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When we speak to companies we are always trying to understand the most important thing first before talking about (our) solutions. What is the most important problem that the customer thinks we can solve? Because why are we having the conversation in the first place? The answer to this question is different most of the time, but when digging deeper it often comes down to saving time for sales agents.
Sales agents are spending a substantial amount of their time entering orders manually. Instead sales agents need to be engaging with (potential) customers to build new, and improve existing, relationships. Growing revenue instead of facilitating the existing revenue levels. If you know the customer lifetime value (CLV) you know what each new relationship is worth.
You can set goals to increase it or how much new customers need to be onboarded to increase revenue. These goals can be used to determine how your powerful b2b catalog should look like. How can it help to find and onboard new customers and increase business existing customers do with you without consuming more time from your sales agents.
In the rest of this article we focus on increasing the CLV without consuming more time from your sales agents. We touch the topics that in our opinion have the biggest impact on this. In later articles we will also handle how the catalog can help to find and onboard new customers.
Searchability
The most important part is that customers can actually find the product(s) they need. If they can’t find the product they need, either the CLV might go down, because they will try to find it at your competitor, or if you are lucky they will ask a sales agent to order it. However this consumes time from the sales agent, which we are trying to reduce here.
So how are your customers going to find it completely depends on the type of product they are trying to find. Ask yourself the questions below.
- How are customers going to find the product that they need?
- Do they know exactly what they need (product codes, etc.?).
- Are they aware of certain specifications the product needs to have?
- Are products they need related to products they already have, like spare parts.
- Do they buy certain products recursively?
All questions can have a different answer based upon the various product groups (categories). different kinds of customer groups, but also between different product groups (categories). Map out which specifications matter for which product category. Build the product catalog based on this information. Make sure all specifications can be entered in the product database and are filterable when customers browse to a specific product category page.
It is very valuable to track whether your customers are finding the products they need. Log search queries per customer and how often they click through to the product detail page or adding items to their cart directly.
Comprehensive Product Information
In case the product is found and the user clicks through to the detail page it might mean the customer is still not 100% clear they found the right product. To help understand if it is the right product you should provide detailed and accurate product information, including descriptions, specifications, images, and pricing. This helps customers make informed purchasing decisions and reduces the likelihood of returns or complaints. These details also help the customer to find the right product when searching and filtering.
Next to searchable and filterable data to make purchase decisions that the customer is looking for documentation related to the product. Think about manuals, detailed specification documents and environmental information, etc. etc.. It reduces the amount of queries to the sales agents or customer service when this information is available in the online catalog.
High-Quality Visuals
Visuals also play a crucial role in B2B purchasing decisions. A good catalog includes high-resolution images or videos that showcase the products from different angles and in various contexts. This helps customers visualize the products and understand their features better.
Pay attention though that high-quality visuals have the down side that they load longer. Which affects the user experience. Therefore thumbnails are just as important. Images displayed in list views and loaded first on product detail page should be smaller in size. It improves the user experience as this information is loaded faster.
Personalization
Any agreements made with the customer should be reflected in the product catalog as well. Customer specific pricing, discounts, available products.Tailoring the catalog to the specific needs and preferences of individual customers can greatly enhance its effectiveness. This can also include personalized recommendations based on past purchases, browsing history, or industry preferences.
Mobile-Friendly Design
With the increasing use of mobile devices for business purposes, it's essential for B2B catalogs to be optimized for mobile viewing. A good catalog is responsive and provides a seamless experience across different devices and screen sizes.
Imagine an engineer of your customer standing next to a broken machine and needs to order a spare part to be able to fix it. The engineer prefers to order that on the spot and not need to go back to his desk. Or if his boss needs to order it for him and he was just on the golf course.
