The Secret to CX Success
It’s been a turbulent year for IT sales. Businesses have shelved some projects while accelerating others. Budgets have been diverted or reduced. In fact, Gartner says it believes global tech spending will drop 8% in 2020, based on what it’s hearing from tech suppliers and other sources.
That’s $300 billion less being spent by customers. It means every technology investment is being tightly scrutinised. And businesses are becoming increasingly ruthless in abandoning vendors and partners who can’t deliver the promised value, service and outcomes. On the other hand…
There is a positive flipside to this. Disgruntled businesses are looking for new suppliers. If you understand what they are looking for and you’re positioned to deliver it, there are opportunities waiting and sales to be made.
What do customers want?
Over recent years, we’ve seen customers increasingly moving to Software as a Service (SaaS) to enable their digital transformation. The emphasis has shifted away from expensive upfront investment in hardware-led solutions. Instead, customers are focusing on business outcomes and ROI, asking ‘which technologies will get us there?’ But answering that question and achieving desired outcomes isn’t easy. 24% of enterprises state that they are dissatisfied with the ROI on new technologies because of increasing skills gaps required to operationalise them. This points to a lucrative gap that resellers can fill. But how best do you do this?
Locking into customer experience
With customers moving to SaaS, they are looking for a trusted partner who can deliver value throughout the lifecycle. For resellers, this makes a focus on customer experience (CX) critical to succeeding in a recurring revenue world. So, what does high quality CX look like? And what advantages does it give you?
Cisco CX – building more profitable relationships
Cisco recognised the shift in customer expectations and has been adapting to this changing market with a carefully defined approach – Cisco CX. For reseller partners, Cisco CX enables you to develop a customer success practice with the right people, tools, processes and infrastructure to best support your customers throughout the lifecycle. It means your customers get the full value of their investment at every stage and achieve the business outcomes they expect. At the same time, CX gives you the opportunity to increase revenue and extend the relationship.
We have the CX expertise you need
We understand the power of Cisco’s CX approach and we’re now part of it. Ingram Micro has achieved the Cisco Customer Experience Specialization – the first distributor in the UK to earn this. We have a dedicated Cisco CX Practice Lead, customers success managers and offer full lifecycle services. We’re ready to support resellers who want to capitalise on Cisco CX. We understand you might have to adjust your current business model or develop new capabilities. We’re here to help. We’re uniquely positioned to help you differentiate your business, build relationships with customers, demonstrate the capabilities of Cisco and sell more services.
Opportunities through the lifecycle
Locking into each part of the customer lifecycle is key to delivering on your CX promise. Cisco helps you do this with the Lifecycle Advantage programme, which combines analytics, automation and personalized content to enable partners to nurture adoption and customer success.
Using a combination of Cisco and partner data, Lifecycle Advantage automatically sends personalised, co-branded messages at key milestones over the life of a customer’s purchase. For example, onboarding information, adoption support for key features, recommendations for additional solutions or help with expiring contracts. By contacting customers with relevant information about solutions they own at the appropriate time, they’re more likely to get the full value out of their investment and become more loyal. Good for your retention rates and growth targets.
A 20% boost for renewals
According to Cisco, partners who piloted Lifecycle Advantage reported their customer reach increased five times, click rates increased nine times and renew close rates increased 20%. Moreover, using data, analytics and forward- and backward-looking metrics, partners gain greater insight. You can ensure the Cisco products and services you offer actually deliver the business outcomes customers signed up for – reassuring for you and your customers, and the essence of CX success.
Find your Cisco CX success
We’ve already seen the benefits of Cisco CX. We’re keen for more of our reseller partners to play a critical role in taking Cisco CX and Cisco technology to customers. To sign up for the Lifecycle Advantage programme or find out how we can support you with your CX journey, contact us.
If you’re keen to discuss how Ingram Micro can help you with Cisco products and services, please reach out to Natalie Naudo | Natalie.Naudo@ingrammicro.com | 07767447677