Both the pandemic and GDPR regulation have changed the way the travel industry understands and interacts with its customers. As the industry entered its recovery, SWR planned to engage returning travellers with relevant products and services to drive revenue. As such, the company was looking for a marketing intelligence solution that could help it consolidate its siloed data into a single 360-degree customer view. The benefits of this approach will enhance its customer base, part of which includes reassuring customers that travelling on trains is still safe and convenient. In doing so, SWR will bolster its relationships with both new and existing customers for the long term.
To achieve this, SWR chose Acxiom alongside its technology partner Tealium to create a best-of-breed customer data platform (CDP) that would help consolidate customer data from various sources into one holistic customer view. In tandem, Acxiom’s professional services consultants will enable SWR to use the technology to analyse and activate the customer data so that they can not only reach existing and new customers but have the intelligence to understand who they are. The ultimate goal for SWR is to use this unified customer intelligence to drive actionable insights that ultimately deliver an enhanced personalised customer experience across all touch points.
Acxiom’s Head of International, Mike Menzer added “We’re both very proud and excited to partner with South Western Railway on what are new and exciting times ahead for rail travel. Utilising omni-channel enabling technologies such as Tealium CDP will mean Acxiom can provide the combined value-added services and data to help SWR truly engage and build better relationships with their passengers in a more personalised way.”
Acxiom’s CDP suite of solutions and services is available globally and is part of a series of marketing transformation offerings that Acxiom launched in 2020 to deliver new value and more innovative, integrated solutions to the market. The advantage of Acxiom’s deep expertise in customer data management, identity management, ethical data use, and professional services enables the brand’s business strategy and technology ecosystem to align with the goals and metrics of success.
Lindsay McEwan, Senior Vice President and GM of Tealium EMEA said, “We are absolutely delighted to support SWR's digital transformation strategy with our Customer Data Hub. SWR have clearly set out their stall for the future, putting enhanced customer experience and relevance at the heart of their marketing. Having the right technology in place to accurately pull together their customer data, from every possible interaction - adding insight and relevance - and making it actionable through every channel is central to that ambition. We know that technology alone is not the answer. And that's why the relationship with SWR and our partners at Acxiom is essential, as we work together, to realise the goals and roadmap that SWR have laid out. This is the start of an exceptionally exciting journey.”
