Here, you'll get tips on how to encourage your customers to engage with the system, so you can get a full view of the market and improve your profitability.
Reduce your workload and get more data
Focus your sales efforts on getting buyers to put in offers.
Once you start using PhoneX, the goal of your sales and marketing efforts should be to get buyers to put their offers in the system. The goal is to save yourself time by not constantly talking to customers on the phone and on Whatsapp. If you can get your customers to put offers in your system, not only will your workload reduce considerably, but you will have far more data to make decisions.
How to use Whatsapp and email marketing to encourage buyers to make offers:
There are a couple ways to link directly to your inventory:
1. Simply include the link to your Stock List in your broadcasts and emails.Your customers can click the link to go directly to your Stock List to browse and purchase.
2. If you're promoting a specific product,you can send out a specific URL so that when your customers click on it, they will go right to the product you are trying to sell on the Stock List.
To do this:
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Create a buyer account for yourself.
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Filter the Stock List until you see just the product you want to sell.
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Copy the exact URL and include it as a link for customers to click on.
Give sales reps tools to encourage system usage
Include the system as part of offline negotiations.
Some important buyers may still want to negotiate offline, which is OK. However, the key is to get them to place their offers in the system once you have agreed on a price. If you have sales reps, they can say something such as:
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“I think I can get this price approved for you, but please put your offers in the system so I can get final approval.”
Sales reps can make it clear to buyers that they don't make the final decision, but will help the buyer get the price he/she needs. Creating the impression that there is a “sales manager” that approves offers will be very helpful to your sales reps, so they don't come across as the bad guy when they can't agree to a price. For instance:
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“I don’t think my manager will agree to that price, but you can try to put your offers in and I will see what I can do.”
Segment your customer base
Split buyers into groups based on engagement.
As mentioned earlier in this best practice series, some buyers will always need white glove service. In general, different buyers will have different levels of engagement with the system. You can split buyers into four groups:
Type 1 Buyers: Totally self sufficient
Who they are: These buyers will go to your Stock List, put in offers, and then check out on the system.
Your goal with this group: You should try very hard to convert as many buyers to Type 1 Buyers as possible. This group makes you money while you sleep.
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New buyers are easy to convert to Type 1 Buyers, because they are not familiar with a different process. As soon as you sign up a new buyer, you should walk them through the system, including how you clear offers.
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You should convert all your smaller buyers to Type 1 Buyers right away.It doesn't make sense to spend a lot of time outside the platform with smaller buyers that take up your time but don't drive large revenue.
Type 2 Buyers: Will engage online and want help
Who they are: These buyers will engage with the platform, but still want guidance on what offers to make and still want to speak to a sales rep to negotiate.
Your goal with this group: Turn these buyers into Type 1 Buyers, and in the meantime, push them to flinalize their orders online.
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It's OK for sales reps to negotiate with these buyers offline, but once they have agreed on a price, reps should tell these buyers to put their offers in the system.
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Reps can tell customers that they need tofinalize their order online to specify exactly how they would like their order to be shipped.
Putting offers in the system will ensure that you collect all of your offer data. When you accept offers, buyers will be able to choose their payment and shipping methods and check out seamlessly.
Some larger buyers may always need more offline engagement, but Type 2 buyers still save you a lot of time.
Type 3 Buyers: Limited platform engagement
Who they are: These buyers might use the platform just to view your Stock List, but then want to talk to someone to negotiate. They may not want to put their offers in the system.
Your goal with this group: Turn these buyers into Type 2 Buyers. At a minimum, push these buyers to check out online. If not, you will be spending a lot of time taking orders, which is not driving value for your company.
Type 4 Buyers: No platform engagement
Who they are: These buyers will not even log in to the system. If they are important enough buyers, you will still want to sell to them.
Your goal with this group: Use PhoneX to place their orders manually and provide white glove service.
This way, their orders will be reflected in your analytics, which is critical for you to properly manage your business. If you don't place orders on the PhoneX system, you won't be able to measure your true demand, distribution of selling prices, Estimated Days to Book, or your Inventory Turns.
Next up: Learn how to phase in and optimize offer clearing strategies for the best results.