understanding the role of customer advocacy throughout the customer journey

Misia TrampVP Customer Experience Strategy & Insights, Metia Group

UNDERSTANDING THE ROLE OF CUSTOMER ADVOCACY THROUGHOUT THE CUSTOMER JOURNEY

How the market is shifting1

Metia Insights: The Customer Reference Program Performance Study

Key takeaways

234 Delivering against the needs of

sales professionals

5

What drives content resonance across the customer journey

Agenda

How the market is shiftingAligning advocacy efforts to changing buying patterns

1

B2B companies are moving towards

service-based models

Leaders deliver customer outcomes

instead of point offers

Active usage/ engagement is the

greatest predictor of value and ROI

Speed to value wins

Consumption economics is driving the need to change how businesses drive advocacy

“The product B2B model was designed to sell things to customers, whereas the new B4B model will be about delivering outcomes for customers.”J.B. Wood, B4B: How Technology and Big Data Are Reinventing the Customer-Supplier Relationship

“The other thing that I'm also very focused on is there's no more of this: OK, we sell something and then we forget about it, or we're blind to what you do with our license. If anything, we are very, very focused on how are you using it, how are you consuming it. Because if you look at all the leading indicators, or metrics, even my field compensation is no longer just tied to revenue numbers. It's tied to usage and usage growth.”

Satya Nadella CEO, Microsoft

6

Selling ProcessSelect

Lead

1Sell itRight

QualifyLead

DevelopStrategy

PresentValue Prove

Value

NegotiateTerms

ConsumptionProcess

Assess

Onboard

ManageUsage

CUSTOMER SUCCESS FOCUS + TEAM APPROACH Ready

ReportProgress

Identify new services or

users

Upsell/Cross-sell

Renew

2Implement/

Deploy

3Drive

Usage

4Grow &Extend

What drives content resonance across the customer journey?Ensuring advocacy content and engagement is credible

2

TO DRIVE ADVOCACY FOCUS ON THE FAIR

EXCHANGE OF VALUE

What brands are saying

What audienceswant to hear

Networking solutions

Community and engagement

Three Step Mobility and IoT

Digital Transformation

Cloud security

Network IoT

Transform

Digital transformation

Business strategy

Team management

Managing change

Big data

What brands are saying

What audiences want to hear

Content I should consume

Content I needto consume

Content I wantto consume

“I will consume your content”

“I will actively engage”

“I will contribute”

Metia InsightsCustomer Reference Program Performance Study: October 2017

3

Brands included in study

Source: Customer Reference Program Performance Study - October 2017, Metia Group

The seven pillars of program performanceDrivers of reference credibility


Outcome Focused

Content effectiveness comes from demonstrating measurable success and ROI

Customer Centric

Content that heavily leverages the customer voice and that has a strong emphasis on not only the product, but the end customer-experience

DiverseFormats

Modernized templates, use of multimedia; content that fits diverse consumption preferences

Brand Endorsed

Public case studies by credible, household brands andregional or industry-specific SMBs

DiverseContent

Content diverse enough that customers can find uses cases that are hyper-relevant to their ‘unique’ situation

Current

New, constantly changing content and the ability to easily discover the most recent (and relevant) content

Discoverable

Rapid and effective access to reference materials, as well as the ability to search, classify, and tag content

Average performance against credibility drivers: technology industry

Best practice performance


0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

OutcomeFocused

CustomerCentric

BrandEndorsed

DiverseFormats

RelevantContent

Discoverable Current

Biggest barriers to improved performance: technology industry

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

OutcomeFocused

CustomerCentric

BrandEndorsed

DiverseFormats

RelevantContent

Discoverable Current


Top performing reference programs against credibility drivers: technology industry

• Current• Customer Centric• Outcome Focused• Diverse Formats

…..drive best of breed performance today

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Average


DellMicrosoft

Cisco

Outcome Focused: best practices

• Quantifiable rather than anecdotal evidence is key

• Content should be searchable by outcome

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

86% Average Rating


TOP

Customer Centric: best practices

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100 • Differentiating the storytelling is key – authenticity and effortlessness are the key opportunities


79% Average Rating

MIDDLE

Brand Endorsed: best practices

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100


78% Average Rating

MIDDLE

• Be your own best customer• Focus on unexpected brands as

well as the ‘table stakes’ big brands

Diverse Formats: best practices

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100


• Focus on the broadest set of learning styles & enable a content journey

71% Average Rating

MIDDLE

Relevant Content: best practices

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100


67% Average Rating

MIDDLE

• Persona-alize even if you can’t truly personalize• Localization matters – (regionally

not just globally)

Discoverable: best practices

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100


63% Average Rating

MIDDLE

• Getting the basics right on filtering is critical to drive content consumption• Be clear that a desired CTA is

sharing and advocating!

Current: best practices

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100


43% Average Rating

BOTTOM

• Content needs to change at the pace of the market• Can your customers filter by date?

Delivering against the needs of sales professionalsEnsuring a fair exchange of value

4

SocialSolitary

Learning styles drive content preferences among sales professionals

SEE ITREAD IT SAY IT DO IT

Source: Metia Sales Professional Research, July 2017

SocialSolitary

If they can’t find it, they will not come

• Focus on discoverability & filtering

• Outcome based• Multiple persona

perspectives to drive conversations

READ IT SEE IT SAY IT DO IT


SocialSolitary

Can you (really) prove it?

• Integrate real time data tools to highlight customer success

• Reuse and extent the value of visual content

• Focus on ‘educating’ not ‘selling’



SocialSolitary

Enable a conversation

• Create internal communities to share best practices

• Make the customer the hero• Reward and recognize

participation in programs



SocialSolitary

Integrating workflows is the key to participation

• Wire advocacy efforts into the Sales Process

• Align existing advocates to prospects throughout POCs/ Sales process



Key takeaways

5

Key takeaways

Delivering resonance… …across the whole journey

Key takeaways

• Is there a fair exchange of value? Why advocate?• Are you aligned with customer

priorities and the language they are using? (your sales teams are your customer too)

• Use learning models to explore how to drive resonant content

Questions?

Thank you

[email protected] DownloadtheUnderstandingtheSevenDriversofCustomerReference Report2017

www.metia.com/downloads

understanding the role of customer advocacy throughout the customer journey

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