Stop doing dumb things to customers
Peter Massey of UK-based consultancy Budd has built a business on helping companies figure out how to stop doing dumb things to customers. It is a concept that resonated soundly with attendees at eyeforpharmas recent Sales Force Effectiveness Europe Congress in Monaco.
Massey is quick to point out that there is no silver bullet that will change the way the pharma industry works, but the critical factor in changing how customers are treated is leadership at the top of the industry, he says.
We must begin to think like customers, Massey says. It can be difficult to buy from companies, he stresses, as he points to the time consuming task of transferring utility services during a move for an example.
The best service is no service, he says. And by that he means, he says, that the best situation is if theres no need for service because all of the hassles of buying have been removed. And that morphs, he says, particularly for the pharma industry, into the best selling is no selling. We have to get everything else right and make it easy for people to buy, Massey stresses.
Learning from experience
There is much to be learned from other industries and from our experiences as customers, he points out. For example, he points to an insurance company that has a link from its main Web page for purchasing home owners insurance, but then says it doesnt sell such a product when you click through.
These kinds of frustrating customer experiences happen in pharma, too, Massey says. Avoiding such dead ends is becoming even more important because customers tend to have better buying technology than the sales technology of the companies chasing them.
In pharma, for instance, he says CRM systems have made selling easier, but he questions whether theyve made buying easier for customers.
Its a very changed world, Massey says. But many other industries went through these changes 10-15 years ago, so the changes arent really new. Pharma should be able to look at what others are doing and copy it. It is totally dependent, however, on leaders understanding it and taking it on-board, though.
Getting trendy
There are trends that pharma should look for and be ready to address, Massey says. The first is to understand that the sales function is not in isolation. Every part of the organization is related to every other part and, therefore, the sales function must be engaged in the context of the other parts of the organization.
For pharma and many other industries, he says, the complexity of the system means that many managers close their eyes and focus on their sales capabilities, often leaving customers frustrated with the total experience.
The second trend to learn from is that companies, he says, fall into three basic categories: those that still need to complete or repair the basics, those that stand out for maintaining the basics in good order year on year and very exceptional companies that have the basics nailed down and go above and beyond the basics. The later usually focus on delivering what customers want fast and simply.
Third, some successful companies thrive by embracing and addressing complexity, like Royal Bank of Canada, Massey says, which has more than 20,000 customer segments it caters to, while others choose to reduce and simplify. Those tackling complexity usually think in sales terms, like products, customers and channels, he finds, while those focusing on simplicity think in buyers terms a completely different vocabulary.
The fourth trend is a focus on changing communication channels. While the telephone may be a faster and cheaper way to communicate with customers, Massey warns that if not done well, it can damage a companys brand. A similar trend is the push toward self-service through web sites and other channels.
A tipping point has happened on self-service, but theres still a demand for a certain amount of human interaction, Massey says. While this may be because so many Web applications are poorly executed, customers may still need reassurance and prefer a do it with me approach, he says.
Self-service is also driving a change in agents roles more toward a knowledge sharing function, he says. In addition to resolving customer problems, agents are also republishing answers or solutions to help other customers.
The sixth trend, Massey says, is realizing that selling is helping people buy. Word of mouth recommendations from existing customers can be one of a companys greatest marketing tools, he points out.
The last trend and perhaps the most important to consider, Massey says, is that staff experience drives the customer experience. Your staff is key to your success, he stresses and that fact is sometimes overlooked.
Striving to become fast and simple, he says, can reduce costs and create revenue opportunities, while improving customer satisfaction. Fast and simple is certainly a new concept for pharma.
To learn more, visit Budds web site at .
Author: Lisa Roner, editor, eyeforpharma