Old-School Industries Require New-School Customer Experience
It’s critical for companies in old-school industries to ditch the ‘we’ve always done things this way’ mindset and begin listening to what consumers want — nay, expect — and that’s a personalized digital experience.
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The drug-testing industry can be a little old-school, and you just read that from someone coming from the trenches. Our company has been selling drug-testing solutions to corporations for more than 10 years now, and not much has changed — though our customer profile is vastly different from the day we first opened.
Related: Don’t Believe These 4 Customer Experience Myths
I remember when our company members and roster of clients preferred to communicate over the phone instead of email, clocking hours of time just to close one deal. We also used the internet in a limited capacity, choosing instead to take orders via fax. It was a different time, all right.
But, today, with the rise of the millennial cohort, everything has changed — even for a drug-testing company. In short, millennials are slowly but surely becoming the coveted buyers of not only B2C, but also B2B products and services. According to Accenture, millennials spend roughly $600 billion per year, and Pew Research Center tells us that this age group now makes up the bulk of the U.S. workforce.
With this in mind, be advised that it would be a big mistake for your or any other brand tonot adapt to millennials’ behaviors and preferred experiences. Whether you’re selling old-school skateboards to teens or new-school software to CEOs, the current era calls for a modernized customer experience that mirrors how people want to buy products. Here’s what to be aware of:
Old is new again.
Over the past few years, our old-school company realized we needed to adjust our approach for reaching the next generation of consumers in order to maximize growth potential. So, here are the steps we took:
1. Personalize the experience.
Customers no longer buy products and services. They purchase experiences by way of products and services, and businesses skilled at delivering more personalized experiences will end up driving customers through their doors again and again.
56 percent of consumers Infosys reportIn other words, personalization is a surefire way to not only bring customers on board, but also keep them there. You can do this by investing in tools such as HubSpot to help gather and study customers’ online and buying behavior, to personalize your marketing messaging and sales tactics.
2. Offer round-the-clock service.
Customers value the independence to gather information and make purchases wherever and whenever they like. If you’re not catering to these now-basic needs, trust that someone else is — and you could be guiding your business right into the arms of the competition.
Related: How to Give Your Subscribers an ‘Ease of Ordering’
2017 RetailDive survey eMarketer recently revealedIt’s a no-brainer to give customers the opportunity to order online. But you should also post research about your offerings to illustrate how your business is the perfect solution to customers’ problems. Our company did just that with great results. We also took it a step further by offering 24/7 live chat for questions and complaints.
3. Pepper the internet with helpful content.
A website can be a bit like an island. You’ll stock it with all the necessary supplies, but still need to give people a means of getting there if you want them to use it. Inbound marketing is that means. According to research from HubSpot, just 16 percent of marketers polled said that outbound practices provided high-quality leads. That’s not much to rely on.
more than three times as many leadsStill, to be successful, content marketing requires a clear and consistent strategy. The goal is to build a massive library of content that organically appears in search results and can be found on third-party sites. Strategic content serves as the boat leading consumers back to your site. Of course, success in this realm takes time and effort; so don’t hesitate to find contractors who can help.
In a world where people do almost everything virtually, you’d be surprised by how many businesses have yet to adapt. At this point, it’s critical for companies in old-school industries to ditch the “we’ve always done things this way” mindset and begin listening to what consumers want — nay, expect — what that is, is a personalized digital experience.
The drug-testing industry can be a little old-school, and you just read that from someone coming from the trenches. Our company has been selling drug-testing solutions to corporations for more than 10 years now, and not much has changed — though our customer profile is vastly different from the day we first opened.
Related: Don’t Believe These 4 Customer Experience Myths
I remember when our company members and roster of clients preferred to communicate over the phone instead of email, clocking hours of time just to close one deal. We also used the internet in a limited capacity, choosing instead to take orders via fax. It was a different time, all right.
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