How do multi-site organizations make best use of Voice of the Customer data? How is VOC data best assimilated into organizations?
We are developing a database of qualitative and quantitative VOC data, for use by sales and marketing personnel on a worldwide basis. Now that many of the technical challenges are behind us, some existential ones remain: in which ways would such a capability improve a marketeer's effectiveness? (In our schema, marketeers control both ends of the process - they control what is collected, and how it is to be collected.)
How would you (or your company) make best use of this capability?
Answers (3)
Hi Jim,
Great question. I've conducted Voice of the Customer surveys on behalf of multi-national corporations over the past three years and will share four best practices that may be helpful to you and your organization.
1) Marketers are most effective when they integrate their learnings with the sales force. Often times, marketers keep this data to themselves. It's important to validate learnings with the sales force so that you may gain their buy-in and feedback before developing subsequent marketing programs.
2) Sales is where the money is made. Using the VOC data, marketers can help the sales force dentify shifting trends, craft new offerings and value propositions, develop supporting marcomm, make suggestions to pricing, etc. The constant flow of qualitative and quantitative feedback will help your marketers identify changes taking place in markets and/or segments that will help your sales force react before your competitors do.
3) Share meta-data and trends information with key customers (especially with decision-makers in key accounts). In the past, VOC data has been responsible for positive change and relationship building within key accounts when the company shares data (good, bad and ugly) with their key customer live. This enables a conversation to begin on how to better address issues that are present so that you may deepen the relationship and drive more business. When we've facilitated these conversations between company and customer, it has inevitably led to more business between the company and the key account. Why? Few firms own up to the good, the bad and the ugly in front of their customer! That you will shows deep confidence in your ability to solve problems with humility. Beware! You must put your money where your mouth and solve those issues, otherwise you will wind up in a deeper hole than before you shared the data.
4) Also, VOC data should be an iterative process with non-iterative questions over time. A good mix of questions should include:
a) measurements of performance from a previous survey,
b) introduction of new questions to identify trends,
c) testing of internal hypotheses, and
d) concept testing for offerings in the works
Good luck with your project!
All the best,
Paul
Laurie K
Director, Marketing at Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers
Best Answers in: Direct Marketing (1), Customer Relationship Management (1), Sales Techniques (1), Corporate Governance (1), Market Research and Definition (1), Career Management (1)
Hi Jim - I have to say Paul gave an awesome summary. Like you, as a research user, we've completed major milestone research as well as ongoing smaller projects.
I may echo some of Paul's comments but here's what worked for us and what we hope to improve upon:
- No laurels: we find it important to let every customer know the high level findings and what we're working on. We take a very humble approach: even if we report 80 or 90% ratings in some areas, we're very clear that we are looking at the 10-20% portion for improvement.
- Sharing this info builds trust so when we ask them to give us their opinion yet again and again and again, there is less fatigue when they understand that we actually do something about the things they don't like.
- Have sales be a part of the question design and rationale. They'll help you get rid of a lot of "customer delight" questions and help you focus on their business drivers. Have one or two key sales people sit on your project committee, or at least review your questions.
- Follow the money. Not only with/from sales, but also the customer: if you link questions about their past behaviour and future intentions with share of wallet information, you can discover which set of buttons to push that will directly affect sales.
- With sales buy in and some compelling internal value statements like this, you can get attention. Without it, it sits on the shelf.
- Be timely - as soon as there are reportable or useful results, get it into people's hands and into their vocabulary.
- Now that you've got sales' attention, keep it. Add or offer deeper drill downs they are interested in, drop the other stuff that is of no value to any customer. Probe with them what other cuts of the data they might like to see.
- Don't get all 'academic' and 'margin-of-error' on them. Speak their language and help them understand how this can help them deliver value (assuming you've invested the time and already know and understand how they deliver value).
- Start at the top and enlist the choirmaster. Understanding and ownership from key sales leaders will drive the organization's focus into compelling sound bites. Worst case: "What interests my boss, fascinates me".
- Help tie what your customers said into proof of your value propositions ... like a customer testimonial but based on opinion and perception data.
If you want to chat about ressearch we've done or share other ways to work with customers, let me know (contact info below).
Regards - Laurie
I'm very encouraged by the answers given by both Paul and Laurie. As a sales leader involved in supporting Jim's VOC initiative, my very selfish concern is our treatment of our customers through this process. We need to show them or share with them results from the time they graciously gave us, because the time they invested made them stakeholders in the process. If we have a process where the VOC team shows up, picks their brain, and them just goes away, we will have a very short lived VOC success as the customer will feel used (and will probably take it out on their local sales rep, even if subtly). We need to formally thank our customers for their participation; we need to get back to them with specifics they raised that we have immediate solutions to; we need to get to them early (before a general release) when we have new products that solve a specific they raised. When follow up communication takes place, it should be the same individual from the VOC team (relationship building). It must always be forefront in or mind to treat our customers like gold.
