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It’s Time For a Customer Strategy
The 2015 study on customer advocacy and engagement highlights a significant shift in companies' approach to advocacy, with 85% recognizing its importance beyond traditional references. Despite the recognition of advocacy's value, many organizations still allocate less than 10% of their marketing budgets to customer advocacy efforts, and 65% of sales help remains voluntary. The report underlines the need for companies to align their customer strategies with the buying journey and establish structured processes to leverage customer advocacy effectively.
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It’s Time For a Customer Strategy
- 1. It’s Time Fora Customer Strategy Transforming Advocacy from Marketing Tactic to Competitive Advantage Key results from the 2015 Study on Customer Advocacy and Engagement By The Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions
- 2. What We Learned:The Good News 2015 Study on Customer Advocacy and Engagement
- 3. More Than 200Companies Participated in 2015 Study • Company sizes (by annual revenue in US $) • 33 percent less than $100 million • 23 percent more than $5 billion • 21 percent between $101 million and $500 million • 17 percent between $1.1 billion and $5 billion • 5 percent had between $501 million and $1 billion • Customer types (i.e., who respondents sell to) • 69 percent enterprise (more than 1,000 employees) • 23 percent midmarket (101 to 1,000 employees) • 8 percent small (100 or fewer employees) • Sales models • 69 percent sell mainly via a direct sales force • 12 percent via inside sales • 12 percent via third-party channels © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 4. Good News: ExpandedResponsibilities in 2015 vs. 2013 85 percent said “advocacy” now includes not just traditional references but also other customer marketing efforts (e.g., events, advisory boards, content, communities, others) + Up 26 percent from 2013 © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 5. Good News: BetterUse of Direct Advocacy Sources Source: SiriusDecisions 2015 Customer Advocacy and Engagement Study © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 6. Good News: TakingAdvantage of Technology Support 53 percent said they plan to invest in technology in the next 12 months Some of what’s in use today: • 60%: Salesforce automation/CRM • 44%: Customer reference platform • 37%: Marketing automation platform • 32%: Online community platform © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 7. Good News: PlannedTechnology Investment Spans Wider Range Where 2015 investment is planned: • 54%: Customer reference platform • 25%: Advocate marketing/gamification platforms • 21%: Online community platform • 21%: Marketing automation platform • 14%: Customer survey platform • Plus a range of other technologies and services © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 8. What We Learned:Opportunity Remains 2015 Study on Customer Advocacy and Engagement © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 9. Opportunity: Sales HelpRemains Mostly Voluntary 65 percent said sales help with advocate sourcing is voluntary Just 7 percent said sales must submit a certain number of references and are measured on this (same as 2013) © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 10. Opportunity: Time ToFind, Nurture Your Best Advocates Just 35 percent of b-to-b companies have a formal process to identify and recruit top customer advocates © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 11. Opportunity: Advocacy EasierSaid Than Supported 83 percent said references are “critical” or “valuable” to sales cycle… …But majority still allocate less than 10 percent of marketing program dollars to customer advocacy and engagement --No change from 2013 © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 12. Opportunity: Your SalesPipeline Could Have a Silent Killer © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 13. Reality: Customer EvidenceIs Critical In All Buying Stages Source: SiriusDecisions 2013 persona study of C-level buyers 89 percent of CXOs say their perception of a vendor’s brand moderately to significantly influences their short-list creation. 75 percent of a CXO’s research is done via personal interactions and viral communication networks 80 percent of a CXO’s final decision is based on his or her own or others’ experience with your company Source: SiriusDecisions Persona Study © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 14. Holding Us Back:We Don’t Know Enough About Buyers Only 18 percent said they know their buyers journey extremely well, map it and know the roles involved © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 15. Opportunity: Advocacy MustSupport All Stages of Buying Source: SiriusDecisions 2013 persona study of C-level buyers 33 percent said they believe customers frequently rely on advocacy/references in the education (early) phase vs. 55 percent in solution (mid) and 76 percent in selection (late) phases 23 percent don’t focus at all on advocacy support for education (early) phase. © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 16. It’s Time toBuild A Customer Strategy © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 17. What Does ItMean To Have A Customer Strategy? Business Goals Activity Activity Activity Activity Activity Buyer/Customer Needs © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 18. Activity What Does ItMean To Have A Customer Strategy? Activity Activity Activity Activity Activity Business Goals Buyer/Customer Needs Clear link from activity to intended impact © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 19. Customer Strategy MeansSupporting Buyer and Customer Needs ① Loosening of the Status Quo SiriusDecisions B-to-B Buying Cycle ② Committing to Change ③ Exploring Possible Solutions ④ Committing to a Solution ⑤ Justifying the Decision ⑥ Making the Selection Vendor Selection Phase Solution Phase Education Phase © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 20. Most Companies OfferArray Of Options To Customers …But Are They Being Used In the Most Effective Way? User & Partner Groups Customer- led or Company- sponsored events Events Regional or annual customer events Online Community Online customer engagement platforms Social Media External social engagement communities Advocacy Formal customer evidence, content and engagement CABs Executive- level customer steering groups © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 21. Step 1: UnderstandWhat Buyers Need and Provide Support SiriusDecisions B-to-B Buying Cycle ① Loosening of the Status Quo ② Committing to Change ③ Exploring Possible Solutions ④ Committing to a Solution ⑤ Justifying the Decision ⑥ Making the Selection Vendor Selection Phase Solution Phase Education Phase What matters most and who do buyers trust as they go through each stage of their journey? © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 22. Advocacy Engagement Examplesby Buying StageBUYER’SJOURNEY EDUCATION SOLUTION SELECTION Loosening of the Status Quo Committing to Change Exploring Possible Solutions Committing to a Solution Justifying the Decision Committing to the Selection ADVOCACYOPTIONS • Logo use (online, presentation, print) • Advertising reference (print, online, other) • Quote reference (online, audio, presentation, print, social media) • Success story (online, audio, video, live presentation, newsletter, print) • Press release quote • Customer co-marketing • Social community participation • Webcast with client co-presenter • Analyst rating participation • “Why we chose ABC Co.” story • Switching vendors case study • White paper or other long-form case study based on client success • Press/influencer interview • Reference audio/video • Speaking engagement − panel • Speaking engagement − joint or solo content • Event presentation • Social participation • ROI case study • Early-stage customer experience story • Joint press release • Partner reference (call, video, visit, presentation, online, print) • Reference call access • Reference visit access • Analyst reference/interviews • Customer event participation • Social participation • Event/hospitality access InteractionsContent © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 23. Step 2: UnderstandWhat Customers Need and Coordinate Actions What is appropriate to ask of customers and what are ideal engagement options at each stage of post- sale lifecycle? © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 24. Quick Audit: WhereAre Advocacy Contributions Hidden Today? CUSTOMER ADVOCACY AND ENGAGEMENT ECOSYSTEM CUSTOMER MARKETING SALES SERVICE CUSTOMER SUCCESS PRODUCT BRAND/ COMMS CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE GrowRetainDevelopDeliver © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 25. Map Out Whenand What To Ask Over Customer Lifecycle What could a brand new customer share? What do customers learn as they work with you? What can they share with others? Why do customers stay? What and how are they willing to share about the value they get from you? What makes a customer’s relationship with you special? Where are the brand-level connections? AdvocacyOptions STAGEand GOAL Begin path to value Build value Recognize value Enhance value Grow/ Advocate Retain/Actualiz e Deliver/ Initiate Develop/Partici pate © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 26. Customer Advocacy Examples:Customer Lifecycle SupportCUSTOMER LIFECYCLE DELIVER/INITIATE DEVELOP/PARTICIPATE RETAIN/ACTUALIZE Fulfill on Purchase/Use What was Bought Ensure Adoption, Ongoing Use/ Engage Where Possible Maintain Business/Show Value Build Business/Become promoter Support engagement, show path to faster value FAQs, Tips and Tricks Early deployment stories Quick win stories Partner recommendations Customer community User Groups Customer website areas Reinforce use or participation, build on value Answers to FAQs from successful customers Later-stage customer stories Customer survey Customer events Community introductions Help customer to prove impact Longer-term ROI Case Study Challenge/solution Stories Analyst coverage Executive briefings Customer events Executive advisory groups Other advisory groups Cultivate growth and advocacy to enhance value Innovation case studies Award case study ROI case study Speaking engagement Event/hospitality access Community leadership roles External community participation/leadership ADVOCACY REQUIREMENTS ASSETOPTIONSGOAL InteractionsContent GROW/ADVOCATE © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 27. How To MeasureImpact © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 28. How Are AdvocacyTeams Measured Today? 58 percent: Quantity of case studies 53 percent: Quantity of references 47 percent: Impact on wins 36 percent: Impact on sales productivity 22 percent: Leads generated 16 percent: Customer retention 13 percent: Customer loyalty/NPS © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 29. SiriusPerspective: Choose thetactic that best supports the relevant stage. The Impact of Customer Engagement on Sales Help sales close more deals e.g. increased probability of conversion through pipeline, more deals in key categories Move deals faster through the pipeline e.g. shorter time to qualify, fewer days to close overall, fewer days in stage Find more deals Drive larger deals Find the right deals e.g. incremental revenue, wider product/solution breadth in deals, deals found in preferred areas © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 30. Impact Examples forPost-Sale Customer Engagement Retain • Retain 1 or 5 percent more customers? • Improve loyalty or NetPromoter scores by 5 percent? • Increase customer lifetime length by one year? 5 years? Reduce • Lower customer support demand by 5 percent? • Lower cost of sale by .5 percent Improve • Improve product/service engagement by 10 percent? • Increase selling time by 5 percent? • Improve sales yield with upsell and cross-sell? © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 31. Activity All Because Influenceand Impact Of Customer Strategy Is Clear Activity Activity Activity Activity Activity Business Goals Buyer/Customer Needs Clear link from activity to actual influence and impact © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 32. What To DoRight Now © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 33. Action Item ChecklistFor Your Customer Strategy 1. Understand your buyers journey and where advocacy can help 2. Understand your customer lifecycle and when it’s ok to ask for advocacy support 3. Understand your customer lifecycle and define where advocacy should be providing support 4. Define a measurement strategy that clearly shows how important customer advocacy and engagement are to business results 5. Make a great case for the resources you need to make an even bigger impact © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved
- 34. What Will YouChange This Year? © 2015 Center for Customer Engagement and SiriusDecisions All Right Reserved