Lily recently went to buy a new mobile phone.

When the salesperson offered to help her, not only did he know what kind she was looking for, he also could talk to her about most of the mobile phone’s feature as if it was custom-made for her. The rapport with the rep struck a chord with her and she decided to buy the phone right away. 

Not just that, she went ahead to recommend the store to her friends (on Facebook, too).

A buyer like Lily is ideal, Someone who is happy with the service and goes on to recommend the store to others. But to get a result like this sellers have to impress leads by being prepared.

The internet highly influences a buyer’s decisions today. Some influential factors are—

Social media
74% of consumers rely on social networks to guide purchase decisions—what does that tell you about its importance? As people are most likely to make a purchase based on social media referrals (almost 71% of them), you can imagine the effect it has on buying decisions.

Customer review websites
Google and Amazon reviews are another source of information for customers. When looking for information, people prefer independent sources like these.

What does that mean for MSPs?
The exposure to instant and unlimited information means that buyers are self-reliant when it comes to deciding what they want.

According to Forrester, 50 – 70% of the buying cycle is completed before customers ever engage with a salesperson. In simple words, prospects make up their minds much before you come into the picture.

Also, the customer embarks on the buying cycle on their own through research, networking and knowledge sharing. It means that inadequacies during any of the stages of the buying cycle, WILL affect the customer’s decision-making process.

Does that mean you wait for the prospect to reach you?
Potentially. Prospects do not appreciate in your face advertising anymore.

BUT, that doesn’t mean that you are a silent spectator till the prospects reach you. Big Data makes it possible to influence the buying decisions in every possible way, at every stage. Let’s see how…

Have a 360-degree overview of your leads
Are you tracking your leads across channels? Having an all rounded overview means that you have a system that captures prospect data and measures every interaction with your brand across different channels. You have to be able to measure how they are interacting with you on your website or social media.

Segment your leads
Thanks to the array of lead information you get, you can now segregate your leads in micro-segments. Unlike broad segmentation based on gender and location, you can segment leads based on finer details like preferences, industry, etc. This way you can blend into the very essence of your leads’ lifestyle without making it look like forced selling.

The point in question is can you affect the decisions your prospects make without involving you?
The answer is yes.

If you can put your big data to good use, you will be in a position to guide your leads at every stage.

How you can affect the prospects’ buying decisions–

1. Educate your prospects: Educating your prospects about your services is more effective than you think. Educating them means that you are able to share and demonstrate your expertise on the subject, which increases the value of your brand. This is also a highly effective way to develop and foster relationships with them.
2. Personalize your communication: Personalized emails improve click-through rates by 14%, and conversion rates by 10% (Aberdeen Group). Segmenting your prospects into different stages of the cycle will you a fair idea of what they need to know at that stage. Using this information, you can create personalized campaigns for each customer segment.
3. Respond quickly: Research shows that 35-50% of sales go to the vendor that responds first. (InsideSales.com). When your leads interact with you, you need to engage with them immediately.
4. Nurture them: Nurture your leads using informational content that appeals to their requirements. Design your content such that they appear to be the answers to your prospect’s queries. This is the best way to attract their attention and also to position yourself as a thought-leader.

If you want to be ahead of your prospect in the buying cycle, you’ve got to see everything that your prospects will see in order to make that big purchase decision.