How to: Turn dissatisfied customers into brand advocates
Jon Clarke, CEO of B2B predictive marketing technology company, Cyance, discusses how predictive marketing is the secret to transforming dissatisfied customers into brand ambassadors.
Today’s customers are a whole new breed. Not only do they have more information at their fingertips than ever before, they’re rapidly becoming accustomed to immediate accessibility and more customised brand experiences.
They’re also quickly becoming dissatisfied with traditional B2B marketing methods, such as mass marketing techniques, which involve consistently targeting enough people in the hope that statistically, you’ll hit enough people at a time when they have a need or are looking for a solution.
Unfortunately, as established as these techniques might be, they can easily result in people being spammed with unwanted or too many messages which, in turn, can instantly lead to unhappy customers, with some even resenting you or totally tuning out.
Businesses can no longer afford to use these types of marketing tactics – if you want to stay relevant, appeal to your existing customers and turn them into loyal advocates and attract new customers, that is.
Buyer behaviour
While developments in data and technology might have drastically changed buyer behaviour, it’s also opened up a world of opportunity for businesses to get closer to their customers than ever before.
Predictive marketing enables you to engage with customers who have a need for your product or service and are in the market to learn about or purchase it at that moment in time. As a result, customers are more inclined to value you because they’re genuinely interested in what you have to offer.
Here are our top three tips for delivering predictive marketing that doesn’t just communicate the right message at the right time. At its most effective, predictive marketing can enable you to help people overcome their challenges and pain points and become trusted partners. By doing so, you can turn prospects into customers and customers into satisfied, loyal brand ambassadors.
TIP 1: Make sure your internal data is fit for purpose
How healthy is your data? In my experience, while most businesses do have some form of data to work with, nine times out of ten, it tends to exist in silos, is unstructured and difficult to draw valuable insight from.
As obvious as it sounds, your data needs to be squeaky clean and fit for purpose in order to be at its most effective. That includes everything, from your CRM and marketing automation data, right through to your financial transactional data.
B2B Marketing – How to: Turn dissatisfied customers into brand advocates article https://t.co/Q6SNQFb4Td by @CyanceJoe #PredictiveMarketing pic.twitter.com/ciBCjf8l3r
— Cyance (@cyance) January 10, 2017
B2B Marketing – How to: Turn dissatisfied customers into brand advocates article https://t.co/Q6SNQFb4Td by @CyanceJoe #PredictiveMarketing pic.twitter.com/ciBCjf8l3r
— Cyance (@cyance) January 10, 2017
TIP 2: Connect the dots
Once your internal data’s been thoroughly cleansed then, and only then, should you start to analyse and draw insight from your customer interactions and transactions.
The most effective way to analyse your data is to categorise it by, which:
Prospects are likely to buy.
Customers are more likely to buy more.
Companies are most likely to leave.
Capturing rich and clean data around all interactions and transactions with your customers enables you to predict what and when your customers are likely to buy. It also helps you to predict if a customer is likely to leave. This type of insight is invaluable if you want to maximise the opportunity to acquire, retain and delight your customers.
TIP 3: Supercharge your data with buying intent insight
The last tip allows you to gain insight based on customers and prospects who’ve encountered you in the past.
However, there are some pioneering predictive marketing platforms out there that enable you take your insight that one step further – by introducing behaviour signals from across the worldwide web. With this level of insight, you can track, monitor and analyse a particular company’s activity right across the globe (this also includes past, present and future customers).
Knowing where you’re most likely to yield the greatest return from your prospects and customers will give you a clear and concise targeting method that’ll generate the highest return on your investment.
But it doesn’t stop there. Using buying behaviour signals to detect the customers and prospects who are searching for a specific solution enables you to proactively engage with them in a highly personalised way. Being helpful and communicating on a one-to-one basis is the foundation to building a great customer experience and more brand advocates in the long run.
Traditional B2B mass marketing is fast becoming a thing of the past and the more you engage with it, the more likely you are to annoy today’s increasingly digitally-savvy customers and prospects.
Yes, delivering the right message to the right person at the right time still stands true however, the arrival of predictive marketing has seen it take on a whole new dimension, one that’s being shaped by the customers themselves. The sooner you tune into their buying and behaviour signals, the sooner you’ll be on the right path to creating happy and loyal customers.