Four ways to improve the B2B Customer Experience
Customer experience has fast become king in the retail world – YouTube is jam packed with unboxing videos.
I suspect many of us have experienced it first hand when purchasing online – how disappointing it is if the product arrives in underwhelming or difficult to open packaging.
So why should it be considered differently for Business to Business? Businesses are operated by people – people like positive interactions.
Packaging should be considered in B2B as importantly as it is in retail – it is all about first impressions, conveying the value of the goods, ensuring everything in the pack is identifiable, delivering orders undamaged.
If you’ve not thought about the impact of packaging on your B2B repeat business, here are four areas to consider for your customer product interactions:
Conveying the value – If you are shipping high value goods, does your packaging convey the financial value and, indeed, the added value that your product offers to customers? For example, a piece of equipment costing £10,000 arrives in a plain brown box and people instantly assume that the goods inside are low value – perception plays a part in how the pack is handled. “Plain brown box? Just drop it in the corner over there….”
Branded packaging instantly conveys the value of your goods and ensures that your product is identifiable. As in retail, it becomes problematic for pilferage and counterfeiting to occur as it’s more difficult to replicate the original pack.
You can also ensure that vital components aren’t “thrown away” with the pack by making sure they are clearly visible – a branded envelope to hold vital instructions for example.
Damage limitation – No one likes to receive damaged goods– it’s a headache for the business who ordered it as they have to process it on their side, and it’s expensive for the supplier to organise a replacement, arrange collection and refurbish/write off the goods. Fit for purpose packaging can get the product to the customer undamaged first time, ensuring a positive customer experience.
Ease of opening – How easy is it to remove the product from the pack? Heavy industrial products can be packed to ensure that they can be safely handled on receipt – hand holes, lockable castors, packaging wraps that convert to ramps – this not only delivers a good unboxing experience but it also minimises the potential for damage.
Ease of recycling – No business likes being left with a bin full of packaging, especially as many businesses pay for refuse disposal. Lighter, recyclable or returnable packs can have a big impact on business waste management, it also helps businesses achieve corporate social responsibility targets.
If you would like to explore options for improving your customer experience through packaging, why not contact us today?
