Customer Experience Strategies for IKEA: A Detailed Report

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of IKEA's customer experience strategy. It begins by defining IKEA's value proposition, emphasizing its brand image, customer experience, and product offerings. The report then explores how IKEA utilizes this value proposition and identifies its key customer demographics, including age, gender, education, and income. It delves into the KPMG Customer Experience Model, critically applying its six pillars—integrity, resolution, expectations, time and effort, personalization, and empathy—to IKEA's operations. The report also examines the implications of digital disruption on IKEA's customer experience, highlighting the need for digital transformation and improved customer engagement. Finally, it concludes with strategic recommendations aimed at enhancing IKEA's customer experience, benefiting both customers and the organization by leveraging digital technologies and personalized services to improve satisfaction and loyalty. The report aims to provide a detailed understanding of how IKEA can improve customer experience.

Customer Experience

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................1
Value Proposition.........................................................................................................................1
Use of Value Proposition.............................................................................................................2
Use of demographics in the identification of the customers........................................................2
Customer Experience Model........................................................................................................3
Critical application of the Customer Experience Model..............................................................4
Implications of the Digital Disruption.........................................................................................5
Strategic Recommendations.........................................................................................................6
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................7

INTRODUCTION
Customer Experience refers to the experience which the customers can have in the
different areas which therefore can lead towards ensuring that they are able to effectively and
efficiently manage the wide range of needs and requirements in a proper manner (Bolton and
et.al., 2018). Thus, In this way it can be said that for the organizations it becomes quite crucial
that they are able to manage it in the right manner which will be quite helpful in the enhancement
of the overall level of efficiency and effectiveness. For this report, IKEA has been selected. It is
a company which focuses on providing of a wide range of products and services to the customers
effectively and efficiently. In this assignment, focus will be made on the ways in which the
customer experience can be managed within an organization and the way in which the
enhancement of the customer experience can be done.
MAIN BODY
Value Proposition
Value Proposition refers to the promise of value which can be given to the organization
which can be helpful in ensuring that the customers are able to ensure that they can receive a
better value from the organization effectively and efficiently in the right manner (Fernandes and
Pinto, 2019). In the context of IKEA, it is important that the Value Proposition is considered
which will be helpful in ensuring that the company is able to manage its wide range of needs and
requirements effectively and efficiently in a proper manner.
In the company, the focus is put on delivering those products to the customers which can
ensure that they can receive a higher-level of value on the money which they are paying for the
products in the right manner. The elements of the Value Proposition of the company is explained
as follows-
Brand- It refers to the Brand Image of the organization (Havíř, 2017). In the context of
IKEA, it is quite important that it builds out its Brand Image in a proper manner which will be
quite helpful in ensuring that the wide range of customers can be targeted by the company.
Experience- It refers to the experience of the customers (Hoyer and et.al., 2020). In
IKEA, it is crucial that the customers are provided with the best experience which can be quite
helpful for them to be able to ensure that they can invest their money in the right manner in the
organization.
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Product- It means the products which are provided to the customers (Kandampully,
Zhang and Jaakkola, 2018). In the context of IKEA, it is crucial that the customers are provided
with a wide range of products which can be quite helpful for them in ensuring that they are able
to select a particular product which is able to provide them the desired level of value in the right
manner.
Use of Value Proposition
The use of Value Proposition can be made in a proper manner in the organizations by
ensuring that the customers are provided the desired value in the right manner effectively and
efficiently which will help out in ensuring the attainment of the goals and objectives (Khan and
et.al., 2020). The Value Proposition can help IKEA in delivering the customer experience in the
following manner-
Brand- IKEA can focus on enhancing its Brand Image in particular which can help it in
ensuring that it is able to target a wide range of customers in a proper manner. Thus the company
will be able to target more customers in this manner effectively and efficiently. The enhancement
of Brand Image in the organization can be done by ensuring that the company launches its
aggressive promotional modes so that it is able to achieve its short-term, medium-term and long-
term goals and objectives.
Experience- IKEA can focus on ensuring that the customer experience is improved
through providing them valuable products and ensuring that they receive the best value for their
money in a proper manner. In this way, the company can ensure that it is able to provide the
customers with the best experience and thus help them a lot in enhancing their overall
satisfaction level in the right manner.
Product- IKEA can ensure that it is able to provide the best products to its customers
which will be quite helpful in ensuring that the company is able to maximize its potential in the
right manner quite effectively and efficiently.
Use of demographics in the identification of the customers
Demographics refer to the various types of factors which can be used in the right manner
in order to ensure that the statistical conclusions and recommendations can be drawn in a proper
manner (McLean, Al-Nabhani and Wilson, 2018). In the context of IKEA, the use of following
demographical factors can be made-
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Age- It is an important demographic factor. Most of the important customers of IKEA are
the younger customers who like to purchase its products and want that innovative products can
be provided to them in the right manner.
Gender- It is also an important demographic factor. IKEA is a company whose most of
the customers are male because they have a higher-level of demand for the electronic items
which are provided by the company and provide the required value to the company.
Education- It is a key demographic factor (McLean, 2017). In the context of IKEA, its
main customers are the people who are highly-educated and thus in this way this can help a lot in
ensuring that the company can target these particular customers in the right manner by providing
them with the right products which can satisfy them.
Income- It is also an important demographic factor. The main customers of IKEA are the
people who have a higher-level of income which can help in ensuring that they be targeted
through providing them premium products which can enhance their overall satisfaction level in
the right manner.
Experience- It is a crucial demographic factor. In IKEA, it becomes quite important the
management of the customer experience can be done in a proper manner which will be quite
helpful in ensuring that the wide range of customers can be targeted. This will be very helpful for
the companies in targeting the customers and ensuring that the maximization of the overall
profitability level can be done.
Customer Experience Model
KPMG's Customer Experience Model is an important framework which is required to be
considered by the different types of organizations so that they are able to make sure that they can
effectively and efficiently identify a wide range of needs and requirements of the different types
of customers and use them in a proper manner so that these particular customers can be targeted
which will be helpful in enhancing the overall profitability level (Pekovic and Rolland, 2020). In
the context of IKEA, it becomes quite important that the use of this particular model can be made
so that the company is able to ensure that it can use appropriate strategies and techniques in the
right manner which will help in targeting the achievement of the short-term, medium-term and
long-term goals and objectives.
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Critical application of the Customer Experience Model
The critical application of KPMG's Customer Experience Model can be done in the
organization so that the company is able to ensure that the customer experience can be enhanced
in a proper manner effectively and efficiently. The application of the six pillars of the model can
be done for IKEA in the following manner-
Integrity- It is an important element in the pillars of the customer experience (Roy and
et.al., 2017). There has to be a mutual trust between both the customers and the organization.
This can be quite helpful in ensuring that the both of them are able to create a trust on each other.
In IKEA, this can be quite helpful in ensuring that the customers and the organization are able to
mutually trust each other in a proper manner.
Resolution- It is also an important element in the customer experience. In the context of
IKEA, it is quite important that the customers are provided that the best experience which can be
highly helpful for them in targeting higher-level of profitability.
Expectations- It is an important factor in the customer experience. In IKEA, it becomes
very important that the customers of the organization are provided details about the expectations
and the way these particular expectations can be fulfilled in the right manner. This will help the
company in ensuring that it can assess the overall expectations of the customers and can take
appropriate actions which will be quite helpful in leading towards a higher-level of satisfaction
for the customers.
Time and Effort- It is a crucial factor in the customer experience. In the context of
IKEA, it is quite important that the use of appropriate methods and techniques can be made in
order to make sure that the time and effort is put on targeting those particular customers who
have a higher-level of income and thus can increase their overall expenditure on the products and
services which are provided by the company.
Personalization- It is an important factor which needs to be considered in the customer
experience. In the context of IKEA, it is very important that the personalized products are
provided to the customers so that their wide range of needs and requirements in the short-term,
medium-term and long-term can be fulfilled. In this way, the company will be able to make sure
that it can personalize the products according to the needs and requirements of the customers
which will help in maximizing their overall satisfaction level.
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Empathy- It is also an important factor to be considered in the customer experience. In
IKEA, it is quite a crucial factor which has to be considered which will help in ensuring that the
satisfaction of the customers can be enhanced. Therefore, the company will be able to make sure
that it can identify the different types of circumstances of the customers and therefore in this way
are able to ensure that the appropriate actions are taken according to these circumstances
effectively and efficiently.
Implications of the Digital Disruption
Digital Disruption- It refers to the transformation which can be done through the use of
digital technologies and business models (Shobeiri, Mazaheri and Laroche, 2018). Thus the use
of these particular technologies can be made by IKEA so that it is able to transform itself
digitally in a highly effective manner which will lead towards ensuring that the company is able
to attain its wide range of goals and objectives in the future.
Implications of Digital Disruption-
There are various types of implications which can be caused due to the Digital Disruption
(Stein and Ramaseshan, 2016). The implications can be explained for IKEA in the following
manner-
 Digital Disruption can be helpful for the company in ensuring that it provides more
digital technology in its products which can help in targeting of the customers in a proper
manner effectively and efficiently. IKEA can target the use of Digitisation so that it is
able to make sure that it can manage the wide range of needs and requirements.
 The use of Digital Disruption can be crucial for the company because it will lead towards
ensuring that the overall efficiency and effectiveness level can be enhanced. In the
context of IKEA, it is quite important that it can be used in a right manner so that the
company is able to ensure that a better customer experience can be provided to the
customers which will be helpful for maximizing the overall level of profits.
Thus, In this way it can be said that IKEA can make sure that it is able to make an
appropriate use of digital disruption in a proper manner which will be quite helpful for it to be
able to enhance the overall level of customer experience in a proper manner. Thus, In this way it
can be said that the different types of customers can be targeted by the company in the right way
when the use of digital technologies is made by it.
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Strategic Recommendations
For bringing an improvement in the customer experience it is quite important for the
organizations that they are able to ensure that they are able to enhance it effectively and
efficiently in the right manner. The strategic recommendations for IKEA are as follows-
 IKEA needs to make sure that it provides its customers with a lot of options in the range
of products and services which will be helpful for them in ensuring that they are able to
select a product or service from this particular range and can use them for the purpose of
enhancing their overall satisfaction level effectively and efficiently.
 In the context of IKEA, it becomes quite important that it is able to ensure that it reduces
the prices of its different types of products which will help in ensuring that the company
is able to increase the number of customers in a highly effective manner.
 The managers of IKEA are recommended that they are able to target the overall
enhancement in the customer satisfaction level so that a wide range of customers can be
targeted. In this way, the company can make sure that the overall number of customers
can increase in the right manner which will be helpful for it in attaining a higher-level of
strategic as well as competitive advantage in the right manner effectively and efficiently
in the future.
 It is recommended to the management of IKEA that it is able to ensure that through the
use of appropriate methods and techniques it can attain higher-level of goals and
objectives related to the customer satisfaction in the right manner. Thus, it becomes
important for the managers of the company that they can enhance the customer
satisfaction level even after increasing the overall level of efficiency and effectiveness.
 The recommendations for the management of IKEA is that the identification of a wide
range of demographic factors can be done so that the different types of customers can be
identified in an appropriate manner. Thus, In this way it can be said that for the company
it becomes important that through the identification of these particular factors it is able to
devise a strategy through which the overall customer satisfaction level can be enhanced.
Thus, it is highly important that the managers of IKEA are able to target the wide range of
customers by following these particular recommendations and can make sure that they are able to
attain a higher-level of overall efficiency and effectiveness in a proper manner. This will be quite
helpful for them in the future.
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CONCLUSION
From the above report, it can be concluded that Customer Experience is quite important
for the organizations because they can make sure that they can enhance it in the right manner
through the use of appropriate methods and techniques. They are required to use it for enhancing
their overall Brand Image and Goodwill. Thus, In this way it can be said that the organizations
are required to make sure that they are able to enhance it in a proper manner which will help a lot
in helping them to target the attainment of the higher-level of goals and objectives in the future.
REFERENCES
Books and Journals:
Bolton, R. N. and et.al., 2018. Customer experience challenges: bringing together digital,
physical and social realms. Journal of Service Management.
Fernandes, T. and Pinto, T., 2019. Relationship quality determinants and outcomes in retail
banking services: The role of customer experience. Journal of Retailing and Consumer
Services. 50. pp.30-41.
Havíř, D., 2017. A comparison of the approaches to Customer Experience Analysis. Economics
and Business. 31(1). pp.82-93.
Hoyer, W. D. and et.al., 2020. Transforming the customer experience through new technologies.
Journal of Interactive Marketing. 51. pp.57-71.
Kandampully, J., Zhang, T. C. and Jaakkola, E., 2018. Customer experience management in
hospitality. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management.
Khan, I. and et.al., 2020. Customer experience and commitment in retailing: Does customer age
matter?. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services. 57. p.102219.
McLean, G., Al-Nabhani, K. and Wilson, A., 2018. Developing a mobile applications customer
experience model (MACE)-implications for retailers. Journal of Business Research. 85.
pp.325-336.
McLean, G. J., 2017. Investigating the online customer experience–a B2B perspective.
Marketing Intelligence & Planning.
Pekovic, S. and Rolland, S., 2020. Recipes for achieving customer loyalty: A qualitative
comparative analysis of the dimensions of customer experience. Journal of Retailing
and Consumer Services. 56. p.102171.
Roy, S. K. and et.al., 2017. Constituents and consequences of smart customer experience in
retailing. Technological Forecasting and Social Change. 124. pp.257-270.
Shobeiri, S., Mazaheri, E. and Laroche, M., 2018. Creating the right customer experience online:
The influence of culture. Journal of Marketing Communications. 24(3). pp.270-290.
Stein, A. and Ramaseshan, B., 2016. Towards the identification of customer experience touch
point elements. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services. 30. pp.8-19.
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