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Mapping the Customer JourneyAn Introduction to Sales Process Design
The business customer journey is very different than it was
even five years ago. It typically begins before you have any
contact with a prospect, as soon as they identify a need
within their business. Someone at the business rarely
the actual decision maker starts researching solutions.
Eventually they sign up for a trial or fill in a form for some
collateral on your website. Now youre on their short list.
The journey continues as you build value through
your sales process and close the initial sale. It
keeps going through their first wow moment
with your services and the expansion of their use
of your products and services. It continues for as
long as they remain a customer.
The key thing to remember is that customers have a lot more control
than they used to. They have a lot more knowledge and a lot more
options. To get and keep customers in this new environment, you have
to proactively shape their journey. That begins with mapping the steps
your prospect will move through, taking into account where theyre
coming from and how you can best guide them into a successful
customer relationship.
This white paper will help you understand your customers journey and
develop a consistent sales process, so you can achieve consistent
results. Heres how well break it down:
1. Understand the full scope of the business customer journey.
2. Zoom in on the core of the journey from first call or meeting
to close of initial sale and explore three sales process models.
3. Choose the right model and customize your own sales process.
Mapping the Customer Journey 2
A Birds Eye View of the Customer JourneyThe diagram below illustrates three high-level phases in the business customer journey.
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Discovery: Prior to First Meeting
The initial phase of your customers journey is how they get to you, how they become a
lead. There are three tracks for bringing leads into your sales process. Lead generation
is outside the scope of this book, but fortunately weve created a separate book for each
of these tracks if youd like to learn more:
Personal Networking. By creating a web of connections and maximizing referrals, you
can get in the game as soon as the need for a product like yours is identified by
someone you know, or one of their connections. If people know you as a thought leader,
theyre likely to think of you first. Learn more in Personal Networking for Sales
Rockstars.
Marketing Led / Inbound Sales. Marketing draws in potential customers who have
identified a need and begun searching for solutions. Alignment between sales and
marketing is critical to the success of inbound sales, and we offer tips in Bridging the
Marketing & Sales Divide.
Sales Led / Outbound Sales. This lead generation track focuses on reaching out to find
people who are ready for your solution, even if they havent started looking yet. Learn
about building great targeted lists and working them efficiently in Getting Smart About
Outbound Sales.
Mapping the Customer Journey
Core Pipeline: From First Meeting to First Sale
This is the phase where most salespeople invest most of their time. Youve
got a great sales qualified lead (SQL), and youve scheduled an initial
meeting or call or demo. Now, how do you make the most of the
opportunity and move the prospect through your sales process to close?
Well spend the rest of this book looking at this core piece of the customer
journey.
Customer Success: After the Initial Sale
Theres a lot to consider beyond the initial sale. Developing a strategic,
proactive Customer Success program can make a huge difference for your
business.
Customer Success is a cross-functional, data-driven effort to help
customers get value from your solution or service and to engage at-risk
customers before they churn. The goal is to actively optimize customer
satisfaction, adoption, and health. Customer Success goes hand in hand
with increasing the value of your customer relationships over time
through up-selling and cross-selling.
But youve got to land that initial sale first.
4Mapping the Customer Journey
Three Sales Process ModelsBelow are three examples of the core business customer journey for different types of
sales. Were setting aside lead generation and long-term customer success here to focus
on the Core Pipeline segment of the customer journey, from the first call or meeting to
closing the initial sale.
Simple Sale
At PipelineDeals, the customer journey from being identified as a sales qualified lead to
becoming a customer is relatively simple.
The order of these stages may vary slightly, depending on the situation. For example,
prospects may already have begun their trial through our website when we contact them
and offer a training session on how to get the most out of PipelineDeals.
At the first call or meeting, we ask some advanced qualifying questions to understand
the customers requirements and the decision-makers involved. Then, we demo our
solution with an emphasis on making sure they see and try the stickiest, most
powerful features of our product.
By the end of the trial, the prospect either wants PipelineDeals or not. Any negotiation is
usually focused on what kind of onboarding services they want.
5Mapping the Customer Journey
Complex Sale
Some sales processes are far more complex. For example, consider a business analytics
solution that costs hundreds of thousands of dollars each year. To sell something like
that, you typically need multiple up-front meetings with the CFO and various teams
across the organization. You cant even get started without understanding the
companys business, identifying value drivers, and gathering enough information to
demonstrate how your solution can drive insight. There has to be a clearly defined,
multi-step process of building value, establishing buy-in, and creating a customized
proposal before you can negotiate a deal.
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Complex Sale Example
Mapping the Customer Journey
Land and Expand Sale
Another excellent way to frame the customer journey is by looking beyond the initial
close to long-term customer value from the very beginning. This type of sale starts out
simple, but has a long game.
The idea is to set a low bar for the initial sale, such as a 3-month basic contract, and
then guide the customer to a more lucrative relationship over time. The land and
expand model expands the sales footprint and requires extensive collaboration between
marketing, sales and support.
Land and expand is what were moving toward at PipelineDeals. It makes a lot of
sense to gradually and strategically increase value and customer commitment over time.
But it does require a true, cross-functional Customer Success program. By proactively
optimizing the value customers receive from your solution, you can keep them fresh in
your recurring sales pipeline long after the initial sale.
In addition to being a viable path to success over time, land and expand is a critical
component of any ongoing customer relationship. Once a prospect has made the lead to
becoming a paying customer, one of the most effective ways to continue showing value
is to persist in exploring their needs. Maintaining this habit helps to grow the
relationship and offers additional opportunities for up-sell and cross-sell long after the
close of the original sale.
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The Potential of Land & Expand(example from Totango.com)
Mapping the Customer Journey
Defining Your Sales ProcessFor most businesses, one of the models above can serve as a solid starting point from which
they can further customize. The table below summarizes how the three types of customer
journey match up to specific customer targets, product types, and sales cycles.
Simple Sale
Complex Sale
Land-and-Expand
Small to medium
businesses
Mid-to-large sized
businesses
Organizations that are
growing fast and/or
very large and highly
compartmentalized.
Sale might begin with
a single franchise,
department, or
segment of a
department.
Single product or
product line focused
on one department or
functional area.
Typically a
transactional sale or
simple SaaS.
Impacts multiple
departments or
functional areas. May
involve sensitive parts
of the business (ex:
finance) or a large
up-front investment.
Products with a low
barrier to entry but
high potential for
growth. And/or
products with
multiple tiers.
30-45 days (or less)
More than 45 days
First sale in 45 days
or less, but ramping
up over a year or
more
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Which Sales Process Fits Your Business?
Customer Target Type of Product Length of Sales Cycle
Mapping the Customer Journey
If none of the three models can be adapted to your needs, you may have to get creative. But
keep in mind that any process is better than no process. Win