Why CX is more important than ever
Part of our "Great omnichannel Customer Experience (CX) requires great product configuration " series of articles
Providing a strong, effective customer experience has long been thought to apply only to B2C companies. Retail, online banking, travel services and real estate sites are just a few examples of the traditional business-to-consumer companies that were previously only thought of as needing to focus on customer experience.
Over the past two decades, B2B customers have become increasingly more demanding. Their experiences shaped by the B2C giants, they are accustomed to sleek interfaces, instantaneous feedback and increased customization. Add to this the proliferation of social networks, online reviews and consumer e-commerce sites, B2B companies must pay closer attention to the customer experience they are providing.
In our line of business, we deal with multi-national manufacturers producing complex products. By their nature, these products come at a high price, and the purchasing decision often involves several stakeholders from multiple functional areas, often with competing concerns.
This makes for a complex, nuanced customer experience. And one that you won’t have many chances to get right.
Consumers today expect instant results. Convenient, seamless transactions are the baseline expectations. One in three consumers (32%) say they will walk away from a brand they love after just one bad experience. This figure is even higher in Latin America, at 49%.
The recent shift by B2B organizations to online sales has created a catalyst for an improved user experience that facilitates what we refer to as a digital customer journey. And this doesn’t apply only to the initial sale.
It is critical to maintain a positive customer experience throughout the lifecycle of the product. With strong, consistent touchpoints from sales to service, you will have multiple opportunities to engage with your customer. The benefits range from enhancing brand loyalty to offering opportunities for upgrades and protecting your business from competition.
With a Configuration Lifecycle Management approach, configuration data throughout your organization is seamlessly connected, so your customer only ever encounters accurate, up-to-date product information when interacting with your brand.
Be sure your systems are optimized for future growth while keeping the most important person in mind: your customer.
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About the author
Henrik Reif Andersen is the Chief Strategy Officer and co-founder of Configit, the global leader in?Configuration Lifecycle Management (CLM) solutions?and a supplier of business-critical software for the configuration of complex products. He holds a doctorate in computer science from the University of Aarhus and has more than 25 years of experience in IT development and research.