Winning and keeping the right customers

In recent years, a host of new suppliers with different sales strategies have appeared on regional and national markets. This development is changing price intensity, the product landscape and customer willingness to change suppliers. Significantly higher numbers of people are changing suppliers and growth-orientated suppliers are even looking towards small business customers. How can suppliers grow, win customer loyalty and respond to tougher market requirements?

Thanks to sales margins and the willingness of customers to switch suppliers, the market is becoming more attractive for new suppliers and for growth outside the native supply district.

Growth is vital in order to survive. But this requires an idea and familiarity with the market, customer needs, competitors, price level, attractive target districts, as well as the company's own cost structure and competences.

However, many positions in the market are already occupied. The more suppliers a customer segment has, the more difficult it is to stand out from the crowd with positioning, product and service. Independent of whether sights are set on regional or national growth.

But standing out from the crowd is not enough to win customers in a highly competitive market that is no longer growing. Sales strategies based exclusively on low prices, however, do not pay off - margin potential and customer loyalty are the key factors. And a company's own cost-per-order and cost-to-serve are measured in competition. The decisive factor for success is (efficient and value-orientated) sales that lead to cost-efficient success, i.e. the new, right customer.