Build business success with a predictable sales growth model
Winning and retaining customers profitably and sustainably is the ultimate business challenge.
Achieving sales success in competitive markets relies on building a positive customer relationship, at every stage of the Customer Value Journey (CVJ). A journey that starts with initial brand awareness and engagement, and ideally continues through to evaluation, commitment, and repeat custom. By understanding how to maximise the value you provide at each stage of this journey, you can create a more predictable sales growth model.
But how can you align your whole team to build a more successful sales outcome?
The following recommendations provide a proven methodology to build a predictable sales growth model, that ensures your skills, resources, and budget are best deployed to continuously grow your customer acquisition and retention.
1. Document the 9 Key Stages of the CVJ
Start by understanding the value your customer desires at each of the nine stages of their journey. Next, document the value you currently provide, beginning with the Aware, Engage and Evaluation phases of their relationship with you. Then, focus on the Initial Commitment, Anticipation, and Exceed phases of their first initial transaction. Finally, define how you build Repeat business, Upsell/Cross Sell, and what you do to cultivate brand Advocates and turn customers into active Ambassadors.
2. Determine the Key Metrics
After documenting your activities, the next step is to determine a key metric that can be easily measured to evaluate how effectively prospects/customers move from one stage to the next as a result of your activities. This will establish the KPI’s and targets needed to improve your conversion rates, and by evaluating your current performance, you will identify where immediate improvements can be made.
3. Get Aligned On An Improvement Plan
Align your entire team and clearly define the steps you will take to maximise both the emotional and rational value you deliver at every stage of the CVJ. Focus on building trust and increasing the likelihood of customer progression by offering differentiated, frictionless and exceptional experiences.
4. Minimise waste resources
Gain a deep understanding of what matters deeply to your customers, and continually listen to their feedback. This allows you to optimise resource allocation across your team and ensure your efforts are focused where they will have the greatest impact.
5. Build a continuous cycle of improvement and compound sales effect
Establish a continuous improvement mindset by regularly reviewing metrics, creating innovative ideas, testing, and learning. Keep your team aligned by constantly sharing the progress at each and highlighting the compound effects of your collaborative efforts.
Start by asking your team to complete a quick sales diagnostic. This will help identify your current strengths, areas for improvement, and where misalignment could be undermining your customer acquisition and retention success.