Online B2B Marketplace– Using Existing Customers as the most powerful marketing tool

Online B2B Marketplace Using Existing Customers as the most powerful marketing tool

Research shows that a simple reference from your past or existing client is 30 times more likely to get you a new customer. Your Customers, particularly your happy Customers, hold the keys to take your sales to a new heights and are the most powerful marketing tool you can ever have and, to make it more effective, they are absolutely free. The trick always is how to use them.

Let's first try to stand in your customer's shoes to understand their dilemma when selecting the right vendors. Say you are a company based in Germany looking for a printing company in Asia. If you go to Google or any online business directory to find these suppliers, the problem is that there are too many suppliers out there and they all look the same on web. Another problem is that how to verify these distant vendors and finally choose the one which is right for you.

Your customers face the same dilemma every time they want to choose between you and your competitors. Now, let's say there is a company in Malaysia which already has a client in Germany in your industry for many years. It would be very useful for you to know about these companies and how its other German clients rates them as a supplier.

You could post your requirement on a marketplace or shortlist many potential suppliers and ask for a quote. They would probably respond describing the benefits & unique features of their services. But imagine this Malaysian company instead sends the following email suggesting that you can first take up references from its existing German customer;

"Dear Sir/ Madam,

In response to your enquiry about our printing capabilities, we are glad to inform you that we have already been printing different materials for our client XYZ Limited in Berlin for many years and we would be very happy if you please take a minute to call Mr John, the purchasing manager of XYZ on 012345678 and take their opinion about the quality and timeliness of our services. Once you are satisfied, we would be more than happy to discuss your requirements and how best we can meet them".

William"

Wouldn't you think that this company is definitely worth pursuing as a supplier? This can also work reciprocally. A simple rule in business says "Never be afraid to ask" and if you are confident that your clients would provide a good reference, always use their names and your relationship to highlight the experience and know-how you have in your industry. Always encourage your potential buyers to receive a reference from your clients. Remember if they are making the efforts to make a call to your clients, you have won this customer already. For the Malaysian company, this represents a major competitive advantage as providing references that can be immediately verified is a highly impressive competitive tool.

Be first amongst your competitors to create online profiles of your company on various networking & social media portals like Waybiz, LinkedIn, Facebook, etc and get your customers to write good reviews about you. Getting references and good reviews from your customers on your online profiles build enormous Trust with your potential buyers even before they contact you and improve your product enquiries and sales many times over. There couldn't be a more effective mode of marketing than using your existing clients on a unique business search engine so that your potential buyers can find suppliers they can absolutely trust and with whom they can trade confidently.

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