I often hear people in manufacturing venting their frustrations about the business-to-business buying experience. Consider, for example, the quality manager in the middle of a critical project, struggling to source a key component. The supplier’s online configurator is outdated and the technical data is two revisions behind. Emails and calls to solve the problem yield only delays.
This isn’t an unusual example—it’s a prevalent problem across the manufacturing sector. In
recent research, Accenture identified a staggering 1,600 pain points in buyers’ purchasing and service journeys, which are often fraught with delays, outdated data and a lack of transparency.
What derails B2B purcashing?
Business buyers typically take one of two buying journeys. They look for products such as
standardized components like valves, actuators or electric motors, or they purchase systems,
for example, a metal press with an extended warranty bundle.
Product buyers note that they are most dissatisfied with the search, select and complete
purchase parts of the process—64% of pain points arise here. Buyers report that digital tools
offered to improve the process are often difficult to use, expensive to integrate, fraught with
technical problems and unreliable.
One respondent shared: “[I] pulled data sheets from the website of a major global supplier and then I found out that the data was two revisions old. So, I had to reach out to them directly to get the correct information.”
One extra phone call doesn’t sound like big deal, but it is a missed opportunity to meet or exceed customer expectations, even on seemingly inconsequential things. A simple data sheet snafu turned that opportunity into delay and frustration. And this isn’t even considering the potential impact such a delay could have, for example, on a customer’s product launch.
System buyers faced only about half the number of pain points product buyers did, partly
because they already expect they will run into more issues when buying complex machinery and service solutions. The main issues that cause significant frustration here are the poor quality of service delivery and fulfillment, accounting for a quarter of all pain points, and sellers’ lack of reliability and transparency.
The aftersales process—continuous support, maintenance and assistance—also contributed
significantly to a poor buying experience. As one respondent explained: “It’s very difficult for me to reach the correct person. They don't let me speak directly with the responsible person and I almost always get the information through other people. Sometimes the information is incorrect and other times it's not the answer that I'm expecting, but it's already too late for changes.”
Get the buying experience back on track
The key to a superior buying experience lies in blending technology with empathy. Manufacturers should consider the following steps to achieve it:
1. Increase efforts to understand customers' main buying experiences: Manufacturers
need to take the buyer's view when evaluating technology investments. These investments
need to align with buyer needs and not with what is convenient for the seller.
Leading companies, such as Schneider Electric, already conduct customer surveys
regularly to obtain feedback through Net Satisfaction Score and sentiment analysis. And
Legrand’s Voice of the Customer approach enhances the company’s understanding of
customer needs, pain points and preferences. It helps the company identify trends,
potential irritants and the most effective actions to improve the customer experience. Data
analysis enables Legrand to assess the impact of customer training, commercial visits,
digital support and customer relationship centers, and ultimately measure the return on
investment of these actions.
2. Reduce the complexity of buying tools: Buyers are frustrated by the cumbersome
registration procedures and deployment of too many supplier-specific options on suppliers’
online portals and web services. Manufacturers should evaluate whether the specific
experience they are trying to create justifies forcing yet another login for buyers. If not, they should opt for a more customer-friendly alternative.
3. Take advantage of AI and generative AI to improve convenience: All respondents were
particularly unhappy with the finding, sharing and inquiring features on sellers’ websites and
customer portals. Manufacturers can improve these features by deploying generative AI
technologies such as recommendation engines, chatbots and note-taking assistants.
Generative AI can also help drive buyer insights from touchpoints, which will arm the sales
teams with better data to deliver an improved experience for the customer.
4. Unpack what an ideal buying experience means for your people: Manufacturers need to help their employees build and sustain relationships with buyers. They should empower
them with clear expectations, process knowledge, training and straightforward ways to
access the data and information they need when they need it. This includes having standard
operating procedures, checklists and scripts for different channels and interactions. It also
includes developing training on advising on difficult customer problems and buying
experience playbooks to better engage and keep customers.
5. Establish formal and inclusive feedback loops: Learn from employees about issues they
see in the field that may not align with customer survey findings and the pain points they see
most when they are trying to serve customers at each step in the buyer journey.
The future belongs to companies creating buying experiences with technology and empathy that exceed expectations. These organizations will gain a sustainable competitive edge and reinvent industry standards.
Brian R. May is managing director, industrial North America, Accenture.
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