B2B business isn't just about a one-way transaction and a one-way relationship. Like any good relationship, the connection between two businesses must be mutual. That mutuality includes not just the benefits that buyers and vendors give to each other. It's also the mutual communication between the two. As the vendor, this means you should be open to feedback and a call center can significantly boost the amount of that feedback.
Customer support has long been classically associated with calling a business and trying to resolve the problem over the phone. It's not surprising then that a company would look to a call center to that end. Today though, many people are saying that's gradually being done away with in favor of online communication. Instead of waiting on the phone for someone to pick up, people just file tickets or send emails.
What most people don't realize is that the only hassle that ever eliminated was how it chained the caller to the phone. Granted, doing away with just that is still significant. But if you're talking about waiting period however, customers could end up waiting much longer for a response.
If you thought that was bad for B2C, it's even worse in B2B when the customers calling are all busy decision makers who can't afford to wait that long for a reply.
Quick responses are critical to gaining feedback. Coincidentally, customer inquiries can already be considered a form of that feedback. If you've only been relying on digital channels to communicate, then you're definitely risking a slow response rate.
You see the sooner you respond, the sooner they can respond. Put that together and your engagement with the customer will be much faster.
Now, why is feedback so important? Feedback helps shape not just marketing but perhaps the entire organization and beyond:
Inside your organization - It tells you what you're doing right, what you're doing wrong, and offer insights on where to improve. There's no point in innovating and expanding your business if it doesn't ultimately help you to serve your clients better. The insight might also give you new ideas for things that you can market to your current clients when it becomes difficult to attract new ones. How can you know gain that insight though when your communication with customers is stifled by a long response rate?
Outside your organization - These could also affect the interests of other businesses who may have already heard of you. Prospects that are currently being qualified have more power today to get more information on your business and influence their own buying decision. A good deal of that information will rely on the views of your current customers. (Some forms of marketing even depend on that kind influence such as referral.)
Attracting feedback needs to be done quickly but at the same time clearly. It will affect the success of your business whether you're marketing to current clients or are conducting an entirely new lead generation campaign. The influence of customer feedback will affect both. Expand the channels of communication between yourself and your customers.
Maxwell Stinson is a B2B Telemarketing Specialist and Marketing Expert that works for Kick-Start Sales Force. Max invites you to visit http://kickstartsalesforce.com/ for more details on B2B telemarketing.
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