Australian enterprises that operate in the B2B space are experiencing interesting times. Since the COVID crisis struck, they’ve had to change their modus operandi significantly; pivoting from in-person to online sales and marketing. It’s a trend that’s likely to continue well into the 2020s.
However, while businesses may be happy to transact online, they’re not necessarily looking for transactional relationships with their suppliers. B2B selling has always centred around trusting relationships built over long periods of time, with buyers looking to deal with reliable partners. In today’s times, those connections are as important as ever and perhaps even more so, given face-to-face contact with sales reps is diminishing.
Not sure whether your organisation is trucking on the customer relations front, or trailing behind competitors who are better at building bonds that culminate in long-term loyalty and repeat business? Here are seven indicators that can help you assess your situation.
Customer retention
Winning customers is one thing; keeping them is another. Many B2B buyers are initially attracted by the price but stay for the service – very often the key differentiator between an organisation and its competitor with a broadly similar offering. A high customer churn rate may indicate that you need to devote more energy to building bonds with buyers after they’ve made an initial purchase.
Order frequency
Loyal, engaged customers will place an order whenever they require your offering while those that shop their custom between suppliers will typically demonstrate a more ad hoc purchasing pattern. An analysis of order frequencies will reveal how many of each type you have on the books.
Length of tenure
In both the business and personal spheres, successful long-term relationships require work. If your customer database boasts a string of businesses that have been buying from you since forever, it’s a good sign you’re doing something right.
Customer satisfaction
Another great way to gauge how you’re going with customers is to ask them. Your Net Promotor Score should be a fair reflection of your standing with customers and whether or not they’d be likely to refer you to other businesses.
Ambassadorship
When deciding whether to switch suppliers, B2B buyers frequently rely on recommendations. If your relations with customers are rock solid, find one – or several! – willing to endorse your organisation, at events or via a testimonial, should be a cinch. Conversely, if you’re unable to muster an ambassador when you need one, it may be time to devote more time to cultivating closer ties.
Engagements
Seeking feedback is the key to improving any relationship and if you’re interacting with customers frequently, they’ll have ample opportunity to provide it. Tallying the number of meetings, customer events and support calls your team engages in each year will help determine whether or not they need to be making more effort to get amongst it.
Share of spend
Putting all your eggs in one basket can be a high-risk strategy when it comes to B2B procurement. Spreading the spend across two or more suppliers is one way businesses look to mitigate risk but it’s not uncommon for one of those suppliers to receive the lion’s share of the orders. If your organisation tends to be the backup, rather than the preferred partner, it may be time to start working harder to strengthen your relationships with key decision-makers.
A platform to power better relations
An ERP-integrated eCommerce solution can help you enhance your relationships with the businesses that keep you in business, by enabling you to deliver high-quality, personalised customer experiences, each and every time they get in touch. As B2B procurement continues to migrate online, it’s an investment that will assist you in maintaining sales and profitability in the long term.
