How to Apply a Customer-Centric Approach in Business

Key takeaways

A customer-centric approach aligns strategy, culture, and operations around delivering notable value to customers and businesses alike. Here are some important things to know:

• Research by Forrester found that firms with a customer-experience (CX) approach saw 49 percent faster profit growth, 41 percent higher revenue growth, and 51 percent stronger retention than less customer-focused peers [1].

• By basing operations on customer needs rather than internal objectives, companies using a customer-back business model (CBM) focus every part of the business on delivering customer value.

• You can lead a shift toward customer-centricity by changing the way your team analyzes data and feedback to make more goal-oriented decisions.

Discover more about a customer-centric approach, including why it's valuable, how to apply it, and the pros and cons. If you're ready to better understand how to connect with customers now, consider enrolling in the Salesforce Sales Operations Professional Certificate, where you can learn about customer relationship management (CRM), sales development, campaign management, and more. 

What is a customer-centric approach?

A customer-centric approach means putting your customers’ needs, preferences, and experiences at the heart of every business decision. Businesses employ a customer experience strategy to match every touchpoint with what matters to their target demographic, as opposed to concentrating only on internal objectives or products. Traits of a customer-centric approach include:

• Customer-first mentality: In a customer-back business model (CBM), organizations prioritize customer impact across functions by designing operations around customer needs rather than solely on internal goals. 

• Experience-driven strategy: It’s not just about making the sale; successful companies shape every step of the customer’s journey.

• Data-informed personalization: Businesses use customer behavior analysis to customize communications and offers.

• Cross-functional alignment: To provide sustainable value, the marketing, sales, support, and operational departments need to collaborate.

Putting customer service first can increase satisfaction, loyalty, and retention, and leading businesses are seeing the benefits. McKinsey reports that an industrial company implementing a customer-centric business model increased profits by billions of dollars and saw a reduction in the time needed to balance supply and demand by 80 percent [2]. This improved the experience of both customers and employees within three years [2].

What are the 7 pillars of customer centricity?

The seven core pillars that support a customer-centric organization include:

1. A leadership-driven “customer first” ethos that touches consumers on an emotional level

2. A deep knowledge of customer needs and behaviors

3. Consumer knowledge drives innovation and product improvement

4. Autonomous employees feel empowered to act in the customer’s best interests, supported by a centralized hub as their launch point

5. Smooth experience and uniform interactions across all touchpoints

6. Feedback systems that guide strategy, pricing, and potential upselling

7. Continuous improvement in response to changing client expectations helps ensure retention

When taken as a whole, these guidelines ensure that decisions in every department of the company are based on the customers’ priorities.

Why apply a customer-centric approach?

Applying a customer-centric approach drives measurable growth. When done well, it strengthens loyalty and aligns the entire organization around delivering meaningful value. Leadership, operations, and experience design teams that prioritize their customers’ needs routinely outperform those that are product-led or siloed. 

It’s a strategy companies are increasingly adopting. Salesforce found that 73 percent of customers now feel that companies they engage with treat them as individuals rather than numbers, an impressive rise from just 39 percent in 2023 [3]. This underscores the impact of personalization and highlights how customer-centricity is now more of a strategic requirement for customer retention.

How to apply a customer-centric approach

To make customer-centricity work in practice, organizations need to actively connect strategy, culture, and technology, using models that put customers first, empower teams, and make smart use of AI. The following components can help when applying your customer-centric approach.

• Gain a thorough understanding of your customers: Use market research, behavioral data, and direct feedback to identify their needs, preferences, and pain points. This will help you create experiences that are specifically tailored to your customers.

• Integrate customer focus into all aspects of operations: To ensure that every process aligns with customer value, incorporate customer-centricity into the workflows for product development, service delivery, and support.

• Customize interactions on a large scale: Deliver consistent, tailored interactions via voice, digital, and social channels by utilizing AI and unified platforms.

• Give top priority to the most important customer journeys: Concentrate on the two or three journeys that have the greatest impact on customer satisfaction, loyalty, or business performance rather than attempting to optimize every interaction.

• Measure and iterate continuously: Monitor engagement, retention, and satisfaction metrics using clear key performance metrics (KPIs), then adjust tactics in response to performance information and real-time feedback.

• Nurture a culture that's focused on customer needs: Encourage your team to act in the best interests of customers and match leadership and employee rewards to customer results.

Who uses a customer-centric approach?

Many organizations across a range of industries, like automotive, e-commerce, retail, health care, and the financial sector, adopt customer-centric approaches to drive loyalty, retention, and long-term growth. For context, some household names that adopt a successful customer-centric approach include:

• FordDirect: Thanks to a partnership with Impel, Ford can now collect and analyze each customer interaction to gain insight into individual needs and preferences.

• Sephora: By providing thorough product insights during the shopping experience, Sephora's mobile app enables users to make customized, well-informed purchases.

• Amazon: With new benefits like fuel savings for Prime members, Amazon continues to put the customer experience first and maintains its position as a go-to e-commerce platform in 2025 [4].

• Apple: With its personalized technology, quick response times, and user-friendly products, Apple improves the customer experience.

• Bank of America: The bank has patents in fields like security, payments, and augmented reality, and uses cutting-edge technology to make customer experiences better.

• Taco Bell: The fast food chain partners with emerging chefs to co-create new menu concepts, reflecting its commitment to culinary innovation and customer collaboration.

These companies demonstrate how customer-centricity fosters growth and brand loyalty in a variety of sectors. According to research by Forrestor, only 3 percent of businesses demonstrate a deep commitment to customer-centricity, or “customer obsession”, prioritizing customer needs in every strategic decision [1]. Organizations that embrace this level of customer experience (CX) mindset typically outperform their peers, achieving 49 percent faster profit growth, 41 percent greater revenue expansion, and 51 percent improved customer retention compared to companies with less focus on customer needs [1]. This makes customer-centricity a strategic imperative for organizations across all industries, from retail to finance.

Pros and cons of a customer-centric approach

​​A customer-centric approach can be a powerful driver of loyalty, differentiation, and sustainable growth, but it’s not without trade-offs. While many organizations embrace this strategy to meet rising expectations and deepen customer relationships, it also demands significant investment, cultural alignment, and operational agility. 

Pros of a customer-centric approach

Consider the key advantages of adopting a customer-centric approach to your business strategy:

• Fulfill the growing demand: Consumers now expect more than just products; they want smooth, customized experiences. Brands can anticipate needs and provide value at every touchpoint by integrating customer-centricity throughout their operations. 

• Improve business practices: A customer-centric model can drive operational efficiency and potentially unlock multibillion-dollar gains. Businesses that reorganize their operations to better serve their customers can make decisions more quickly and perform better financially. 

• Bolster retention: Customer centricity reduces acquisition costs and increases loyalty. Customers who are happy are more likely to come back, which lowers churn and raises the value of each relationship. 

• Boost brand advocacy: Customers who receive exceptional service become outspoken advocates for the brand. Good experiences build brand reputation and encourage word-of-mouth recommendations.

• Increase lifetime value: Long-term revenue from loyal customers is much higher. Businesses can boost repeat business and strengthen client relationships by continuously exceeding expectations. 

Potential cons of a customer-centric approach

Embracing a customer-centric approach brings clear advantages, but reaching that goal can involve real complexity. Some common challenges you may encounter along the way include:

• Fragmented data: When advanced analytics are lacking, it can be challenging to integrate customer data or derive valuable insights due to fragmented teams and disconnected systems. Consolidating customer data across systems brings deeper insights and better decision-making.

• Channel consistency: When tools and messaging are not in sync, it can be difficult to provide a seamless experience across digital, in-person, and support channels. Customers have a more supported experience when tools, messaging, and services are consistent across channels.

• Cultural considerations: It takes significant organizational change to shift from a product- or process-led approach to one that prioritizes customer needs. As such, internal pushback may initially hamper your progress. Being transparent about the impending changes and the positive impact they’ll bring should help team buy-in.

• Impact measurement: The complete customer experience isn't always reflected in standard metrics like revenue or satisfaction ratings. Accuracy and alignment are necessary for tracking the appropriate KPIs.

• Allocation of resources: Putting the needs of the customer first may require new team structures, training, or technology. For businesses with limited resources or outdated systems, this could be challenging.

Read more: What Is a Customer Insight Analyst? Your 2025 Guide

How to get started with a customer-centric approach

Prioritizing the customer experience and putting the needs of the customer at the center of every decision are the hallmarks of a customer-centric strategy. So, take into account the following actions to successfully lay this foundation within your business:

• Recognize what needs improvement: To stay in line with customer expectations and pinpoint areas that need improvement, gather feedback regularly.

• Know who to hire: Where possible, select empathetic team members who are more likely to put the needs of the customer first. These team members are better positioned to guide your customers through any onboarding processes.

• Use your data wisely: Along with your employees, your data is the most important facet of your business. As such, make strategic use of your consumer data to inform decisions about new products and services and to personalize experiences.

• Upskill/train where necessary: Teams should receive regular training and opportunities for upskilling to improve customer comprehension, responsiveness, and communication.

• Invite customer input: To guarantee usability and relevance, incorporate user input early in your research/design process. Moreover, making assumptions isn’t an ideal business model, so focus on the true priorities of your customers to match marketing with their needs.

• Reward: Treat devoted patrons and team members who bolster the customer experience.

Build skills for a customer-centric approach with our free resources

To learn more about advancements across the customer service industry, keep informed with our Career Chat newsletter on LinkedIn and other free career resources:

• Watch on YouTube: Career Spotlight: Customer Service Representative

• Take a Career Quiz: The Career Aptitude Quiz

• Build customer-centric skills: Tips to strengthen your people skills 

Whether you want to develop a new skill or become more familiar with an in-demand technology, a Coursera Plus subscription can help get you there. You’ll gain access to over 10,000 flexible courses from industry leaders—just check the course page to make sure your selection is available.

Build job-ready skills with Coursera Plus

Start 7-day free trial

• 
• 
• 
• 

Start 7-day free trial