8 steps for excellent b2b cx (customer experience)

Cxcellence: What CX success looks like for B2B brands

›  CX is a hot topic right now for marketers. ›  It’s being driven by the parallel advances in tech and buyer behaviour,

particularly in the digital transactional realm. ›  But as ever, the hype is driven from B2C, and that doesn’t necessarily

translate.

INTRODUCTION

Customer Experience: What’s all the fuss about?

›  Understand how this hype an advances in thinking translate to B2B ›  Understand what B2B marketers and buyers of business products and

services really think about CX. ›  Most importantly: we wanted to help define what great B2B CX looked like,

and how marketers could achieve it.

INTRODUCTION

What were we trying to achieve? Our objectives

“CX is the sum-totality of how customers engage with your company and brand, not just in a snapshot in time, but throughout the entire arc of being a customer.”

Harvard Business Review

INTRODUCTION

How do you define customer experience?

B2C CX ›  Omnichannel ›  Generally exclusively digital ›  Transactional – focused on issues

in and around the short sales cycle

›  Geared around high volume, low value engagements

INTRODUCTION

B2C versus B2B CX comparison

B2B CX ›  Multichannel ›  Emphasis on real-world (or at

least offline) ›  Conversional – focused on issues

surrounding the long sales cycle ›  Geared around low volume, high

value engagements

›  Online survey with buyers of business products and services, worth at least £20k, focusing on their experiences as customers throughout the cycle.

›  Online survey of B2B marketers focusing on their approach to CX. ›  Pulled together in one report.

INTRODUCTION

About this report

Part 1. What we learned about marketers and CX

PART 1. WHAT WE LEARNED FROM MARKETERS

1.1 CX is high on the marketing priority list and getting higher


1.2 Responsibility for CX is all over the place

37%Yes

63%No

Does responsibility for the customer experience sit within a specific job function or team in your company?


1.3 Lack of clarity of ownership is holding CX development back


1.4 Only half of B2B brands measure the quality of CX

51%Yes

49%No

Does your company regularly measure the quality of the customer experience?


Measuring the quality of CX


1.5 Only half of marketers have mapped CX

Mapping of the CX30%We’ve mapped it, but not what makes a positive experience at each stage48%

No, we haven’t mapped it

22%Yes, we’ve mapped it thoroughly

Part 2. What we learned about buyers and CX

PART 2. WHAT WE LEARNED FROM BUYERS

2.1 The impact of CX is felt long before buyers even start the process

Before making any detailed evaluation of potential suppliers, did you have an initial preference for any one of them?

41%A strong preference

13%No preference

46%A slight preference


Previous experience of the supplier

82%Yes

18%No

Had you or your company bought from your preferred supplier previously?


94%Yes

6%No Did you ultimately

buy from this known supplier?


2.2 Great CX means offering information, but keep a respectful distance

Imagine a potential supplier to your company wanted to promote themselves to you. If they wanted to do so effectively, what advice would you give them about using each of the following approaches?

Search engine

promotion

Direct mail Social media

advertising

Engaging with you

on social media

Telemarketing

A presence at trade

conferences and exhibitions

Seminars

and events

Publishing supplier magazine

with news and features

Holding webinars

and podcasts

Email newsletters

and promotions

68 30 3%

53 35 13%

47 41 13%

46 33 12%

41 42 17%

20 28 52%

22 43 35%

28 40 32%

37 38 25%

40 36 24%

Advise for

[Ranked

accordingly]

Wouldn’t

mind

Advise

against


2.3 Face-to-face is fundamental


2.4 Brands must bridge the CX chasm


2.5 Vendors need to work doubly hard to prove they are listening

Part 3. What CXcellence looks like

PART 3. WHAT CXCELLENCE LOOKS LIKE

1.  Audit and define CXcellence at each touchpoint

›  Map and quantify customers needs and expectations at each touchpoint. ›  Conduct competitive evaluations to identify best practice or stimulate new

thinking. ›  Conduct an audit of current practice and determine a capability gap. ›  Create feedback loops to ensure CX is adapting to changing expectations.


2. Create a joined-up and consistent plan

›  Set clear objectives, which are ambitious but achievable. ›  Demonstrate real commercial value. ›  All relevant departments must be onboard and committed. ›  Departmental collaboration and linkages must be (re) defined.


3. Centralise ownership of CX

›  Create processes for interdepartmental collaboration and ongoing learning.

›  Marketing must take responsibility for driving business value from CX. ›  Sales cannot ‘own’ the customer for the duration of the entire

process.


4. Establish a clear and balanced set of metrics

›  These must be agreed by all relevant parties and reported to the board.

›  They must encompass the full customer journey. ›  By definition, this may be a disparate data suite – some difficult to

access. ›  The board must show demonstrable commitment by feeding back on

progress.


5. Make sure everyone gets CX

›  Good CX is delivered at every touchpoint, therefore every employee plays a role.

›  A company-wise ethos of CX must be established, and implications communicated.

›  The board must live and breathe CX, and be its best advocates.


6. Identify and engage influencers

›  Who are they and where are they? What are their profiles? ›  Tier them in levels of priority or accessibility. ›  Audit or quantify their current relationship with your brand. ›  Establish personal or brand relationships on mutually beneficial terms (ie.

‘stop selling, start helping’).


7. Build a ‘customer alumni’

›  Both formal and informal advocacy is essential to manage your reputation. ›  Document and capture great CX via testimonials and case studies. ›  Use storytelling techniques to bring these alive and propagate them. ›  Continue to engage with customers beyond the commercial lifespan of your

relationship.


8. Embrace and respond to feedback

›  CXcellence is never a given – hard won success can be quick to unravel.

›  Ensure customer feedback is enshrined in corporate culture. ›  Go out of your way to demonstrate you’re listening – and responding. ›  Where you can’t change things, explain why not.


A CX checklist How can you tell if you’re getting it right?

›  Have you mapped excellence in CX across all touchpoints? ›  Do you have a coherent and consistent CX plan? ›  Are all relevant departments aligned and onboard? ›  Do staff at every level understand CX’s relevance to them? ›  Do you have clear, coherent metrics which are reported to and discussed

by the board? ›  Are you actively engaging influencers? ›  Are you building your customer alumni? ›  Do you cultivate feedback and demonstrably act on it?


Download the report It’s free to Premium Members.

SECTION 3. WHAT CXCELLENCE LOOKS LIKE

In summary

›  The battle for B2B CX is not exclusively fought let alone won in the digital realm. ›  However, acceleration of change means the impact of digital will increase. ›  Is CX Just Good Marketing (JGM)? ›  The emergence of CX refocuses us on the customer, and therefore is good news. ›  Those brands that can embrace CX, and tackle the challenges it presents, will

have a critical advantage.

Thanks for listening! Any questions?