Every quarter our team analyzes the projects we work on with our 500+ PE firm clients to get a bird’s eye view of the market. We recently compiled our Q1 2023 findings into our BluWave Insights Report. You can request your copy and our client coverage team will be in touch.
Key findings from Q1 ’23 include:
Value creation activity is at an all-time high, matching Q1 2022.
Human capital remains PE’s primary area of focus at 45% of all Q1 activity, also matching an all-time high.
Technology remains a priority at 11% of all Q1 PE activity.
Service Provider Type: Supply Chain Technology Firm
Industry: Information Technology Managed Care Services
Need
Healthcare Managed Services IT Firm
An IT firm that serves the mid-size and enterprise market needed compliance help around HIPAA laws
Challenge
HIPAA compliance for sensitive client medical information
The IT firm had a lot of clients with a large customer base in the healthcare/medical industry. They had accumulated a large amount of sensitive information from their clients that had become an afterthought when servicing the customer.
The firm’s internal legal team is lean, and they didn’t have time to tackle this issue. They contacted BluWave asking us to connect them to a compliance firm that could help them do an internal audit on customer data.
How BluWave Helped
The Business Builders’ Network
We immediately tapped our network for a short list of exact-fit solutions. We knew just who to turn to for this mixed bag of regulatory challenges, having worked with third parties that completed similar projects for other companies.
Result
Connected with an IT firm for an audit
The firm selected one of the service providers we shared, kicking off their audit to ensure HIPAA compliance. They accelerated the company’s process, freeing up internal resources to focus on other pressing matters while ensuring that they weren’t legally exposed to any privacy issues.
When the engagement was completed, the client asked us for opportunities to continue working with the third-party firm.
Our Primary resources have shown an exceptional level of knowledge in preparing us.
Their assistance made all the difference and allowed us to be extremely successful in preparing our policies.
They went well above expectations in answering questions, performing the work requested and being flexible with our schedules as we coordinated all of our teams availability. They were extremely detail-oriented and very organized throughout the entire initial period. We are looking forward to continuing our work with them.
A sales process workflow is a systematic and visual representation of the stages and activities involved in the sales process. It outlines the sequence of steps from identifying leads to closing deals and post-sale follow-up.
The primary goal of a sales process workflow is to provide a clear roadmap for the sales team to follow, improve their performance, reduce errors and be more efficient.
It can also help identify bottlenecks or areas where the process can be improved. A well-designed sales process workflow ensures that every opportunity is properly managed, tracked and nurtured to maximize potential.
Let’s discuss the different components of a sales process workflow and provide guidance on how to develop and optimize a sales process that works for your business.
Overview of Sales Process Workflow
A sales process workflow is a structured approach to selling that outlines the steps involved in closing a sale. It typically includes four key stages: research, prospecting, sales call and close, and relationship-building. By having a well-defined sales process, sales reps can spend more time on activities that drive revenue and less time on non-productive tasks.
The first step in developing a sales process workflow is to gather input from your sales reps and stakeholders. This can include feedback on the current sales process, as well as suggestions for improvements.
Once you have this input, you can begin mapping out the workflow. This involves identifying the key stages of the process and determining the criteria for moving prospects through the pipeline.
When mapping out your sales process workflow, it’s important to consider the different stages of the buyer’s journey. This can include the research stage, where the prospect is gathering information about your product or service, the prospecting stage, where the sales rep is reaching out to the prospect, and the sales call and close stage, where the sales rep is working to close the deal.
Each stage should have clear criteria for moving the prospect through the pipeline, such as a certain level of engagement or likelihood to convert.
Lead categorization is the process of organizing your leads based on their level of engagement and likelihood to convert. This can include categorizing leads as hot, warm, or cold, based on their level of interest in your product or service.
This step allows you to prioritize your sales efforts and focus on the leads that are most likely to convert.
There are different pipeline methodologies that you can use to structure your sales process workflow. The traditional sales funnel is a popular approach, where prospects move through the funnel from awareness to consideration to decision.
The more modern flywheel approach focuses on creating a continuous cycle of attracting, engaging and delighting customers. Each approach has its benefits and drawbacks, and it’s important to choose the approach that works best for your business.
Working with an experienced third party that’s familiar with your industry can be a great way to build the most efficient pipeline for your particular business.
Tracking metrics is an important part of optimizing your sales process workflow. Key metrics that should be tracked include conversion rates, time-to-close and customer lifetime value.
By analyzing these metrics, you can identify areas for improvement and optimize your sales process for maximum effectiveness.
If your sales process workflow is not working effectively, it may be time for a redesign. This involves identifying bottlenecks and areas for improvement, testing new processes and iterating until the process is optimized.
It’s important to involve your sales reps and stakeholders in this process to ensure that the new process is effective and sustainable.
The BluWave-grade service providers in the Business Builders’ Network are equipped to help businesses with this exact process, whether you work in healthcare, manufacturing, technology or other sectors.
Training and coaching are important aspects of implementing a sales process workflow. Sales reps should be provided with the tools and resources they need to be successful, including training on the sales process, product knowledge and objection handling.
Ongoing coaching and feedback can help to improve performance and ensure that the sales process is being followed effectively.
Depending on your situation, an interim CFO may be just the person you need to get set the tone internally and chart a strong path forward for your sales team.
Technology can play an important role in optimizing your sales process workflow. This can include tools for lead generation, sales enablement and CRM software. It’s important to choose the right technology for your business and to integrate different technologies for optimal results.
Evaluating and optimizing your sales process workflow is critical to getting the most out of your business. Whether you’re a private or public company, or a private equity firm working with a portfolio company, getting expert third-party guidance can be a fast track to success.
You don’t have to be a private equity firm to use PE-grade resources. Every service provider in the Business Builders’ Network has been vetted and approved by multiple PE firms.
Product positioning refers to the strategic process of establishing a distinct and favorable perception of a product in the minds of consumers relative to its competitors. It involves creating a unique and compelling position in the market that differentiates the product from others and resonates with the target customers.
It is also a strategic marketing process that of identifying and communicating a product’s or service’s key attributes, differentiators and positioning statements to target customers.
To effectively position a new product, it is important to have a deep understanding of the factors that influence its adoption within a specific market segment. This involves gathering and analyzing facts, as well as formulating hypotheses and incorporating them into a dynamic model.
The goal of product positioning is to create a favorable perception of the product in the minds of consumers, giving it a competitive advantage in the market and driving customer preference and loyalty.
Let’s dig deeper into the importance of product positioning and what it entails.
The right strategy will help private equity firms and their portfolio companies, as well as public or private companies, to position their products and services as favorably as possible.
This can be done by conducting voice of the customer interviews, as well as other market research. By speaking with existing customers, organizations can better understand why people use their product or service.
Speaking to non-customers, however, can be just as important as it sheds light on why people are not using your product or service.
This information can then be used to determine current perceptions, and assess growth opportunities and requirements for deeper market penetration.
Customers – existing and potential – can also be segmented in a way that allows the company to understand which group would be most valuable. Future strategies could then be geared toward those segments.
Indications are important considerations in product positioning as they help define the target market and communicate the value proposition of a product. They provide information about the specific problems, needs or desires that a product is designed to address or fulfill. They can be based on various factors, such as the product’s functional attributes, performance characteristics, intended user demographics or usage scenarios.
For example, in the healthcare industry, product positioning for a pharmaceutical drug may involve indicating the specific medical conditions or diseases for which the drug is approved, the recommended dosage, patient age groups or other relevant factors.
In the consumer goods industry, product positioning for a household cleaning product may include indicating the types of surfaces or stains the product is effective on, the recommended usage instructions, or the target market segment, such as families with young children or pet owners.
Indications help guide consumers in understanding how a product can fulfill their needs or solve their problems, and they can also help differentiate a product from competitors by highlighting its specific use cases or advantages.
Clear and accurate indications are crucial in marketing and branding strategies to ensure that the product is positioned effectively in the market and resonates with the needs and preferences of the target customers.
Effectively marketing your product’s features and benefits is crucial to a product positioning strategy. Here are some of the more important elements:
Differentiation: Positioning a product as unique or superior based on its features and benefits can create a competitive advantage and set it apart from similar offerings.
Value Proposition: A well-crafted value prop highlights the unique features and benefits of a product to customers, justifies its price and creates a compelling reason to choose it over competitive alternatives.
Target Market Alignment: Understanding the target market’s requirements and desires and aligning the product’s features and benefits accordingly can help position the product as relevant and appealing.
Communication: Clear and effective communication of what the product offers through marketing messages, packaging, branding and other promotional materials can create awareness, generate interest and influence perception of the product.
Customer Needs Fulfillment: Ultimately, the purpose of a positioning strategy is to fulfill customer needs or solve customer problems. By aligning the product’s features and benefits with customer needs, the positioning strategy can establish the product as a viable solution that addresses pain points and provides value, increasing customer satisfaction and loyalty.
A price analysis is conducted to assess and determine the optimal strategy for a product or service based on its intended market positioning.
Pricing is a critical element of a positioning strategy as it affects how a product or service is perceived by consumers in terms of its value proposition and competitive positioning. It can affect the perceived value of a product, influence customer perception of quality, impact customer willingness to pay and affect overall market positioning.
For example, if a product is priced too low, it may be perceived as of low quality or lacking premium features. On the other hand, if a product is priced too high, it may be perceived as overpriced and not providing adequate value.
Cost-Based Pricing: This strategy involves setting prices based on the production costs, such as materials, labor and overheads, with a desired profit margin. Cost-based pricing can position a product as affordable and budget-friendly, but may not necessarily convey premium quality or unique value.
Value-Based Pricing: This strategy involves setting prices based on the perceived value that a product offers to customers. It takes into account the benefits, features and unique value proposition of the product, as well as the target market’s willingness to pay. Value-based pricing can position a product as premium, high-quality and worth the investment.
Competitive-Based (Market-Based) Pricing: This strategy involves setting prices based on the prices of competitors’ products. It can be used to position a product as competitive and comparable to other products in the market. It may not, however, necessarily differentiate the product or highlight its unique value proposition.
Competitive analysis is a critical component of positioning strategy as it provides insights into the competitive landscape, helps identify market opportunities and threats, and guides the development of an effective positioning strategy.
Some key aspects include:
Understanding Competitors: This understanding enables a company to identify the competitive advantages it can leverage and the potential vulnerabilities it needs to address in its positioning strategy.
Identifying Market Opportunities: By understanding the unmet needs of customers or the gaps in the offerings of competitors, a company can position its product or service to address those gaps and capture market share.
Assessing Competitive Threats: This may include competitors launching new products, changing their pricing strategies or implementing aggressive marketing campaigns. By understanding the competitive landscape, a company can anticipate and respond proactively while adapting its positioning strategy accordingly.
Differentiation: Competitive analysis helps in identifying the unique selling propositions (USPs) of competitors and their positioning strategies. By offering unique features, benefits, or pricing strategies that are distinct from competitors, a company can create a competitive edge and attract customers who are seeking something different or better.
Refining Positioning Strategy: By monitoring competitors’ actions, customer feedback and market dynamics, a company can make informed decisions about adjusting its positioning strategy to stay relevant and effective.
Proven marketing strategy firms know exactly how to position products and services like yours in a competitive market. As margins become tighter and the economy more uncertain, getting the best value for what your business offers is paramount.
The invite-only BluWave-grade network of service providers are expertly vetted for these exact situations. We only connect you to those with a proven track record and who also have multiple recommendations by the world’s leading PE firms.
No matter what your business’s need, we’ll connect you with tailor-made resources in less than 24 hours.
When you’re ready to launch or refine your positioning framework template, contact our research and operations team to start your project.
Platform modernization is the process of updating the infrastructure, architecture and features of existing platforms to bring them up to current standards. This makes the platform more efficient, secure and valuable.
Outdated platforms can be a major business liability, leading to performance issues, security vulnerabilities and compliance problems. Fixing this can help save money on operating costs and improve customer experience.
App modernization can be a complex and time-consuming process, but it is essential for businesses that want to remain competitive. There are a number of different approaches, all depending on your specific needs and your business’s industry.
If you are evaluating your application modernization strategy, it is important to carefully consider your needs and goals. These should be formulated with time, costs and the impact it will have on your business in mind.
An experienced outside resource may be just what you need do make sure your applications modernization is done right, and we already know the perfect fit for your business. In the meantime, here’s a little more about the benefits of the process, and the steps that go into it.
Platform modernization is essential to improving the customer experience. As expectations continue to rise, a modern platform allows for customization and a better overall experience. Here are some of data platform modernization trends and benefits.
This crucial IT strategy step provides many benefits:
Enhanced Scalability and Sustainability: Modern platforms are designed with scalability and sustainability in mind, enabling them to handle increased user base and data load without incurring exorbitant maintenance costs. This feature makes them appealing to potential acquirers seeking platforms that can support their plans to grow.
Enhanced Security: Cybersecurity is especially important to companies these days because it protects against potentially catastrophic disruptions caused by cyberattacks. Modern platforms are more secure compared to older platforms. State-of-the-art security technologies and best practices are employed to safeguard against unauthorized access, data theft and destruction.
Cost Optimization: Known for their cost-effectiveness, modern platforms are designed to operate efficiently and utilize resources judiciously. This translates into reduced operating costs, which can be a significant advantage for potential buyers.
Enhanced User Experience: Prioritizing UX, modern platforms leverage cutting-edge technologies and user-centric designs to offer a superior experience compared to older platforms.
Innovation Potential: Modern platforms are synonymous with innovation, leveraging open standards and technologies to facilitate seamless integration of new features and functionalities.
Assess your current platform. The first step is to assess your current platform and identify its strengths and weaknesses. This will help you to determine where improvements should be made as well as to prioritize them.
Develop a modernization plan. Once you have a good understanding of your current platform, you can develop a modernization plan. This should include goals, the steps you need to take and the resources you’ll need.
Migrate your data and applications. The next step is to migrate your data and applications to the new platform. This can be complex and time-consuming, so it is important to plan and execute carefully.
Test and deploy the new platform. As you get closer to a larger rollout, you need to test the new platform to make sure everything functions as expected. Deploying to production is a safe way to do this while monitoring performance.
Train employees on the new platform. Before clients or customers get their hands on the modernized platform, make sure your employees know it inside-out, upside-down. Not only do you want to make sure they can use it effectively, but they should also be able to help the end user with any issues. Training can be done through classroom instruction, online training or in an on-the-job setting. Whichever route you go, make sure it’s hands-on. Even for apps or software that are for internal use only, you want to make sure key leaders understand how it functions before performing a wider rollout.
Support and maintain the new platform. Once the new platform is live, you need to maintain it. This includes providing support to users, fixing bugs and making security updates. True platform modernization is a never-ending process in today’s business environment.
When going through this process, consider starting small. Don’t try to modernize your entire platform all at once. This will help you to build momentum and learn from your mistakes.
Related to that, you should also use a phased approach to reduce the risk of disruption and make the process more manageable.
Lastly, get buy-in from stakeholders before you begin to ensure everyone is on the same page.
Whatever your approach, be prepared for change and be willing to adapt.
Whether you’re a private or public company ready to upgrade an existing system, or a private equity firm looking to boost a portfolio company’s value, we’re here to help.
The BluWave-grade service providers in the Business Builders’ Network have extensive experience with platform modernization, no matter what your industry.
They understand the importance of upgrading not only with speed, but also quality, with the end user in mind all the time.
Our research and operations team will connect you with two or three best-fit options for your exact situation within a single business day. Reach out today to get your platform modernization project started ASAP with an experienced team of experts to guide you.
Service Provider Type: Supply Chain Technology Firm
Industry: Waste Management
Need
System Selection & Implementation in Waste Management
A rapidly expanding outsourced waste management company had outgrown its accounts payable automation tool. With a modest-sized IT team, they needed expert help with greater depth and engineering to better handle their growth requirements.
Challenge
Tech service provider to ingrate their CRM with their AP tool
With an IT team of less than 10 people, the VP of Tech asked BluWave for help finding a service provider that could better integrate their CRM with their AP tool. As business continued to boom, they weren’t able to keep up with the transactions and needed guidance on not only getting the most out of the tools in place, but finding something more powerful for the future.
How BluWave Helped
The Business Builders’ Network
The very next day, we connected them with four experienced service providers that have done excellent work for other independent and portfolio companies, respectively. They landed on their top choice – a proven system architecture firm that understands their industry – and we continued to support the company by monitoring the service provider until the project was finished, and beyond.
Result
Connected with a best-in-class IT firm
The IT firm helped the portco reorganize its systems internally, better equipping them to select and implement a new AP automation tool. They were able to better integrate with their ERP and manage ever-increasing transactions more efficiently.
The work product we have seen is very good, both for documentation and quality of expected outputs.
They stayed involved from the discovery phase on through implementation.
The changes all look very good and were completed faster than expected. Additional input on changes were well received and follow up has occurred quickly.
A tech stack is a set of software tools and programming languages that serves as the foundation of any technology project, including websites, desktop software and apps.
It’s also the backbone of a project and can determine its performance, scalability and maintenance in the long run. Selecting the right one can help developers streamline their work, speed up the development process and provide a better user experience.
The LAMP Stack is a widely used open-source web development stack that is suitable for creating dynamic websites. It comprises Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP, where Linux is the operating system, Apache is the web server software, MySQL is the database management system and PHP is the programming language used to create dynamic web pages.
MEAN Stack is a comprehensive JavaScript framework that is widely used to create dynamic web applications. It comprises MongoDB, Express.js, Angular and Node.js. MongoDB serves as the NoSQL database management system, Express.js is a web application framework used with Node.js, Angular is the front-end JavaScript framework that enables the creation of dynamic web pages and Node.js provides the back-end JavaScript runtime environment.
Another JavaScript framework that is commonly used for creating web applications that support real-time updates is the MERN Stack. It comprises MongoDB, Express.js, React, and Node.js. MongoDB serves as the NoSQL database management system, Express.js is a web application framework used with Node.js, React is the front-end JavaScript library used for building user interfaces and Node.js provides the back-end JavaScript runtime environment.
Ruby on Rails is a well-known web development framework that utilizes the Ruby programming language. It is a preferred choice for startups because of its user-friendly interface and straightforwardness. Ruby on Rails follows the Model-View-Controller (MVC) architectural pattern and emphasizes convention over configuration.
The .NET Stack is a Microsoft technology stack that includes tools such as C#, ASP.NET, and Microsoft SQL Server. It is widely used for creating enterprise-level web applications. C# is an object-oriented programming language that helps develop Windows desktop applications and ASP.NET is a web application framework used for creating dynamic web pages.
Django Stack is a Python web development framework that is widely used for creating scalable and secure web applications. Django follows the Model-View-Template (MVT) architectural pattern and incorporates an Object-Relational Mapping (ORM) layer that enables developers to interact with databases using Python code.
The iOS Stack is a comprehensive stack of tools that includes Xcode, Swift, and Objective-C and is widely used for creating iOS mobile applications. Xcode is an integrated development environment (IDE) used to develop iOS apps, Swift is a programming language developed by Apple specifically for iOS app development and Objective-C was previously used to develop iOS apps before Swift was introduced.
The Android Stack is another comprehensive stack of tools that includes Android Studio, Java, and Kotlin and is widely used for developing Android mobile applications. Android Studio is an IDE used to develop Android apps, Java is an object-oriented programming language that is used for building Android apps and Kotlin was introduced by Google as an alternative to Java for Android app development.
Choosing the right tech stack is a critical decision for private equity firms. The right PE technology stack should be a cohesive system that enables fund managers to source deals, manage relationships with limited partners and portfolio companies, and close more deals.
A firm with the right technology solutions in place can work smarter and faster, deliver higher-margin services and ultimately increase profitability. For private equity firms, the technology stack should be viewed as an investment and a way to stay ahead of the competition.
There are many factors that go into choosing the technology stack, but here are some of the more important ones:
Out-of-the-box solutions: These are pre-built software solutions that can be used to solve common problems. They can save time and money by reducing the need for custom development. Examples include WordPress, Shopify and Salesforce.
Integration with third-party solutions: This refers to the ability of a tech stack to work with other software solutions. It’s important to choose a tech stack that can easily integrate with other tools you may need in the future. Examples include Zapier, Segment and Twilio.
Developer availability: This refers to the availability of developers who are skilled in a particular tech stack. It’s important to choose a tech stack that has a large pool of developers available so that you can find the right talent for your project.
Documentation: This refers to the quality and quantity of documentation available for a particular tech stack. Good documentation can help developers get up to speed quickly and reduce the time needed for troubleshooting. Examples include React documentation and Django documentation.
Easy to test: This refers to how easy it is to test code written in a particular tech stack. A good tech stack should have testing tools built-in or have easy-to-use testing frameworks available. Examples include Jest for React and Pytest for Python.
If any of this sounds like unfamiliar territory (and even if it doesn’t), it may be a good reason to look for expert help.
There are experienced, proven service providers out there who know industry-specific tech stack requirements inside-out and can help your business make the best decisions every step of the way.
Fortunately, you don’t have to waste time searching for them. Hundreds of PE firms and private and public companies tap into the Business Builders’ Network for this exact reason.
Not only will you be connected in less than one business day, but we’ll only provide the exact-fit resources that are experienced in your particular industry.
Centralized data in business analytics involves consolidating information from across an organization into a single system for easier analysis.
“This aspect of business intelligence and analytics is important because it gives companies visibility into KPIs at a high level,” says Brandon John, BluWave’s Service Provider Relationship Manager.
The consolidation usually happens in something called a data warehouse.
Business intelligence practices like centralization are becoming more and more important to businesses, whether that mean private equity, portcos or private and public companies.
According to our most recent quarterly report, we saw “broad-scale adoption of data quality and visualization endeavors and emergent efforts in higher level analytics and AI.”
Let’s take a closer look at what data centralization can do for your business.
Centralized data provides a single source of truth so leadership can make faster, more accurate business decisions.
Early Detection of Issues
Centralized data allows businesses to identify problems sooner before they become bigger issues.
More Consistency
Different departments often have the same definitions and metrics for things like active users and sales. By centralizing data, you can eliminate confusion at the leadership level.
Holistic View of Customer Journey
Centralized data from marketing, sales and customer service systems provide a complete picture of the customer experience.
Advanced Capabilities
It is easier to analyze data and find insights when all of the relevant data is in one place. Businesses can more easily see correlations across different data sets.
Increased Efficiency
Employees don’t have to spend time aggregating data from different systems. Everything is available in a single source.
Improved Trust
There is confidence that the data and reports are accurate and consistent since there is only one version of the truth.
Digital transformation is no longer something only the biggest, wealthiest companies can afford.
Not only are these services within reach for businesses of all sizes – from enterprise organizations to lower middle market companies – but they’re also essential.
Learn about common improvement areas all businesses can implement to accelerate digital transformation efforts.
Business leaders, including operations partners at private equity firms, C-level executives and functional leads are evaluating the digital capabilities and infrastructure in their companies to identify areas for improvement
Simple improvements to workflows or procedures can significantly trim manual tasks and optimize human capital during economic uncertainty
“No-regret” moves such as the following can accelerate change in a targeted, cost-effective way:
Adopting cloud and SaaS solutions
Improving cybersecurity
Enhancing website capabilities with tools like chatbots
Automating order processing and inventory management
Companies conduct voice of customer (VoC) studies to better understand how people interact with their product or service.
While there are many techniques to gather this information, the objective is largely the same: Ensure the customer is being heard and served as best as possible.
Private equity firms, portfolio companies, and private and public companies can all benefit from a strong voice of customer framework.
“Voice of the customer is extremely important to businesses because it allows companies to have visibility into where they are performing highly and where they are not,” says Brandon John, BluWave’s service provider relationship manager. “By hearing exactly how their customers feel about their brand, they can allocate the appropriate resources to improve some identified areas.”
Let’s talk about some of the advantages organizations can gain with the information gathered in VoC research.
Benefits of VoC
There are several advantages to conducting a voice-of-customer survey. It come as no surprise, then, that it’s been top-of-mind for our clients for years.
“VoC projects are always going to be something PE firms prioritize with their portcos,” John says. “We receive steady demand in this space and have since BluWave was founded.”
Rather than merely gathering feedback, VoC research helps companies reimagine their products and services to surpass customers’ needs by gaining an intricate understanding of who they are and what they want.
This includes how and when they use the product, as well as why they’re more (or less) likely to choose it over a competitor.
Listening to customers and resolving their concerns establishes trust and loyalty, decreasing attrition and boosting customer lifetime value.
A client is more likely to stick with a brand that it feels has its best interests in mind.
Better Business Decisions
Actionable insights gleaned from customer input can steer key business choices around product roadmaps, marketing campaigns, pricing strategies and service models.
Increased Bottom Line
An unparalleled customer experience not only spurs growth, but also a competitive edge. One study showed that companies with strong VoC programs boast 10X more annual revenue growth.
Enhanced Customer Satisfaction
Catering to customers’ needs and wants forges lasting connections. It not only enhances the existing customer experience, but makes it more likely to acquire new ones as you get a better grasp on your target market.
This can have a compound effect as a happy customer is also more likely to recommend your brand or service to friends, families, colleagues and industry peers.
Employee Retention
This might come as a surprise, but your own employees can also benefit from VoC studies. That’s because it gives them a stronger connection to the customer by putting themselves in their shoes. The more aligned the employees are with the clients, the more satisfied they tend to be, thus limiting turnover.
To comprehensively capture the opinions of your customers, you should employ multiple avenues for feedback, including surveys, social media, reviews, emails and phone calls.
By using a variety of channels to gather input, companies can gain a multifaceted understanding of client needs and desires that fuels business decisions, improved experiences and financial gains.
Choose Timing Wisely
The timing of requests for customer feedback can significantly impact the quality and amount of responses. Businesses should choose a moment that is relevant, convenient and respectful for clients, such as after a purchase, service interaction or milestone.
Businesses that are considerate in their requests for input are more likely to receive thoughtful, actionable responses that can drive key business decisions and improved outcomes.
The best moment to act on feedback received is as soon as possible. While you want to be diligent about understanding and applying what customers tell you, times is of the essence.
This is especially important when it comes to fixing problems, resolving negative feedback and staying ahead of competitors.
Segmentation
To gain business insights, companies should analyze customer feedback and group clients by factors like demographics or habits. Tailoring actions to different groups helps build loyalty and boost revenue.
It also establishes trust, decreases attrition and increases lifetime value by making each experience as tailored as possible.
The quality of your feedback depends largely on the quality of your questions. You should ask clear, concise and specific questions that are easy to understand and answer. You should also avoid leading, biased or ambiguous questions that can skew your results.
The value of customer input hinges greatly on the quality of the questions posed. Aim for clear, crisp and targeted inquiries that are easy to comprehend and respond to. Avoid being suggestive, biased or obscure lines of questioning that can skew results.
Your goal is to learn what customers think about your business, not try to convince them of something.
Acknowledge Feedback
One of the most important VoC best practices is to acknowledge your customers’ feedback and show them that you appreciate their time and opinions. There’s never been more competition for our time, so the fact that someone is willing to participate in your study means they probably have strong feelings.
Follow up with a thank-you message, sharing how their feedback will be used or even offering a reward (see below).
Share Findings Internally
To turn feedback into action, you need to share your findings with the relevant stakeholders in your organization. You should communicate the key insights, recommendations and action plans to your employees, managers and leaders. You should also encourage collaboration and accountability across different teams and departments.
Benchmark Against Your Industry
To measure your performance and progress against your competitors and industry standards, you should benchmark your VoC metrics against external data sources. You can use industry reports, surveys or benchmarks to compare your customer satisfaction, loyalty and advocacy levels with others in your field.
Test and Optimize
VoC best practices are dynamic, not static. You should constantly refine your program to ensure that it is effective, efficient and aligned with your overall business goals.
This can be done with A/B testing, analytics or feedback loops to evaluate and improve your VoC methods, tools and strategies.
Involve Key Stakeholders
To ensure that your VoC program has the support and resources it needs to succeed, you should involve key stakeholders from the start.
Identify decision-makers, influencers and beneficiaries of your program and engage them in defining the goals, scope and outcomes of your efforts.
Offer Participation Incentives
To increase your response rates and motivate your customers to share their feedback , you can offer participation incentives such as discounts, coupons, freebies or loyalty points.
Choose incentives that are relevant, attractive and proportional to the effort required from your customers.
The expert service providers in the BluWave network know the importance of understanding your customers.
We constantly vet and re-vet the best third-party resources for this exact need, no matter what your customer type or industry.
“We have a solid bench of VoC providers in the BluWave network,” says John, who interacts with these third-party resources on a daily basis. “However, it is important to have the right group, for the right need, at the right time.”
Contact our research and operations team and walk us through your VoC needs. In less than one business day, we’ll introduce you to two or three exact-match options.
“Like all service toolboxes in the BluWave network, the VoC toolbox is always rapidly expanding,” John adds.
Once you make a selection, we’ll hold the service provider accountable from start to finish as they bring their voice of customer expertise to your specific situation.
We’re seeing nearly all-time-high interest in add-on acquisitions due to slower deal flow and platform acquisitions demanding higher multiples.
Add-ons present an opportunity to consolidate market position and average down all-in platform multiples. To ensure successful add-on integration processes, PE firms are:
Focusing on the people side to ensure cultural alignment pre-close and drive buy-in and excitement post-close.
Helping management stand up internal teams and building out playbooks so that company leadership can natively run integration processes. The firm will stay involved at a strategic level and drop in to provide tactical support when needed.
Portfolio Value Creation
More than 80 percent of projects flowing through the BluWave ecosystem are related to portfolio value creation initiatives, an all-time high.
This reflects lighter deal flow as well as how the industry is “running toward the storm” and turning challenges into opportunities. PE firms are effectively driving portfolio value creation by:
Working with management, especially founder owners, to educate them on the PE process during the diligence phase. This helps build buy-in so that management feels it has ownership in the value creation plan post-acquisition.
Standing up a robust go-to-market strategy. Many founder-owned companies are product-focused but do not have the resources or expertise to build a true sales and marketing function. Firms are bringing in CROs or CSOs to develop strategies, set pricing and jumpstart marketing efforts.
Institutionalizing knowledge within the firm so that it doesn’t sit at one deal or portco. Firms are building playbooks across the areas of people, communication, strategy and operations so that they can take a systematized approach to value creation at each company.
