In the area of sales maximization, a lot of thought, money and training sessions are invested in order to optimize how something is sold. However, there are some optimizations that can not only be quickly identified with the three musketeers of sales analysis, they also make a much greater contribution to sales success. In the following, we will introduce you to one tool for each of the posed questions, although there are in fact several ways to answer these questions. We will be happy to show you which one is ideal for you after getting to know your individual situation.

1. What are the True Motives for Buying?

• Method of Analysis: Choice-Based-Conjoint

Companies often spend a fortune to equip a product with technical features, which are then prominently highlighted in advertising and in every sales pitch. But what if these features are of no interest to your customer, if you client is more interested in a speedy delivery or simply has developed high level of trust towards your brand, to name a few examples. Knowing which feature is worth how much to the customer means to have an extreme improvement, not only in your acquisitions, but also with your profit margin. Those who communicate the wrong product benefits close fewer deals and consequently have to lower prices in the end…

The simulation tool choice-based-conjoint determines the effective customer benefit of individual product features and services (e.g., delivery time or warranty period). In parallel, the significance of the brand, which often plays a central role in purchasing decisions, is analyzed. The surveyed customer-relevant factors are then emphasized in the sales talk or even in the general advertising of the product, which results in a higher closing rate!

The basis of a product simulation is never a simple survey of consumers (à la: “Which feature is of particular interest for you?”), since this method leads to almost no useful answers. Valid product simulations, such as the choice-based-conjoint-analysis, are based on a realistic simulation of a purchase decision. In this process, several different product bundles are proposed to the respondents, which differ from each other in terms of product features, services, the brand and the price. They thus have to weigh the different product features relative to each other and ultimately decide which option to select.

If all the product comparisons have been carried out successfully, it is then possible to calculate how important the product features, services, brand and price taken into account are for the purchase decision process. Consequently, it is possible to determine which features were especially important in the purchasing decision.

2. Who Decides When to Purchase?

• Method of Analysis: Choice-Based-Conjoint

In sales – both B2B, but also increasingly B2C – it is less and less clear which moment and which person are decisive for the sale. The customer first searches on Google, looks at a comparison portal, makes a phone inquiry and then goes into a store with a lot of knowledge just to clarify a few more things. Knowing how this process actually works and when it comes down to the “nitty gritty,” i.e., choosing a brand, is critical for salespeople and is changing every year due to the ever-increasing importance of the Internet.

Depending on the industry and product, the customer journey differs. Potential customers find out about products in advance on manufacturer websites, or rely on recommendations, for example from retailers. The recording and traceability of the customer journey is as interesting as it is decisive: on the one hand, the touchpoints with the brand and the product become traceable. On the other hand, it is easier to understand which optimizations need to take place at the respective touchpoints in order to promote decisions in favor of a particular brand or product.

By means of a customer journey analysis, a number of questions are answered: How and where did the customer obtain information before the purchase, who had an influence on the purchase decision, how long does the decision phase last, what information ultimately led to the purchase, etc.? Thus, the needs of the target group can be identified. Furthermore, you understand to what extent you can serve those needs in the buying process in order to optimize or redesign your touchpoints. Either way. In the end, the insights gained will favor the purchase decision in favor of your brand or product when implemented!

3. How to Optimize the Sales Process?

• Method of Analysis: Mystery Shopping

The quality of sales processes is crucial for sustainable business success. Whether in local stores or in online retail, the quality of customer contact points not only delivers enormous added value to customers, but also to the company.

If you want to be successful on the market in the long term, you need to know how customer-oriented your sales conversations and processes are and where your company really stands – also in comparison to the competition – from the customer’s point of view. In order to increase sales success and uncover potential for improvement, a quality check of these customer contact points is essential.

Mystery shopping enables an objective evaluation of the sales process from initial contact to conclusion. Aspects of service, sales and customer contact quality can be objectively analyzed in a staged purchasing process, e.g. through undercover calls, e-mails or in a purchasing situation directly at the POS.  Both the quantitative and qualitative aspects of service quality are taken into account in the analysis. In other words, both the hard skills (waiting time on the phone, speed of response to e-mail inquiries, length of offer, etc.) and the corresponding soft skills (preparation of the salesperson for the sales talk, empathy in the initiation, needs orientation, closing orientation, etc.) are analyzed.

The added value is clear. Based on the results of a mystery shopping analysis, not only can improvement potential be identified, it can also be sustainably exploited through targeted training and education!

Panorea Kaskani / Kaskani@interconnectionconsulting.com

11/12/2022

Copyright: Interconnection, Publication free of charge for coverage regarding the study and InterConnection Consulting.