Needs in the B2B world in practice Some markets are called "highly developed". Usually, it means that there are a lot of suppliers on the market, which means that the products they offer to the customers fairly resemble each other in terms of quality, price, service, etc. All the goods are almost the same in the eyes of the customers, which makes the task to differentiate any particular product from the competition challenging. When it comes to commodities, it becomes almost impossible.
- In such situations, market players may draw their attention to what I call "soft needs". And by that, I mean features related not to the product itself but, rather, to supplementary service. For instance:
- It may be the convenience of purchasing – mobile applications, websites, inventory management etc. It may fulfill the customers' human needs in comfort.
- It may be predictive analytics helping your customers place their orders on time and improve their demand calculations. It reduces their risks, helps them feel confident, and shows their efficiency to their bosses.
It may be invitations for the customers to become members of private professional societies or clubs or participate in some special events. It will make them feel they belong to a privileged minority.
In general, any ideas helping customers to do less job (by shifting the task to a supplier or service provider), reduce their risks, make their job more comfortable, help them feel special, save their time, money, or effort will be welcomed by them. After all, they are human beings, and they have the same 16 needs we discussed in the previous articles.
Svyatoslav Biryulin
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