The long-term goal for any company should be to understand which customers they can entangle with and the best ways to do so. An Entangled Relationship goes beyond simple engagement and far beyond basic sales transactions; it’s about creating a mutually-beneficial, ongoing relationship.
Many have asked me if it’s possible to create an entangled relationship as a B2B brand. The answer is resoundingly, “Yes!” For B2B companies, an entanglement requires ongoing communications beyond the traditional one-to-many message. Product information, specs, and pricing are, of course, necessary but do not add value beyond the minimal entry bar. All brands should be able to provide these basics, but surprisingly, many do not. Start here and get the basics right first!
Adding value could mean thought leadership content that offers essential insights for your customers. As a brand, you need to understand what keeps your customers up at night and how you can provide an understanding that includes the brand in an ongoing dialogue. Another element of adding value can be customer communities, where your brand provides a support platform for users. A key consideration is understanding how to seamlessly connect all touchpoints into one experience that intelligently curates relevant content across the digital eco-system. Avoid a separate support platform, a separate thought leadership platform, a separate customer platform, a separate event platform, and a separate dot com.
Start measuring success by understanding how often your digital eco-system facilitates a value-creating exchange with a key member of an important segment. While it sounds simple, it is challenging for many brands if they: 1. Haven’t defined “value-adding,” 2. Can’t combine data from analytics across touch points, or 3. Don’t know all the members of the entire buying/customer committee.
B2B companies that effectively incorporate these digital basics tend to accomplish the following: lower acquisition costs, increase the ARR, lowering attrition rates, and faster growth—to name a few critical business standards. Further, these dedicated B2B organizations can achieve an entangled relation and ultimately a Share of Life® with their customers to propel the buyer and brand forward together in a mutually beneficial digital relationship… for a very long time.
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