Unlocking new growth with VOC gap analysis - first published May 9, 2024

Regardless of growth stage many companies are fixated on growth rates. As markets change and mature over time what worked before may not resonate today. Leveraging customer success stories to target ideal customer profiles (ICPs) is common, but some simple Voice-of-the-Customer (VOC) tactics can be overlooked. VOC programs are often misunderstood as resource heavy endeavours for mature companies.

Additionally, not all customer data or insights have the same legitimacy or value. For instance, attributing lost opportunities to a "feature gap" listed in a CRM may not uncover the real drivers of customer decisions. Similarly, just adding some localisation or verticalisation elements to the existing value prop for new segments may miss the mark with new ICPs. To sustain growth, it's crucial to run some diagnostics on your perceived customer insights & enhance messaging based on findings.

Contemplate if your business really; maintains consistent comms with all customers, still gathers qualitative insights as well as quantitative surveys, shares customer advocacy wide enough across the org, engages old customers in the same manner as new prospects, or provides all the VOC insights needed for marketing to be effective. You don’t have to fix everything, but by stepping back & asking different questions to diverse customers, companies can gain broader insights to identify & engage new great-fit prospects.

Companies can successfully conduct lightweight VOC sprints, to swiftly gather new untapped insights & refine differentiation messaging & enrich innovation pipelines. For instance; engaging background tier 2/3 customers, recontacting near-miss deals, & interviewing churned customers on value gaps. Then asking questions like; what did you buy our solution/service to do, which parts couldn't you live without or what needs work, & what impact or value has it delivered for you?

Even a small number of interviews can uncover previously unnoticed trends & reveal valuable insights into customer preferences & desires. As a consultancy focused on unlocking new market growth by uncovering customer insights blind spots, contact us if you need advice to do the same.