Why Customers Buy – The Bitter Business

Buyers and consumers are moving away from the traditional purchasing funnel to a more enlightened decision journey that uses the Internet to change the way they research, value and buy products. If sales and marketing plans have not changed in response to the new buyer-driven decision journey, it better start soon.

So why do customers buy?

Before we answer that, the first thing to understand is that every customer has a “decision journey”. This journey has pre-purchase and post-purchase steps. The pre-purchase journey can be described as Awareness Consider Evaluate Buy.  The post-purchase journey is Reflect Feel Decide.

In this article we will discuss the pre-purchase customer decision journey. Understanding the customer journey and its steps as to why customers buy can speed up the sales cycle improve conversation rates and drive revenue.

Remember, people buy because they have needs, a problem needing solving, a goal that needs fulfilling, a situation that needs to be remedied, something that affects their life or  business, and needs solutions.  In the Consider and Evaluate steps buyer preferences usually fit into three main categories, known as PPI:

Productivity – efficiency, ease of use, outputs

Profitability – ROI, making money, increase revenue, improve profit margin

Image – brand, style, reputation, approval, desirability (this is mainly consumers)

The full article is available at : Why Customers Buy – The Bitter Business

Customer Service Tips

Customer service has as much a part to play in customer acquisition or business growth as sales.  Customer service and how it is delivered must evolve alongside the adoption of social media and technology by consumers and business. Customer service is no longer an “after the event” function, it now impacts sales, business growth even product development.  We live in a digital world of connected people and devices. Today the world is talking about new technologies such as the internet of everything, products connected to the home, technologies and apps to improve everyday life.

A company’s business prospects or potential customers are as new as these technologies. They are curious and now use different ways to research a brand or company before interacting with it; they are constantly gathering information from social networks and digital media to make informed decisions.

The sales and customer service channels are being rewritten, the buyer journey has been revolutionised like never before. Here are eight things a business should know to help acquire customers and grow a business.

You can read the full on-line article on customer service tips to get business growth here

Customer Service Tips for Business Growth – The Bitter Business