Post on 15-Apr-2017
1 • May 2016 • B2Bonline 2016 Customer Experience Strategy
The Best B2B eCommerce Experiences Start with Strategy and Tools
Point of View
Prepared by:
Insite Software
2 • May 2016 • B2Bonline 2016 Customer Experience Strategy
Agenda
• Introductions
• Customer-centric strategy
– Determining if you are customer-centric
– Key questions for creating a customer-centric strategy
– Value propositions
• Capabilities
– Determining if you have customer-centric capabilities
– Manufacturer
– Distributor
• What does success look like?
3 • May 2016 • B2Bonline 2016 Customer Experience Strategy
Introduction• Senior director of Customer Growth Services at
Insite Software
• Leadership team of digital marketing practice at
Acquity Group and Accenture Interactive
• Focus on early stage B2B eCommerce
• Practitioner perspective, practical strategist
Trusted executive advisor; leader of complex global programs; builder of
growth-driven eCommerce businesses
5 • May 2016 • B2Bonline 2016 Customer Experience Strategy
Determining if you are customer-centric
Internal-centric strategy
• Product features
• Product segments
• Margin & cost reduction
• Cost of sales
• Market share
Customer-centric strategy
• Customer needs
• Customer segments
• Customer value proposition
• Customer lifetime value
• Customer retention
The conversation must change from “our company” to “our customers”!
What you talk about most frequently is a good
indicator of the strategy you are pursuing…..
6 • May 2016 • B2Bonline 2016 Customer Experience Strategy
Customer-centric strategy key questions
• Who wants to be a digital customer?
• What prevents an offline customer from becoming a
digital customer or increasing digital engagement?
• What digital capabilities do our customers require?
• Where is the most value delivered to our digital
customers?
• How do we connect with new and existing
customers using digital experiences?
• How do we differentiate using digital experiences?
How would a customer describe your digital program?
7 • May 2016 • B2Bonline 2016 Customer Experience Strategy
Fundamental value proposition: easy
B2B buyers are explicit and consistent about the
fundamental online needs:
• Secure, simple online ordering
• Product findabilility, rich product information
• Content, guidance, and tools relevant to making
business decisions
But with the expectation that the complexities of the
buyer’s business is well understood by the seller!
B2B eCommerce should reduce the complexities of B2B research,
buying, and service….. not add another channel for pain.
8 • May 2016 • B2Bonline 2016 Customer Experience Strategy
Superior variety and choice within category or categories
Serving multiple buyer needs across categories in one basket
Making buyer’s life easier, saving time or aggravation, flexible access
Affordable price point relative to competitors and to quality of product
Can’t get anywhere else, differentiated product, unique to channel
Customization of products and/or personalized experiences
“Go-to” expert/source for information, advice and recommendations
Community and/or forum for information sharing
Enabling price and information transparency
Improving buyer’s life by solving a relevant problem for him/her
Fa
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Endless Aisle
Aggregation of Needs /
One-Stop Shop
Simplify My Life
Superior Price to Value
Exclusive Access/
Unique Offering
Offerings Personalized
to Me
Transparency
Place to Share,
Connect and Learn
Trusted Advisor(s)
Solution Selling
B2C value propositions work for B2B
10 • May 2016 • B2Bonline 2016 Customer Experience Strategy
Building customer-centric capabilities
Internal-centric
• Limited branch hours
• ERP data structures
designed for sourcing
• ERP data structures for
single SKUs and rigid pricing
• Single print catalog
Customer-centric
• 24x7x265 ordering & returns
• Website information
architecture for findability
• ERP can support bundling,
promotions, and non-stocks
• Segmented catalogs in
multiple digital formats
Buyers will find the least painful path to purchase, and frequently that
path is to an online only competitor.
Pursuing a customer-centric strategy requires a
change in attitudes and capabilities across people,
process, and technology.
11 • May 2016 • B2Bonline 2016 Customer Experience Strategy
Key capabilities for manufacturers
• Branded content and unique assets – product
information, price sheets, support information,
installation instructions, submittals, CAD files
• Content syndication to distributors
• Product configurator
• Collaborative quoting
• Dealer locator
• Differentiation from distribution channels –
focus on brand vs. focus on selling
Provide content and tools to make the complex decisions easier!
12 • May 2016 • B2Bonline 2016 Customer Experience Strategy
Key capabilities for distributors
• Product findability – SEO, simple information
architecture, multiple part numbers, onsite search
• Optimization for customer purchase behavior
– New buy: onsite search, product content, guided selling
– Straight rebuy: subscriptions, reorder from order history
– Modified rebuy: alternates, multiple cart management
• Job quoting vs. product quoting
• Complex order management, especially splits
• Information transparency – inventory, status
Deliver the fundamental value proposition… make all of this easy!
14 • May 2016 • B2Bonline 2016 Customer Experience Strategy
Examples of customer-centric success
Network with your peers and potential partners. Copying what works for
others is a valid path to success!
• #235 IR B2B 300
• 100% YOY online growth
• Rapid transformation to digital
• #171 IR B2B 300
• 30% YOY online growth
• Launched 100+ custom stores in Q1
• #198 IR B2B 300
• 20% YOY online growth
• >45% revenue online
• #117 IR B2B 300
• 30% YOY online growth
• Approaching $500M revenue online