p>This research aims to analuze the effect of customer relationship management (CRM) and customer experience on repurchase intention through customer satisfaction as intervening variable in Antavaya Bali. This research uses quantitative research methods with survey approach. Research data was collected through distributing qestionnaries to customers of Antavaya Bali through social media with total of 100 respondents. The data analysis was carried out using smartPLS SEM v4.0 to test the relationship between independent, dependent, and intervening variable. The result showed CRM has significant effect on repurchase intention directly, while CRM hasn’t significant effect on customer satisfaction to reach repurchase intention. Customer experience hasn’t significant effect on repurchase intention directly, while customer experience has significant effect on customer satisfaction to reach repurchase intention. Customer satisfaction has significant effect on repurchase intention. This research shows improvement of CRM and customer experience can trigger the increase in customer satisfaction which affect the increase of repurchase intention. Therefore, Antavaya Bali advised to provide employee training on effective communication and responsiveness to customer needs, establish feedback system to gather customer input, and making membership system, also do a survey for customer’s experiences after travel with Antavaya Bali, so they know their customers are satisfied or not.<strong></strong></p><p><strong><em>Keywords</em></strong> – Customer Relationship Management, Customer Experience, Customer Satisfaction, Repurchase Intention, Quantitative Method, Antavaya Bali</p>

The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) with big data analytics leads to substantial transformations in the retail sector. This research explores the impact of AI-powered image recognition checkout systems on the retail industry, focusing on operational efficiency, customer experience, and resource waste. Employing a mixed-methods approach, this study combines usability testing and data analytics to assess the viability of this technology in attaining automation and accuracy in retail operations. The study focuses on the creation of robust, resource-efficient systems that foster long-term industrial growth. The findings show that AI-powered solutions not only speed the checkout process but also contribute to sustainable infrastructure by reducing resource consumption and increasing energy efficiency. This report offers significant information, like the impact of AI-powered image recognition checkout systems on operational efficiency, customer experience, and the role of AI in promoting sustainable infrastructure for retailers and governments looking to advance the digitalization of the retail industry.

The evolution of the digital economy has significantly influenced Customer Relationship Management (CRM), reshaping business strategies across industries. This study explores the development and challenges of CRM implementation during 2010–2024, with a focus on its adoption by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Employing a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) guided by the PRISMA framework, 36 scholarly articles were analyzed to identify trends, obstacles, and outcomes associated with CRM in the digital economy. Findings reveal a steady increase in CRM adoption, particularly among SMEs, driven by advancements in electronic CRM (E-CRM) systems and the COVID-19 pandemic’s acceleration of digital transformation. Empirical data highlights that over 60% of Indonesian SMEs adopting CRM experienced a 20% sales increase within a year. Moreover, CRM implementation has enhanced customer loyalty by 25% and reduced marketing costs by 10% in European markets. However, significant challenges persist, including high implementation costs, inadequate technological readiness, and rising cybersecurity threats. For instance, cyberattacks targeting CRM systems have decreased customer trust by up to 15%. The study concludes that while CRM significantly boosts operational efficiency, customer satisfaction, and business innovation, addressing implementation barriers is crucial for its broader adoption. It recommends enhanced government and institutional support to provide SMEs with access to CRM technologies and training. The findings underscore CRM's critical role in fostering competitive advantages and call for future research to examine its long-term impacts in developing economies.

The development of the digital economy provides new challenges for the retail sector, especially in stock management. Accurate stock management is a key factor in improving operational efficiency and minimizing the risk of overstock and understock. This research aims to optimize stock forecasting in retail businesses in Bali using the Weighted Moving Average (WMA) method. WMA gives greater weight to the most recent data in order to forecast future demand for goods. Sales data from 2017 to 2021 was collected and used as the basis for forecasting. The forecasting process was conducted for several products, including Dolphin and Dua Kelinci. The results show that WMA is able to provide accurate predictions, especially for products with stable demand patterns. For Dolphin products, the WMA forecast for January 2024 predicted a demand of 14.8 units, with a Mean Absolute Deviation (MAD) of 3.64. Dua Kelinci products, however, experienced more fluctuations in demand, with a forecasted January 2024 demand of 7.6 units and a MAD of 4.3. Despite some variations, WMA proved to be more accurate compared to simpler methods like Simple Moving Average (SMA). By using WMA, retailers can more efficiently manage stock, improve customer satisfaction, and reduce the risk of overstocking or understocking. This research confirms the importance of integrating advanced forecasting methods in supporting the competitiveness of the retail sector in the digital economy era.

Purpose: This paper examines whether customer experience has an influence on customer loyalty in a multichannel banking environment. Design/Method/Approach: The study used a sample of 466 bank customers in Durban, South Africa. Data from the survey of the bank customers was analysed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM), and a theoretical model was created and empirically tested. Findings: The study findings indicate that the relationship between customer experience and customer loyalty is mediated by service quality and customer satisfaction. The theoretical model developed indicates that customer loyalty can be achieved by improving customer experiences, enhancing service quality and improving customer satisfaction. Theoretical Implications: The study enhances theoretical understanding by demonstrating that the relationship between customer experience and loyalty is mediated by service quality and customer satisfaction. It highlights the importance of viewing customer experience as a multidimensional construct in multichannel banking. Practical Implications: The findings suggest that banks can improve customer loyalty by enhancing customer experience through better service quality and satisfaction. This requires integrating digital and traditional service channels and continuously improving customer touchpoints. Originality/Value: The success of service companies depends on their ability to build a loyal customer base, which can be achieved by delivering customer experiences that blend the different channels. Research Limitations/Future Research: The implication is that banks must exploit ways of improving customer experience as well as leveraging on customer satisfaction and service quality to enhance loyalty. Paper Type: Empirical JEL Classification: D12, G21, L81, M31

As competition in the global furniture retail industry intensifies, IKEA is a leading brand attracting attention for its innovative design, affordable prices and unique shopping experience. In order to enhance customer experience and strengthen brand value, IKEA needs to focus on the effectiveness of media marketing strategies and improve customer satisfaction. This study adopts inductive reasoning and quantitative research methods to analyse IKEA's media marketing strategies and make recommendations to improve customer experience. The study analyses the different marketing strategies used by IKEA and their impact on customer experience, and through data collection and analysis, identifies the most effective strategies to attract, retain and improve customer satisfaction. In addition, the research delves into how IKEA utilises social media, TV commercials, online advertisements and its own websites and apps for marketing campaigns, providing recommendations on best practices in media marketing. In addition, the study analyses IKEA's brand positioning, consumer targeting and communication strategies to understand its unique marketing approach and success factors. Based on these findings, recommendations are made to improve customer experience, optimise marketing strategies, strengthen IKEA's brand positioning, increase customer satisfaction and drive business growth. This study provides practical insights for IKEA and marketing practitioners by analysing in-depth research on IKEA's media marketing strategy and customer experience improvement, which is important for media marketing strategy and customer experience research. In addition, the results of the study are a catalyst for development, innovation and progress in the furniture retailing industry.

In today's competitive business landscape, customer relationship management (CRM) systems have evolved into critical platforms for data-driven marketing intelligence. Recent advances in CRM-driven marketing intelligence have enabled organizations to shift from reactive to predictive strategies, thereby enhancing conversion rates and optimizing customer lifetime value (CLV) models. This transformation is fueled by the integration of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and advanced analytics, which allow for the continuous aggregation, segmentation, and interpretation of complex customer data. With these technologies, marketers can develop hyper-personalized campaigns, conduct real-time behavioral tracking, and deploy dynamic content tailored to individual customer journeys. Moreover, CRM platforms are increasingly being integrated with omnichannel communication tools, enabling consistent and context-aware engagement across touchpoints. These capabilities not only improve customer acquisition efficiency but also foster long-term loyalty and retention. Furthermore, CLV modeling has become more robust with predictive insights that factor in churn probability, upsell potential, and engagement metrics. As organizations gain deeper insights into the drivers of customer behavior and profitability, they can allocate resources more effectively and refine their value propositions. However, successful implementation requires overcoming challenges related to data silos, privacy concerns, and the alignment of marketing and IT teams. Overall, the synergy between CRM systems and marketing intelligence represents a significant advancement in customer-centric marketing strategies. By leveraging these innovations, firms can build sustainable competitive advantages through improved decision-making, targeted messaging, and enhanced customer experiences. The ongoing evolution of CRM-driven intelligence is poised to redefine how businesses perceive and cultivate value throughout the customer lifecycle. This review explains the strategic and technological underpinnings of CRM-enhanced marketing intelligence and its growing impact on performance metrics such as conversion rates and lifetime value in the digital economy.

Social media advertising has become an essential digital marketing strategy for influencing customer decision-making and enhancing organizational value in a rapidly evolving digital economy. The relationship between social media advertising, customer experience, and organizational performance has attracted increasing attention from academics and practitioners, especially in relation to emotional and psychological influences on consumer behavior. This study investigates the effect of social media advertising on customer experience and organizational performance, incorporating the mediating role of social anxiety. A mixed-method research design was adopted, combining structured questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. Data were collected from 180 social media users and 10 marketing professionals from retail, telecommunications, and e-commerce sectors, of which 162 responses were valid for quantitative analysis using SPSS. Findings revealed that social media advertising significantly enhances customer experience and has a positive effect on overall organizational performance. Correlation and regression analyses confirmed statistically significant relationships between advertising effectiveness and customer experience (r=0.711, p <0.01), and between customer experience and organizational performance (r=0.694, p<0.01). Social anxiety partially mediated the relationship between advertising and customer experience, suggesting that emotional sensitivity impacts how consumers interpret promotional messages. The study offers theoretical and practical implications for emotionally responsible advertising and sustainable digital brand strategies.

Background: The digital transformation imperative has accelerated organisational change, compelling micro-, small- and medium-enterprises (MSMEs) to rapidly integrate digital marketing with e-commerce and supply chain operations. Aim: This study investigated how the integration of digital marketing strategies with e-commerce supply chain operations enhances customer experience and marketing performance among South African MSMEs in the post-coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) digital economy. Setting: This study focused on 244 MSMEs in South Africa’s four largest cities. Method: A quantitative design employing confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modelling (SEM) tested six hypotheses examining relationships among digital marketing, e-commerce supply chain, customer experience and marketing performance. Results: All hypotheses were supported. Digital marketing significantly influenced e-commerce supply chain operations, customer experience and marketing performance (β = 0.89). E-commerce supply chains significantly affected customer experience and marketing performance. Customer experience has demonstrated a strong influence on marketing performance. Conclusion: This study extends the diffusion of innovation theory (DOI) by demonstrating how diffusion of innovation attributes – relative advantage, compatibility and observability – manifest in MSME digital adoption within developing economies. The findings of this study reveal that strategic integration, rather than mere adoption, of digital marketing with e-commerce supply chains creates synergistic effects that amplify both customer experience and marketing performance. Contribution: This study uniquely demonstrates that integrated digital marketing and supply chain digitalisation produce synergistic effects on customer experience and marketing performance, exceeding isolated adoption outcomes – providing empirical evidence that strategic integration, rather than resource intensity, drives competitive advantage for emerging market MSMEs.

digitAl eConomy As digitAl inFrAstruCture a first step is to get clear on what we are talking about: what is meant by ' digital economy'?For the purposes of this chapter, the digital economy is understood as consisting of those companies that produce infrastructure goods, which are provided or accessed online. 1 in a slogan, the digital economy is the digital infrastructure.consider some examples.amazon is not only a retail operation but an online marketplace and fulfilment company.Google and Facebook, through their advertising networks, allow companies to track and influence customers.cloud computing companies offer backend services like database hosting, fraud detection, code analysis, or budget management.microsoft and others sell their software 'as a service'.Whether it is office apps, Youtube, netflix, spotify or apple music -the digital economy provides diverse resources for businesses' backend operations and the private production of leisure.in short, the digital economy should be thought of as infrastructure that is provided or accessed online.the digital economy fits the three conditions of what it means for a resource to be an 'infrastructure' (Frischmann, 2013, p. 61).First, the resources can be consumed non-rivalrously.second, the 'demand for the resource is driven primarily by downstream productive activity that requires the resource as an input'.third, the 'resource may be used as an input into a wide range of goods and services, which may include private goods, public goods and social goods'.moreover, the digital economy exhibits key features of infrastructures as they are investigated by infrastructure 1 this chapter benefited from detailed comments by and thoughtful discussions with lisa Herzog, seth lazar and

Learning outcomes Upon completion of this case study, students will be able to describe the core tenets of customer experience, the customer journey and touchpoints; create customer journey maps incorporating emotional mapping; explain the importance of social media listening, response and service recovery; apply social media analytics in enhancing customer experience; apply the expectation–confirmation paradigm to explain customer satisfaction, dissatisfaction and intention to reuse; and analyse the implications of customer expectations and perceptions and evaluate the challenges of delivering customer experience excellence in a digitized and online world. Case overview/synopsis Air India embarked on a transformation journey under the Tata Group to compete and lead the dynamic aviation market in not only India but also globally. The market environment was upbeat with the launch of a new global brand identity, huge orders for new planes, technology integration and an enhanced customer experience promise. Despite visible positives and growth in market share, Air India faced significant challenges in delivering a consistent, frictionless experience and was falling short of meeting customer expectations. The airline continued to receive mixed feedback from customers, regulatory notices from DGCA (Directorate General of Civil Aviation), poor reviews on third-party websites and a lot of customer angst on social media. While the brand underwent a visual overhaul and introduced various customer-centric initiatives such as the use of AI for real-time customer support, branded uniforms, amenities and enhanced in-flight services, these efforts did not fully translate into improved customer satisfaction on ground. The challenge for Air India was balancing the long-term strategic objectives, focusing on growth and responding to the current customer experience. Complexity academic level This case is suitable for undergraduate/MBA and executive education students. Supplementary material Teaching notes are available for educators only. Subject code CSS8: Marketing.

The emergence of “experience” as another forms of business offerings (Pine and Gilmore, 1999) and the failure of implementing customer relationship management to create the expected levels of value for customers and profitability for organizations (Palmer, 2010; Barnes, 2002) have prompted the practitioners and academic scholars to explore the successor of customer relationship management, which is known as customer experience. Pine and Gilmore (1999) asserted that companies need to create memorable experiences to each customer for the purpose of generating greater economic value in the experience-based economy, instead of simply making goods and delivering services to the customers (Kim, Cha, Knutson and Beck, 2011). For the purpose of creating differentiated and memorable customer experience, this research paper would like to evaluate the direct and indirect relationship between social environment and customer experience (including sensory experience, emotional experience and social experience). A total of 330 respondents participate in this research. The findings revealed thatsocial environment is related to the sensory experience and emotional experience respectively.Furthermore, the research findings also concluded the interactive relationships between the dimensions of the customer experience: (1) the sensory experience is positively related to the emotional experience; (2) the emotional experience is positively related to the social experience; and (3) the sensory experience is positively related to the social experience.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) practices have emerged as transformative strategies globally, improving customer satisfaction, loyalty, and retention. However, CRM adoption and impact in India's dairy sector remain under-researched. This study investigates current CRM practices, identifies challenges, and discusses strategic implications for the Indian dairy industry. Key findings reveal that CRM practices like customer data management, sales force automation, and customer service management significantly contribute to improved customer satisfaction, loyalty, and operational efficiency. However, technological, economic, and infrastructural barriers hinder CRM adoption in India. The study emphasizes the importance of data-driven decision-making, continuous improvement, and integrated technology solutions for optimizing CRM implementation. CRM is crucial for building competitive advantage and enhancing supply chain resilience in the Indian dairy sector. The findings provide valuable insights for policymakers, business leaders, and researchers, emphasizing the need for customer-centric, technologically integrated, and culturally sensitive CRM strategies to drive the growth and sustainability of the Indian dairy industry. DOI: https://doi.org/10.52783/pst.1101

PurposeThis paper aims to critically assess the conceptual validity of customer experience as a construct and propose a model which integrates inter‐personal relationships, service quality and brands.Design/methodology/approachA critical review of literature is structured around the key components of brands, relationships, quality, emotions and perceptions, viewed from a consumer's perspective.FindingsParadoxes in use of the term customer experience are noted. As a verb, experience describes a process of learning, leading to learned response, but as a noun emphasises novelty and the lack of predictable, learned response. By incorporating emotions and perceptual distortion over time, customer experience overcomes many problems associated with static, partial measures of service quality.Research limitations/implicationsAcademic coverage of the subject of customer experience remains fragmented. Approaches to its measurement are suggested and their limitations noted. The multi‐dimensional, situation‐specific nature of customer experience favours qualitative rather than quantitative measurement approaches.Practical implicationsThe unique nature of customer experience, which is specific to a customer, at a specific time and location, in the context of a specific event, limits its managerial usefulness for planning and control purposes. Many companies have seen customer experience management (CEM) as a successor to customer relationship management (CRM). However, issues of inter‐functional integration become an even greater challenge.Originality/valueThis paper has provided a critical review of an emerging topic and suggested that despite academic interest in the concept, practical application of customer experience management may be difficult to achieve.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) platforms are undergoing a fundamental transformation driven by rapid advancements in Artificial Intelligence (AI). Modern CRM systems are no longer limited to transactional data storage or rule-based automation; instead, they are evolving into intelligent, adaptive ecosystems capable of predictive decision-making, autonomous workflows, and real-time personalization. This paper examines future trends shaping AI-driven CRM ecosystems, with a particular focus on machine learning, generative AI, autonomous agents, real-time analytics, and ethical AI governance. The study analyzes emerging architectural patterns, evolving use cases, and enterprise challenges associated with scalability, trust, and regulatory compliance. By synthesizing academic research and industry practices, the paper proposes a future-ready AI-CRM ecosystem model that supports intelligent customer engagement, operational efficiency, and strategic decision-making. The findings highlight how AI will redefine CRM from a supporting system into a core digital intelligence layer for enterprises. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is rapidly transforming Customer Relationship Management (CRM) platforms from transactional systems into intelligent, predictive, and autonomous enterprise ecosystems. Modern CRM solutions are no longer limited to data storage and workflow automation; instead, they are evolving into AI-driven decision platforms capable of real-time personalization, predictive analytics, and autonomous service orchestration. This paper explores future trends in AI-driven CRM ecosystems with a focused analysis on leading enterprise platforms such as Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics 365, and SAP CRM. The study examines architectural evolution, embedded AI capabilities, data integration patterns, ethical considerations, and emerging technologies such as generative AI, autonomous agents, and industry-specific CRM intelligence. By synthesizing platform capabilities and future directions, this paper provides a structured framework for understanding how AI will shape next-generation CRM systems.