In the history of sales transactions, there has never been a more complicated time: information is cheap (and, in many cases, free) making it easier to gather data to understand all aspects of a purchase leaving organizations scrambling to keep pace with an ever-more knowledgeable buyer. The truth is that for the first time, consumers are in the driver’s seat of almost any sales transaction because they have access to more information and choices than ever before. Because of this, complicated buying decisions are now made in real time and it’s up to selling organizations to keep customer friction points to a minimum.
The promotional products business is no different than any other industry – you’re not in the business of selling things, you’re in the business of helping people buy things. The best way to help your clients buy promotional merchandise is by exterminating the friction points in your sales process. In a competitive marketplace, there are simply too many alternatives available should your client encounter resistance to getting what they want. The fact is, friction sabotages the customer experience.
In every buying process, there are subtle friction points on the purchasing journey and the easiest way to kill that friction is to think like the consumer. Providing a purchasing journey that is as close to frictionless as possible depends on your ability to relate, empathize, and understand what your client needs in order to make their purchase.
In sales, we often wax poetic about the sales funnel and where prospects are at any given point along their individual purchasing pilgrimage. One thing that most in sales forget, however, is that the rules of gravity don’t apply to the sale funnel which means there’s no guarantee that a prospect will ever make their way to the bottom. The only way to keep a prospect moving through their individual purchasing journey and increase the chances they will make it to the bottom is to eradicate friction.
To neutralize the friction along the client purchasing journey, you have to think like the customer in these specific areas:
1. Content – Your website, blog, social media, and other marketing avenues require great content to generate leads and convert sales. In other words, supply prospects and clients with the knowledge it takes to make a purchasing decision. Your content – beginning with your website – should communicate exactly what your customers want to know in the most distilled form possible.
2. Customer Experience – A brand is no longer what we tell consumers it is – it’s what consumers tell each other it is. Every single client touch point should fulfill your brand promise to drive a positive customer experience that people are willing to pay for again and again.
3. People – Salespeople and support staff often neglect to see the importance of eliminating friction from the perspective of the client. Ensure that you remind your team at every level to approach each client interaction with empathy, as if they were making the purchasing decision themselves.
4. Trust – The simple reality is that strong, trusting relationships with current and, most importantly, repeat clients destroy friction. One of the largest points of friction – and the one that’s most difficult to overcome – is lack of trust. Relationships that are nurtured instill trust which give clients the necessary belief that the purchasing decision they are about to make is the right one.
It’s a complicated time and businesses that are either unwilling or unable to adapt their models to reflect this client-dictated sales process won’t be around at the turn of the decade. If you think I’m exaggerating, simply look at the past for companies that didn’t adapt: why didn’t the Yellow Pages come up with Google, why didn’t taxi companies develop Uber, or why didn’t Blockbuster Video conceive Netflix? These companies (and many like them) failed simply because they got stuck in their traditional way of approaching the customer experience and they didn’t consider the world from the viewpoint of their clients. As such, they were unable to empathize with their clients and, therefore, couldn’t recognize the friction points, much less eliminate them.
By understanding the purchasing journey through the eyes of the customer, you can begin to eliminate friction and provide an experience that matters at each point in the sales funnel. Just like the shortest distance between two points is a straight line, the quickest way to escort your client through their purchasing journey is by eliminating your own friction points.
Bill is president of PromoCorner, the leading digital marketing service provider to the promotional products industry, and has over 18 years working in executive leadership positions at leading promotional products distributorships. A featured speaker at numerous industry events, a serial creator of content marketing, immediate past president of the Promotional Products Association of the Mid-South (PPAMS), president of the Regional Association Council (RAC) board, and PromoKitchen chef, Bill has extensive experience coaching sales teams, creating successful marketing campaigns, and developing branding that resonates with a target audience. He can be reached at bill@PromoCorner.com.