Expert Interview with … Aslak de Silva, Selfly Store

We had the pleasure of chatting to Aslak de Silva, CEO at Selfly Store, about what an ideal omni-channel strategy looks like in a B2B setting, how to make remote interactions feel as intimate as in-person experiences, and his priorities and challenges for 2023.

What do you feel are the key challenges your company faces in 2023?

We are focusing on creating a brand around Selfly Store and really stand out in the crowd. Our customer base is in 17 European countries; thus we need to be active in all of these markets. For us, the biggest challenge is to reach all of our potential customers and be present in their minds, when they are considering different options.

What have been your top 3 areas of focus in 2022 and why?

We have started to be active on different events. We feel that after COVID-19, we need to be there where people are. We have also invested a lot in our digital presence and have started to produce webinars to spread our message. On top of those, we are also building more concrete targeted digital customer funnels, to be able to collect and serve our leads in a better way.

What does an ideal omni-channel strategy look like in a B2B setting?

In my opinion, omni-channel strategy should include physical and online channels. Physical meetings at events, 1-1 meetings and other settings. At events, I feel that being present with a booth makes sense, but also on top of that to take part in keynotes and panels should be included, to be perceived as a thought leader. This thought leader position should be enhanced with online presence in different channels. These include LinkedIn, guest articles and posts on websites and preferably in the media. It makes a lot more of a credible thought leader, when the person and the company are seen in many different channels and constantly visible. The actual tactical marketing goes into these same categories. Good to meet customers and collect leads wherever they are, but also build funnels for an online-only approach. To me, omni-channel is the only option to get the best results. Be visible and front-of-mind in the most important meeting points and target your marketing to the right decision-makers and influencers.

How do you make remote interactions feel as intimate as in-person experiences?

To make a remote interaction intimate is a hard challenge. I feel that one should focus on building a unique story and feeling. In the best case, one can use music, videos, polls and interactive tools to generate a once-in-a-lifetime feeling. This is not easy, but it is possible.

How are you transitioning your sales team from order takers to value-adding order makers?

Even if we work in a traditional business of physical vending machines, we have focused on delivering value to our customers and built a customer success process. We have customers in 17 European countries and all the purchases done by consumers are categorized in our data warehouse. We train our sales team to understand the trends and pick valuable lessons learned for our customers and providing data-based value, which no-one else can do. We don’t only pitch to our customers, we also educate them with our business acumen and understanding. Introducing our 5-step program of customers’ success to anyone interested. This is the focus of our sales efforts, where we will help our customers and even prospects to do better business. This will change the focus from order takers to value-adding order makers.

To find out more, view the full agenda here.

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