Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
to Driving Sales
with Customer Insights
Table of Contents
3 Set the Stage
4 Dont Be Afraid to Ask
5 Listen Actively
Long gone are the days of mom-and-pop shops where a proprietor knew a
customers favorite detergent, the names of all three of his kids, and the challenges he
faced day to day. While decades ago deep customer knowledge was readily available,
todays global economy prevents the scale of this type of intimate customer knowledge.
These days organizations of all sizes rely on Voice of the Customer (VoC) programs to
uncover actionable insights that can lead to business benefits ranging from increased
sales to higher customer retention. In fact, according to a Forrester survey of customer
experience professionals, 81 percent of respondents either had or were actively
considering a VoC program.
Yet while VoC programs can deliver enormous value, many companies stop short of
converting transactional, relational and feedback data into insights that can improve
product offerings, create referrals, increase repeat business, and lead to new strategies.
While there are many methods for collecting customer feedback, simply capturing
feedback and transforming it into actionable customer insights is not enough. In fact,
65 percent of respondents in the Forrester study admitted their VoC programs dont
systematically take action based on customer insights, thereby failing to drive valuegenerating activities.
Fortunately, there are proven strategies to ensure an organizations VoC program
identifies what matters most to customers, facilitates better business decision-making,
and drives revenue. Read on to discover the top 5 secrets to creating a successful VoC
program with real business benefits.
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Step 1
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Step 2
80%
of customers
Want to give
an organization
feedback
50%
of organizations
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Moreover, if youre an ostrich with its head in the sand, youre missing critical chances
to learn more about your market place. Past research has found that as many as 80
percent of customers want to give an organization feedback, and less than 50 percent
of organizations take the opportunity to listen. Customers are going to talk about their
experiences good or bad whether the organization is participating in the conversation
or not. Consider, for example, the impact of social media. More and more consumers
are taking their grievances online complaining of substandard products and shoddy
customer service, or making suggestions for how their experiences could be improved.
In fact, in a consumer survey by Temkin Group about 20 percent of respondents
said they had shared a bad experience on Facebook, and 11 percent reported a bad
experience on a third-party review site like Yelp or TripAdvisor. Only 21 percent of
respondents said they sent feedback directly to a company via is website,
a phone call, letter, or email.
In other words, by failing to capture customer feedback through a systematically
designed program, companies risk losing customers and falling victim to the online
grapevine social networking sites where consumer opinion spreads fast and can easily
tarnish a companys reputation. And thats all the more reason to welcome feedback
the good, bad, and ugly.
Step 3
Listen Actively
Now that youre prepared to pay attention
to customer feedback, its time to sharpen your listening
skills. Unfortunately, many companies simply arent sure what
information they should gather. Consider this: a survey by Temkin
Group found that 63 percent of companies with formal VoC
programs were still figuring out what to collect and how.
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Step 5
Act Fast
In todays highly competitive, global
economy, organizations need to act fast, revise strategies, create
timely marketing campaigns and respond rapidly to changes in
market trends and consumer preferences. A company may spend
months designing the perfect feedback channel. But if results
arent delivered and acted upon, the VoC program will fail to
deliver any business benefits. Luckily, many VoC solutions feature
tools to help companies take fast action.
Real-time email alerts on survey responses, for example, can help
companies capitalize on changes in customer opinion, ensuring
they beat competitors to the punch. Integrated and automated
reporting capabilities are also beneficial in that they decrease
analysis time, enhance employee access to critical customer
data, and enable departments to make timely business decisions.
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Dont overlook the value of gathering feedback from non-customers. There is a reason
theyre non-customers and understanding why is a critical piece to reaching goals like
growing market share. Non-customer feedback may also highlight early trends not yet
affecting current customers. A great example is lack of innovation. Customers may care
less about the lack of innovation because all of their data is already in the tool and they
know how to use it. However, non-customers might care more about product innovation
and it will likely become an important factor for current customers.
In todays hyper-competitive environment, companies cant afford to ignore customer
feedback. Organizations need to make sure theyre gathering real-time data that can
lead to the right business decisions, upsell customers, and foster a continuous feedback
loop. Fortunately, by following a few simple steps, companies can derive the greatest
business value possible from a web-based survey solution.
Like this whitepaper? View our webinar and earn a $50 Visa award card!*
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gain practical tips for uncovering actionable customer insights
that give you a competitive edge. Learn how Cvent can help
get your program up and running with minimal time and
effort. Start making better business decisions faster through
deep customer knowledge.
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