Episode 40

full
Published on:

18th Apr 2023

Customer Data Strategy with Despina Kokkaraki

In this episode, Andy Murray is joined by Despina Kokkaraki, CMO at strategy Tonic. Despina has spent decades in the customer experience and customer data space. In their conversation Andy and Despina explore characteristics of a successful customer data strategy, the upskilling deficiency in retail today, ethics surrounding personalization and data privacy, the future of data privacy in the United States and how retailers can prepare for a cookieless world, and much more.

Despina also fields a few questions from senior marketing students at the University of Arkansas.


Topics & Questions 

01:32 Guest Introduction

04:03 What experiences built competencies to be successful in this space?

06:51 Why is there such a movement towards first party data?

10:06 How can retailers obtain actionable and valuable first party data?

13:49 What role does upskilling play in this evolving space?

15:58 What makes up a successful customer data strategy?

18:09 Understanding personalization and boundaries that need to be addressed

21:17 What is a RFM model?

24:30 The power of segmenting customer data

25:47 What US retailers can learn from European retailer’s approach to customer data strategy 

29:52 Questions from Walton College Marketing students

30:23 How can companies measure emotional reactions in a privacy appropriate manner?

32:28 How can marketers better understand ethical boundaries related to data privacy?

34:46 How students and young professionals can build competencies in the customer data space

36:17 The importance of having a specific strategy for the data you are collecting

38:10 What gives you hope for the future of customer data?


Show Links

Connect with Despina: https://www.linkedin.com/in/despinakokkaraki/

Connect with Andy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewlmurray/

Follow CCLI: https://www.linkedin.com/company/customer-centric-leadership-initiative-sam-m-walton-college-of-business/

Check Out Strategy Tonic: https://www.strategytonic.com/

Next Episode All Episodes Previous Episode

Listen for free

Show artwork for It's a Customer's World with Andy Murray

About the Podcast

It's a Customer's World with Andy Murray
Equipped with more than 30 years of experience in retail, most recently as the Chief Customer Officer for Walmart Asda in the U.K., host Andy Murray is sharing his expertise through his new role as the founder and executive chair of the Customer Centric Leadership Initiative at the University of Arkansas Sam M. Walton College of Business. Now more than ever, retailers and brands are accelerating their quest to be more customer centric, but to be truly customer centric, it requires both a shift in mindset and ways of working, not just in marketing but in all parts of the organization. Through his initiative and this podcast series, Andy will be talking with practitioners, thought leaders, and scholars to hear their thoughts on what it takes to be a leader in today’s customer centric world.

About your host

Profile picture for Walton College

Walton College