The Growth Stage of the B2B Buyer's Journey

January 17, 2019

Tim Edwards

Chief Executive Officer

Customers experience the growth stage of the buyer’s journey during the process of onboarding and implementing your product. Your goal in this stage is to help customers get the most out of your solution, in order to improve retention and increase customer lifetime value.

How do you maximize value for customers after the deal is already signed?

The goal is to kick off each new customer relationship with trust and collaboration toward the user’s success. At EBQ, we provide dedicated Onboarding Specialists who help our clients’ new customers thrive in the growth stage. When you prioritize your customer’s success, you increase engagement with your product, help them reach their objectives, and foster loyalty down the line.

Ultimate Guide to the
B2B Buyer’s Journey

Proactive customer
enablement

Be proactive in your approach to this stage of customer growth. From the beginning of the relationship, even before the deal is finalized, anticipate needs and establish expectations for onboarding. Personalize your approach after the sale and reach out to customers individually to ensure they implement your product or service effectively.

At EBQ, our Account Executives double as Success Managers. Each client relationship begins with a Kick-Off Meeting where all important information and resources are exchanged and processes are aligned between our company and the client.

It’s important to demonstrate that you’re willing to work with your customers to make sure your solution meets their needs. If you’re a tech company, develop an instructional program that teaches customers how to install and customize your product, explaining key features and how to measure success.

You can also use this introduction to your offering as an opportunity for up-selling or cross-selling by mentioning any upgrades or additional services that are available for purchase.

Some other strategies to consider for your customer enablement process:

Depending on your business structure and customer volume, a hands-on onboarding process for every customer might not be feasible. In this case, email automation can facilitate customer growth by touching on each phase of implementation with relevant information sent in a timely manner. For B2B software, you can also build tutorials directly into your product’s UI to teach users about individual features.

How can marketing encourage customer growth?

We can’t say it enough: it’s crucial that you give customers all the information they need to effectively use your product. And the marketing team plays a part in this too.

Creating content geared toward customer success can increase engagement with both the purchased product and your brand in general.

Provide the guidance your customers need via blog posts, long-form content, knowledge hubs, email campaigns, and social posts. And make sure the information is easy to locate and structured in a useful, logical way. When your customers are well-educated on your offering, they are more likely to use your product consistently, recognize the value in it, and spread the word about it.

The importance of
customer retention

Research shows that acquiring a new customer can cost anywhere from 5x to 25x more than retaining an existing one. Yet many organizations focus their growth strategy on earning new business. When you tap into this lucrative market—your existing customers—you unlock potential for increased revenue, brand advocacy, and long-term success for your company. As buyers become more self-sufficient in researching and making purchase decisions, the B2B buyer’s journey will continue to evolve. In an era where many buyers are numb to advertising and choose to seek information on their own, companies need to prioritize the post-decision stages and cultivate customer loyalty to offset the increasing costs of customer acquisition.