Creating a Sustainable Competitive Advantage

A sustainable competitive advantage is only possible by delivering consistently superior customer experiences, which motivate customers to be loyal, and increase their Share of Business with you.  Achieving this superior customer experience is more difficult than it might seem however.

In 2005, Bain & Company surveyed 362 companies and found that 80 percent believed they delivered a "superior experience" to their customers.  When they asked customers from these companies about their own perceptions, only 8 percent of companies were rated as delivering a superior experience.  This Experience Gap sets up a perfect storm of potential defections because management can’t focus on problems they can’t identify and quantify.

AgKnowlogy works with leading agribusiness to help them improve customer loyalty and sales performance through our AIM sales performance software, Customer Experience Monitor, Key Account Planning and Service Blueprinting.

AgKnowlogy has interviewed more than 5,000 customers from over two dozen elite ag retailers, and was given access to the sales information of their top customers.  Based on extensive data analysis, followed by almost 200 workshop hours with retailers to discuss our findings, AgKnowlogy has developed the AIM Sales Effectiveness System.  The Sales System is a seamless integration of AIM software (which enables Best Practices in CRM, data mining, lead generation combined), and strategic account management tools.

Ag retail managers tell AgKnowlogy they need to develop more high performance, customer centric sales cultures. Some issues we hear are:

• Increase forecasting accuracy to optimize early orders and inventory control.
• Profile and quantify opportunities with high potential customers and prospects.
• Create actionable customer segments to support targeted selling.
• Use customer knowledge to effectively target the needs of customers and prospects.
• Identify and repair gaps in service delivery that create barriers to customer loyalty.
• Become more goal focused and accountable for results.
• Achieve a 360° view across a customer’s business for more effective account management.
• Increase selling skills, for more predictable sales results.
• Provide easy to use, easy to access sales reports for field staff.