Improving the customer experience has a significant impact on customer retention, profitability, and growth.

This goes not only for on line business but for traditional one as well.

For companies working in B2B specifically there is still some hesitance and even confusion over how customer experience applies to them.

It does matter in B2B, maybe even more so than in B2C.

The essentials of customer experience

3 key parameters come to mind immediately:

Success – Was the interaction successful, as perceived by the customer, were they able to accomplish what they wanted to do?

Effort – How much effort did the customer have to personally put forth in the interaction, and how easy was it to interact with the company/salesperson?

Emotion – What was the emotional outcome, how did the customer feel during the interaction? Answers can range from “upset” to “delighted”.

Customers don’t like to be sold anything, but they love to buy.

Beyond a product or solution that works, beyond a successful buying process, an easy interaction, an overall positive feeling, there is an aspect of customer’s experience that’s not given yet the attention it deserves.

Because this part is directly conflicting with the usual client/supplier relationship in which the salesperson mindset is too coercive to the customer.

The way to achieve higher customer satisfaction, reduce customer desertion and increase revenues at minimal cost, lies on one simple reality: customers don’t like to be sold anything, but they love to buy.

The mission of salespeople is that simple: create the best possible conditions for the customer to buy.

Of course, thanks to technology, companies can connect with their customers in new and exciting ways but so far, technology cannot resolve this equation; humans can.

What customers really want

Customers do not want only a personalized approach: they want to experience high values in action – respect, integrity, trust.

That’s the challenging situation companies and sales teams have to respond to, and they can do it easily.

For that, they need to learn and/or develop 3 skills: understand, share, stand.

Understand: be curious and open enough to understand the client’s organization in depth

Then only, become relevant to his/her value chain. This builds respect.

Share: leave the self-centered position and consider solutions from a global point of view.

Whatever you discover has to be shared openly, even if it means no short-term business. It pays off in the long term.

That’s the way to show integrity.

Stand: stand for what is right and profitable for both sides and dare to face whatever reaction with no fear of being rejected.

That’s the way to gain trust.

Necessity knows no law

Sales leaders and managers can step-out of a model where the relationship and  mindset are too often coercive to the customer, refrain from pushing their teams to sell at all cost and prioritize short-term gains.

Instead they can foster new behaviours and reflexes amongst sales, based on collaborative work and shared results.

Customers expectations are rising, faster than the speed that companies can improve their customer experience.

Customers expect every interaction, end-to-end, to be the best experience they have with any company – not just yours!

Improve your customer experience immediately and scale your revenue growth, contact us @ sales-doctor.com