How Customer-Centric Selling Can Help Close Leads

The marketplace has grown ever more competitive in many industries, and customer needs and expectations have also changed drastically. As a result, brands and companies must devise new sales strategies to replace the traditional methods that are no longer as effective.

A customer-centric approach has emerged as a much more effective approach to selling, with a primary focus on providing outstanding CX. Doing so has proven to help retain and grow a customer base that desires more than just competitive prices.

What is Customer-Centric Selling?

Put simply, customer-centric selling is a lead generation strategy that focuses on ensuring a business meets (and possibly exceeds) the customer’s needs and expectations at every touchpoint on the customer journey map. The customer-centric sales strategy takes the stereotypically non-human sales approach from the initial discovery of a company, or its products or services, to mid-funnel content and even beyond a sales conversion. It injects life into it by focusing on solutions and the customer instead of metrics and hounding sales.

Consider the following eye-opening statistics:

• Nearly 70% of consumers are willing to pay more for a product or service if they receive a good customer experience from a company.
• Nearly 90% of consumers are likely to remain loyal customers to a brand that delivers a positive experience.
• Consumers are almost 40% more likely to recommend a company after receiving good customer service.

These statistics reveal that delivering great CX is important to increasing sales and remaining competitive, as almost 70% of consumers will switch to another company or brand after just one negative experience.

Organizations must understand that customer-centricity is more than updating sales strategies for a changing marketplace; it’s a new way of thinking that every employee should adopt at any level. When everyone focuses on doing their job in a way that improves the customer experience, the company works better as a whole, putting the customer at the center. By doing so, a company can truly benefit from the power of customer-centric selling.

Customer Centricity and The Human Touch

A significant component of customer centricity is humanizing your brand and messaging, even when that interaction is primarily online. Chatbots may sometimes make things more convenient and efficient for a business, but 86 percent of customers prefer humans to chatbots. Customers today want more engagement from the companies they choose to do business with. That engagement can come in many forms, such as posts on social media platforms, website videos that showcase life at the company, or live online help at the click of a mouse.

Adding a human touch to your sales and marketing makes customers feel more connected to a company and fosters improved personalized marketing. Providing customers with a personalized experience also improves CX and ultimately increases sales conversions.

Benefits of Providing a Successful Customer Experience

Lead generation is just one goal of a customer-centric sales approach. Customer-centric selling affords a business many additional benefits.

Improved Brand Recognition and Brand Loyalty

As the consumer continues along their customer journey, each touchpoint providing a positive experience increases brand recognition. A conclusion of that journey that ends in a positive CX also increases brand loyalty.

Expands Marketing Reach

Consumers who receive positive CX are more apt to recommend a business and share positive reviews with others. It may not always seem like it, but consumers actually post more positive reviews than negative ones. This equates to free marketing for a brand and an increased potential lead generation.

Increase ROI

With 81% of companies saying they expect to compete largely on the basis of customer experience, prioritizing a satisfied and fulfilled customer base can greatly enhance a company’s ability to achieve a significant return on investment (ROI).

Final Thoughts

While today’s online marketplace and brick-and-mortar settings has undergone many changes, the customer experience is not likely to be just a trend. More businesses than ever before are focused on CX and customer-centric selling. Standing out from their competitors is just a part of the equation. Improving the online experience for customers is another facet. But understanding the customer’s needs and expectations is the key to delivering a superior customer experience and optimizing the benefit of a customer-centric sales approach.