Evolving customer experience is a competitive advantage. It’s tough for companies for really stand out or differentiate themselves with prospects and customers without a positive customer experience. Chris Brogan, interviewed by John Golden, explore the customer experience.
This expert sales interview explores customer experiences, including:
- Why buyer orientation is better
- A general timeline of customer experience
- How to nurture relationships
- Using technology to your advantage
Company vs. Buyer Orientation:
Companies are often very focused on their side of the equation. “Me, us, our awards, and how great we’ll be,” said Brogan. Instead, we should be looking more at the perspective of the buyer, and adapting our organizations to match how the buyer buys. “I think that all of the marketing technology the sales technology all of the tools we’ve built have been so pushed and aligned towards how do we push our message, how do we deliver some kind of experience?” said Brogan. “It’s just not tied to the way buyers are looking at what they’re looking at.”
Customer Experience Timeline:
Brogan uses a reasonably simple timeline to understand the customer experience. First, the customer has some awareness of their need. For example, if they break their digital camera, they acknowledge that they need a replacement. Second, after this awareness is the evaluation stage, where the might research different camera brands and models. Third, after they’ve decided, they go to the purchasing stage, and actually buy the product they want. Fourth is onboarding, or what happens after. This is when a company decides if they’re going to do anything after the customer makes a purchase. Finally, after onboarding comes retention and referral. This stage involves what the company does to keep the relationship with that customer.
Nurture Relationships:
Although it sounds straightforward, it’s not as easy as it seems. “I think very few sales or marketing professionals truly thinking through all of those aspects,” said Brogan. “They mostly spend their time trying to figure out how to break through the noise in the market and get a massive response. This is opposed to nurturing the responses from the people who are in the exact right place to buy what the company has to offer.”
Use the Technology:
People don’t often use the technology available in a helpful way. There are excellent products and software available, like CRM Systems, which can be of assistance. “People rarely use them well. Salespeople fill them out begrudgingly, marketers almost never use them, and customer service almost never gets access to that,” said Brogan. “To me, there’s all this data that’s out there that’s not going to one central place. There is no system of record. I think we need to evolve, regarding the ways that we enter information into them. There’s a lot of opportunity in there.” Using the technology can increase the customer experience exponentially. This happens by keeping proper data on the customer, giving reminders about when it’s time to contact them, knowing what part of the sales cycle they are in, and providing general information about each potential buyer.
Watch the expert sales interview for more on the improving customer experiences!
About our Host:
John is the Amazon bestselling author of Winning the Battle for Sales: Lessons on Closing Every Deal from the World’s Greatest Military Victories and Social Upheaval: How to Win at Social Selling. A globally acknowledged Sales & Marketing thought leader, speaker, and strategist. He is CSMO at Pipeliner CRM. In his spare time, John is an avid Martial Artist.
Comments