Throughout my 15 years of experience in working with startup CEOs and executives, I have found that the most successful companies truly understand their clients.

The best way to understand your clients is by establishing Voice of Client (VoC) —  a research process of collecting insights from your customers on why they purchased your product or service and what their expectations are. You can learn more about why VoC is so important for startups in my previous article.

In this article I share the most effective questions startups should ask your customers, the best method for getting your questions answered, and how VoC can be applied to your marketing strategy.

The Most Effective VoC Questions

Before you get started on building out your marketing plan, consider the valuable insights collected through the process of asking your clients a few important questions.

I have found the following questions to be the most effective:

1. What factor(s) most to your when selecting a company in [your industry]?

2. In your role, what are your biggest challenges?

3. What products or services are you using and why?

4. What do you like best about [your company]?

5. What would you improve about [your company]?

6. How did you find [your company]?

7. How do you receive industry news? Podcasts, publications, events, social media?

8. What other companies did you consider and why?

9. How does [your company] compare to those other companies?

10. Would you recommend [your company] and why?

The best methods for capturing VoC data

Hands down, the best way to establish VoC is by actually talking with your customers one-on-one. For startups that are getting ready to invest dollars into marketing, I recommend you pick up the phone, or host a Zoom meeting, to conduct customer interviews. It’s inexpensive and effective.

If you’re wondering how you are going to get customers to agree to an interview, think about this: your clients want you to be successful. They have also invested in your company. By talking with you, they can shape your product and the offering to best fit them.

Prior to conducting your customers interviews, follow these tips:

• Thoughtfully prepare your questions beforehand.

• Ask for permission first, then record the interview.

• Be mindful of your customers’ time. Remember they are busy too.

• Listen! This is their time to talk.

Ultimately, keep in mind that your clients are also busy people so respect their time by being prepared and listen to the words they use when answering your questions.

As you start to grow, you can scale your VoC effects by looking into third party programs like NPS, online surveys, and customer review sites. Your VoC efforts should become ongoing as your business grows.

Use VoC to inform your marketing strategy

The data collected from your VoC process can inform your marketing strategy and plans. Here’s how:

Uncover new phrases to describe your product

Pay attention to the specific words and phrases your clients use when talking about your product and your company. Your product marketer should include these key terms when describing what your product is, who it’s for, and how it should function.

These terms can be used throughout your marketing copy on your website, social media, your boilerplate for press releases, collateral, and pitch decks.

Clearly define your product’s benefits

Beyond describing what your product does and how it functions, call out the benefits your product and your organization can bring to the table.

Prior to asking clients, you have probably thought long and hard about the benefits that your product offers. However, if you are able to get a clear understanding of your offering’s benefits from the people that are paying for it, chances are those benefits will resonate with other prospective clients. Be sure to include the same words and phrases your customers use to describe your benefits.

Gain a competitive advantage

This is a big one. Every startup wants to edge out the competition. By asking your customers which competitors they considered and why, you will discover who they consider to be your direct competitor. You may even discover new competitors.

Draw comparisons between you and a direct competitor. Learn about your customer’s decision criteria across a number of categories. Then use this data to build battle cards, kill sheets, or a comparison page on your website.  

Choose the right marketing channels

Use the data collected from asking your clients how they found your company to inform your marketing channel selection. There seems to be an endless list of communication channels to reach and engage with customers. That’s why many startups struggle to determine which channels to invest dollars and time into.

If your clients found you on a product review site like G2, you could focus on getting more user-generated content (think testimonials and reviews) with incentives. Or consider purchasing a paid subscription to G2. If your clients found you by searching for “best home insurance providers in Denver,” then you should invest in local SEO.

Double down and focus on the channels that you know will give you ROI because they already have.

Capture testimonials

Happy customers lead to more happy customers. By asking your clients if they would recommend your company and why, you are in effect getting a testimonial. Turn their VoC answer into a testimonial that you can repurpose on your website, across social media channels, and in sales decks.

Customers that give you strong recommendations are great candidates to be your advocates. First, come up with an incentive, then ask these clients if they would write you a review on a third party site (such as G2 or Capterra), get interviewed for a case study, or provide a quote for an upcoming press release.

Take the next step

It is critical that your startup establishes a clear Voice of Client before you spend time and money on a marketing plan. Apply those valuable insights to your marketing strategy.

If your startup needs support in building your VoC, Arch Collective is happy to help. Contact me for a free 30 minute consultation to learn how we can best support you.