Using Marketing to enhance your Customer Experience

Business to Business (B2B) companies are now recognising the importance of delivering a customer experience more than ever.

In a recent research report by Accenture – 90% of B2B leaders claimed: “customer experience is crucial to their companies’ strategic priorities”.

Customer experience includes creating a personalised, tailored experience and building lasting relationships while providing convenient, tangible solutions.

It also includes a focus on employees.

Engaged employees are more likely to create a superior customer experience.

Companies that invest in employee experience are 4.2x more profitable than those that don’t.

Focusing on customer experience may be the single most important investment you can make with your marketing funds.

Four ways  B2B companies can use their marketing budget to enhance the customer experience:

1. Introduce Special Touches

B2B buyers today have very high expectations when it comes to the supply of products and services.

They demand consistency, reliability, and responsiveness.

Every interaction a customer has with your business should make them want to trust you and choose you again.

Being consistent with product quality standards, reliable with your certification, storage, delivery, and most importantly responsive with your customers’ concerns – will make you exceptional in your market.

Do your homework to uncover what matters most to your customers and then it’s time to consider the special touches that keep them coming back for more.

It’s all about finding a special touch to demonstrate you value the relationship.

This does not need to be complicated. Find one thing to trial and then stick with it.

For example, this could be quality and certification – make it extremely easy for this paperwork to be accessed via an easy to use portal.

2. Become the Trusted Advisor

Even in the darkest of times.

I’m writing this post whilst isolated like many others.

But let’s feast on this uncertainty and push in the presence of difficulties. Look at your biggest disappointments as opportunities to improve. Create momentum in your with your marketing strategy and the rest will follow. They always do!

Translating your knowledge into customer-centric advice is a great way to add value to your customer relationship.

Consider a few industry-related topics that you can openly speak about.

Then, consider the medium: web blog posts or news articles are a great way to draw traffic to your website, on-site events, or social media platforms can help expand your reach.

Providing free consulting or technical support to your customers is a perfect way to enhance your relationship to become the “trusted advisor”.

3. Elevate your Brand

Customer-driven marketing allows your audience to better understand your brand.

What you stand for and why. Injecting character and authenticity into your marketing will then elevate your brand.

An idea is to let your customers become your “advocates” – enable them to promote you. They’ll sell you better than you sell yourself.

You must pivot and change it up. Be flexible and always responsive to your customers.

Ensure you can adapt your capabilities to best serve their needs.

They won’t care if you can perform a specific activity unless it’s to their benefit. Adapt your operations to suit their biggest challenges – this helps you elevate your brand, incorporating customer experience at all levels.

4. Innovation

As the buyer journey grows in complexity, a detailed view of your customer is increasingly valuable.

With a tailored customer experience strategy incorporating marketing, sales and operations you are likely to drive superior customer experiences and even greater breakthrough
with innovation.

You may even uncover what the market has been hiding from or ignoring for years.

Stay open to advice and support.

If you need help, invest in the smartest people.

Let them make you and your business remarkable.

Give them permission to be part of your vision. Start to trust them.

Believe in yourself and your business.

If you don’t, no-one else will. Confidence spreads in every business.

Back your business, brand, products, services and people. Support your customers. Believe in them and you’ll become very successful with your marketing strategy.

In summary, always remember who your customers are.

Reinforce your brand values through special touches and use your marketing efforts to maximise customer value.

Recommended further reading: 4 Common CX Failures being made by businesses