Improve buying and using experience
Some people enjoy shopping while others do it because they need to have a product or service. Whichever category the customer is in, making the buying experience a positive one encourages sales.
Repeat sales or customer recommendations are encouraged when the consumer experience is a positive one. It is important to note that the customer who makes the purchase may not necessarily be the ultimate consumer. For example; an individual customer may shop for groceries to be consumed by the entire family. In this case it is necessary to not just understand the individual shopper but to also understand the product or service experience of the entire family.
Delivering positive shopping and consumption experiences builds relations that encourage increased sales.
Understanding customer shopping and consumer using experiences can give your business a competitive advantage in the market.
Two individuals walked into a cell phone store. Both of them purchased smartphones. But they each purchased different model smartphones that have different operating systems. They both compared their buying experience and agreed that that they had similar buying experiences.
But once these customers leave the cell phone store and start using their respective smartphones their experiences begin to diverge. For the first customer, the smartphone syncs almost seamlessly with all her other computing devises. For the second customer the smartphone does not sync seamlessly with all her other computing devices.
Buying experience would suggest it does not matter which type of smartphone the store encourages customers to purchase. However, had the store continued developing customer relationships by keeping in touch with customers after sales, the store would have learnt that promoting the smartphone model sold to the first customer could create a greater pool of customers who have satisfying user experiences. This pool of customers would be more likely to return for other purchases or to recommend the cell phone store to others. Maintaining after sales customer relationships can give your business a competitive edge.
Factors that need to be understood and applied to deliver buying and using experiences include:
Get To Know Your Customers
It is important to go beyond understanding “what” your customers want to ‘why” your customers want your products and services.
A particular business found out that many prospects did a YouTube search for videos by past customers who described their experiences of the product they purchased. Using this knowledge the business created a YouTube video promoted online to encourage sales. This online video created consumer confidence that generated more sales.
Get Your Business Focused On Customers
A customer centric business planning policy helps focus all business activity towards promoting sales. It is therefore vital to invest time in training all those involved in your business to focus their activity on promoting customer satisfaction.
In a particular building supply company the receptionist was sent for customer relations training because the realization was most prospects would find the customer on an online business directory and would then make the call.
The receptionist was the first point of sales contact for the company. Needless to say, sales increased tremendously with this wise investment in staff training. There was also tremendous cost savings for the company from scaling back on less effective advertising campaigns through other mediums.
Let The Market Drive Your Business
Instead of being advertising driven, let the market shape your business. The customer knows best. By all means promote your core products and services like a chef with a signature dish.
But a smart restaurant owner has printed in his menu a list of the ingredients available in the restaurant. Customers are encouraged to co-create recipes with the chef. The results are often unique dishes inspired by the customer and made exquisite by the skills of a master chef. This has become a unique selling proposition for the restaurant that gives it a competitive edge.
Adapt your business to deliver customer satisfaction. Remember, flexibility is the key to sustained high growth in a continually evolving market.
Siddha Param
International Business Consultant
Reboot your business plan for sustained high growth
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