24-01-2020 08:51:06 | Door: Katja Brokke | www.marketingreport.nl
Digital is the new normal, also for small and medium sized companies
The great thing about MKB is that they don’t put the customer at the centre. They are already at the centre of attention. After all, MKB are entrepreneurs, even the big ones. They know their customers and know what they want. And they act accordingly.
At the same time, contact and communication with the customer or consumer develop rapidly. These developments are more difficult for MKB to keep up with, than for large corporate organisations, for example. After all, they employ specialists. Think of a marketing and communication department. MKB entrepreneurs are often looking for the right support and therefore lag behind in the competition.
Smart and concrete
Digital is the new normal. This applies to both the communication with the customer and the customer journey that you offer as a company. Fast, easy and preferably mobile. That’s how we want it to be presented as a customer, otherwise we go to the competitor. Small and medium-sized companies in particular can do this excellently if they make smart use of their strengths and don’t let themselves be deterred by the so-called expensive digital transformations that would be necessary for this. Smart MKB do not need to transform, but can use the available digital possibilities. If they call in the right specialist help, they will soon come a long way. In a way that suits entrepreneurship: working step by step towards concrete results.
Focus on identity
This starts with a clear focus on your identity: knowing who you are and what you promise. Because MKB are close to their customers, they can easily work on a credible story towards the market. The purpose of the company is often clearly present and with the right focus and from a logical point of view they can approach the market consistently and in an attractive way.
In order to achieve real results, it is important that customers really feel the identity and the story in their contact with the company. That means a smart and concrete translation in the customer journey. Digital increasingly determines business operations, also for MKB. By 2020, more than 50 percent of all sales will be influenced digitally, in some industries this will already be higher. This means that your story, sales and promises must also be translated digitally in a clear way. Think for example of your own digital front door, the website: a company’s business card, which prospects and customers look at first. And what do they see? That is really decisive.
Engine
Most people look at almost everything online, so what you see and feel there, they see as the DNA of the company. Based on that, they often decide whether a company suits them. Or not. So it’s important that small and medium-sized companies understand how the digital game works. And for that, they need to understand how customers are engaged with their business. How they look at companies and how they want to be helped. Smart entrepreneurs get to work with their story, use existing (digital) resources and call in specialist help where necessary. If they do that, small and medium-sized businesses will continue to be the engine of the Dutch economy in the future and MKB will become an example for large corporations; how to put customers first and book concrete results tomorrow.
