A VOC Case Study: National Service Firm with Regional Branches

Challenge

A nationally known environmental consulting firm wanted to understand how the market saw their position, public awareness, and customer preference for the firm against the competition. Their second goal was to test the receptivity of a new suite of consulting services to its customers and prospects.

Process

We identified current customers and large potential prospects across the US. Without identifying the sponsor of the study, we conducted in-depth phone interviews lasting 30-40 minutes.

Results

The analysis for the research yielded several surprising conclusions. The market awareness and preference of our client depended on the service used and which area of the country the customer was located. Without the firm’s knowledge, many of their branches had honed in on specialty practice areas and abandoned others while all branch ads continued to claim the firm’s full line of services.

Through our Voice of the Customer research, the market expressed its preferences for the proposed consulting services the firm should implement. It was found that some services the client was considering would not be successful. Customers thought either the client would not be a credible vendor due to a lack of perceived expertise, and/or they had significant preference and loyalty to their current suppliers. Other services seemed like a natural adjacency expansion. We were able to craft the value proposition for each of these services in terms of pricing, credentials, service, and what would differentiate an outstanding supplier from and average one.

We also identified potential customers who were not satisfied with their current supplier. With this knowledge, Strategex recommended new market strategies to be seriously considered when these prospects sought out a new supplier.