My previous post on Fintech Sales & Marketing tools focused on the following two problems:
- Reaching to the potential customers and to make them aware about you
- Bringing the potential customers to your website & ensure they have a good experience
Let’s understand the most crucial part now. MAKING THESE “POTENTIAL” CUSTOMERS TO “ACTUAL CUSTOMERS”
After all It is the ROI That Matters!!!
Sales Conversion cycle is extremely crucial and tricky part of any fintech both for B2C & B2B. The perception and closing of sales for these two are slightly different in their approach and positioning. While in both cases, customers and corporates are looking at directly researching and closing the deals, the B2B will focus on long term yields and relationship compared to experimental buys for B2C. Please find below a snapshot of sales conversion cycle from a customer perspective. It is applicable for both B2B & B2C
Let’s look at the stages mentioned here:
Discovery of the product: (AWARENESS): The customer is always active. Looking out for a solution to his needs. These can be well defined & qualified needs in case of B2B or slightly abstract & mouldable in B2C. The customer shall use various marketing & sales tools available to him to select a first list of probable websites / apps (Even before visiting your website). These tools include Paid Media Advertisements, WOM, References, Influencers, comparison charts, reviews, Social media Noise & overall share of voice among others.
There’s a simple rule that applies to B2C marketing. A brand’s Share of Voice tends to predict its future Share of Market. When a brand’s Share of Voice within a category is larger than its market share, it is very likely to grow. When its Share of Voice is lower than the market share, it will most likely shrink. Guess what? A similar rule applies to B2B.
– Professor Mark Ritson, Les Binet and Peter Field (The B2B marketing growth formula – from Mark Ritson, Les Binet and Peter Field | LinkedIn Marketing Blog)
Website Visit (RESEARCH): The discovery of the product can be offline or online. Post selection of the options, comes the research which is essentially an elimination process. Customer shall visit your website, look for the positive cues like UX, descriptions and help throughs, check the pricing, understand the customer support options. There is a very good chance especially in B2C that the customers’ needs are not quantified and customer is trying to match his needs with your offering. A human touch here can go a long way in increasing the sales conversion ratios. In most cases, it should be a proactive approach to take customer along. This digital interface (make it human) should act as the relationship manager for the customer; guiding, teaching, enlightening customers about the benefits for the product. This educating the customer generally has great WOM leading to incremental overall conversions.
Follow up & Revisit (EVALUATION L1): Post eliminating options and having definitive options in hand, the customer starts with the basic to advance due diligence at his level. The chances of sales conversion in first web visit is extremely low. Almost 80% of the conversion doesn’t happen on first visit to the website. The customer will want to do so to avoid instinct purchases.
Doubt clarification & sorting trust issues (EVALUATION L2): There is a good possibility of customer connecting back to the Fintech through email, chat, social media, webinars, events etc. to gain more information on his purchase. Many customers might simply read the Blogs, Articles, Fact boxes depicting problem statements and solutions, which might give the required confidence to the customer. The customer may also deeply analyse the reviews and comparisons available, looking for negative cues and feedbacks.
Sales conversion: Once the customer has done his research and evolution, there is still a 80% chance that he might just leave the site without closing a purchase. Worse still, he might just leave before the final commitment like after adding to cart. Again a human nudge is required to close the sale. This along with innovative pricing like Freemium, best in class payment options like wallet, Cards, EMI, and smooth UI operations should lead to a better conversion rate.
Points to Note:
- Customer is always mobile and searching. Ensure you have a mobile first policy
- The customer walkthrough executive should be well trained in product and well groomed. He will be the person responsible for make or break of the sales cycle
- Zero deal breakers like extra charges, broken UX, pricing issues, limited or incorrect information
- High focus on Voice of the product through all available medium to ensure that the product has the required mind share. If you are not part of the race, you are never going to win it.
- Optimal customer interaction so that you don’t come across as interrupting
- Conversion cycle chat shouldn’t be left to Autobots. Ideally, should be used only for customer service & off time support.
- Proper sales & marketing tools to be used at each stage to ensure customer delight
