Customer relationships are at the heart of every industry, but especially in a B2B industry where each customer often purchases a lot of products at once. Without customers, there is no revenue, and without revenue, there is no business. While winning new customers is exciting and adds value to your business, brands often forget about the huge growth value they have with their current customers. This is crucial, as businesses have a 60 to 70% chance of selling to an existing customer, while the probability of selling to a new prospect is only 5 to 20%.
How do you build a B2B Relationship?
Use these core principles below to maximize your direct B2B relationships:
1. Focus on Sell-Through, not just Sell-In
Once a new customer signs on the dotted line, it’s easy to count it as a win and move on to the next sale. Don’t let these relationships be a one-hit wonder! The best business relationships develop over time and are an asset to both parties. Go beyond their expectations to help form a strong relationship after you make the sale. Take the time to understand your customers so you can offer thoughtful recommendations for your product lines. Look at the types of products they sell and build a custom line sheet with items perfect for their store. The end goal of any new relationship is to be a long-term partner. Nurture these relationships from the beginning by showing your customers you care about their success as much as they do.
2. Arm Your Retailers with Data
We live in a data-driven world, and the wholesale space is no different. Retailers want to purchase what they know will sell in their store, without having to guess. Use your B2B platform to extract high-level data that you can share with your clients to give them insight into your brand. Pick your best-selling items, items low in stock, items flying off the shelves, etc. Not only will this create a sense of urgency and prompt your retailers to place an order, but it will instill a sense of trust. Seeing real results helps your retailers trust that when they put your products on their shelves, buyers are excited to purchase them.
3. Merchandise Your Collections
Over the past few years, B2B relationships have become more collaborative than ever before. Retailers are now expecting personalized linesheets tailored to their tastes and curated presentations from the brands they partner with. Merchandising your products is key in a collaborative relationship. Show how your collection works together and how your products can be merchandised to help retailers visualize your products in their stores. Not only does this enable retailers to physically see how your collection works, it allows you to sell deeper into your collections.
4. Focus on Helping Your Customers
Rather than trying to constantly remind your B2B customers how cheap your products are, or how good of a deal they’re getting, try instead to provide value. Ask yourself these questions: What problems do they have? What pain points are they dealing with? How can we help resolve these issues? What benefits do our products provide?
When you work to provide answers to these questions, rather than just give them a good price on a product, you’re providing them with reasons they should stick with your brand. You’re also increasing trust between your company and theirs. If they know you have their best interests at heart, you’ll have a stronger B2B relationship. This will make it easier for them to decide to stay with you and they’ll even be more likely to purchase your new products.
5. Be Personal
Trust in B2B relationships can be built at every level when your employees understand the importance of a personal touch. When communicating with your customers, be transparent and honest. Being straightforward with your customers, even when something goes wrong, will actually help you gain their trust. Being personal also extends to everyone in your company who is customer-facing. Train your employees on more personal ways to respond to emails, chat on the phone, and even write and deliver invoices. This helps your customers feel like you care about them as people, not just as a sales number.
Another one of the best ways to be personal is to provide them with great customer service that makes solving problems quick and easy. People running a business are busy and need to be able to rely on your employees to solve problems and answer questions effectively. When your customers feel like they’re communicating with people who are genuine.
Maintaining healthy B2B relationships with your customers should be a priority for all B2B companies. Be sure to utilize all of the tools your NuORDER B2B platform has to offer. After all, happy customers means more business, and more business means more revenue. Not a member yet? Discover what NuORDER has to offer your brand to help increase your chances of success.
