The customer is always right. The customer can do no wrong. The customer is king – there are a ton of sayings in B2B sales that prove why the consumer experience is always at the top of the list of things to think about. Thanks to the power of negative reviews and social media providing consumers with a chance to voice those negative reviews and receive more limelight, there’s more of a focus than ever before on the consumer experience and how to better it.
According to one study that researched 1902 businesses, 49.2% of them will put most of their focus on the consumer experience over the next five years. The B2B consumer experience shouldn’t be any different – if anything, it should be more of a focal point because there are so many people involved with each point of the buying process. Let’s explore if we can merge the B2C customer experience into the B2B buyer process.
Create Rewards-Based Buying
Rewards-based buying is a great way to nurture loyalty and give back to paying customers who are investing their money in your company. A customer loyalty agency can do just that. A robust rewards package provided by an incentives agency can help to solidify your working relationship, foster referrals, and recommendations, and improve your company image.
Rewards-based buying is far more likely to encourage future spending. According to one study, 54% of buyers say they look at a company’s rewards package before deciding if they want to start a working relationship. Companies like www.incentivesmart.com have developed a great customer loyalty rewards package that serves both the business and the buyer. For top customer experience marks, personalize your customer loyalty package to offer tailored rewards based on likes and dislikes rather than generic gifts.
Speed Up The Buying Process
The main difference between the B2B and B2C buying process is that the B2B buying cycle is so much longer – and with up to 10 people involved in each purchase, it can become even longer. But, one study found that the top three KPI’s for a B2B brand are cost-saving, speeding up the buying process, and improving internal client satisfaction.
Speeding up the buying process can both cut costs and improve internal client satisfaction, so let’s focus on that. Consider improving or creating an eCommerce channel to do this. Not only will this streamline the buying process and cut out unnecessary communication, but it’ll also help put the power in the buyer’s hands. Ecommerce is the number one purchasing channel for B2B buyers, with over 50% of them using web-stores rather than traditional methods.
And it’s not just for buying either. 73% of all purchasing decisions are made after browsing an eCommerce store – one study found.
Foster Consistency and Convenience
Consistency is key – and it’s something B2C sales have mastered. There are the same products on the same website, and consumers have the same options for accessing them. Consider the same with B2B – fostering consistency by creating an app, for example, can have great results for the business.
Considering most B2B buyers now prefer to use eCommerce marketplaces to buy, apps are the next step in the consistency and convenience journey – one that should make shopping experiences easier.
Apps are great because they’re right there and easy to load, and most websites are now responsive to mobiles, and apps are even more responsive. A tailor-made app that loads right from a mobile home screen cuts out the process of searching for a business, simplifying the shopping experience to just a few clicks.
Over the coming years, we will likely see more of a shift towards B2C – with B2B adopting many of the customer experience trends that seem to work so well for B2C. The better the customer experience, the more likely you are to retain loyal customers, and the more likely they are to refer you to other buyers.
I am Tristan who loves to ride and spend time with my jenny (horse) and my love Mark. After completing my graduation, I have been working as an accountant in a private firm in Cologne.
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