It was this article that got me thinking about client relationships and account management. We often hear complaints from prospects regarding “attrition” – accounts that just go away. Of course we also field many calls where CEO’s are concerned that some of their best clients are being wined and dined by the competition. And a newer phenomenon is a result of our economy – accounts that are just cutting back on spending or going under.
Maybe you are concerned by one or all three of these issues? Often we rely on our sales people to not only hunt and dig up new business but also we require them to manage and retain accounts. Even in companies where someone else manages the existing base and sales people are purely hunters some of these dilemmas apply.
1) You still need to have sales people that can sell in such a way that the accounts are set up correctly.
2) You still need the client to have a good taste in their mouth regarding the buying experience.
3) We don’t want clients that felt forced or coerced into buying.
4) We still want our customer service people to handle the current clients properly and recognize when there might be a selling opportunity or a situation where a sales person needs to be involved.
So with this in mind we start thinking about relationships and relationship selling. I hear this all the time from prospects and clients – “we have a consultative relationship sell” and then I find out they have a 50% attrition rate! Guess what? You do not have a relationship sell if attrition rates are high or customers are unhappy.
I also hear that and then will ask “so referrals and introductions are through the roof?” usually the answer is no we hardly get any - Guess what? You do not have a relationship sell if you are not generating referrals!
So why is there so much confusion about this? Why do sales people often feel like they are great at relationship selling yet in reality they are not? Where is the problem or disconnect between what is and what isn’t?
I believe it comes down three words that we often leave out when talking about relationship selling.
1) BUSINESS relationships – if your version of relationship selling is defined by talking about kids, dogs, sports, weather, cars or events then I hate to break it to you but that is not the type of relationship that will weather the storms and trials we started discussing at the beginning of this post. You need to have meaningful business discussions where you are digging into to their business goals, objectives and passions. You need to be competent when it comes to having these discussions – do you read the news, the paper, trade articles or anything else that will keep you up to speed.
2) GENUINE relationships. When you smile at your clients do they see a Duchenne Smile or the phony pan am smile? What about your tone of voice and your body language? People can sense the real deal and run from insincerity so make sure what you develop is genuine.
3) STRATEGIC relationships – great sales people are in it for the long haul and therefore are thinking about 12 months to five years not 30 days when it comes to taking care of their clients
So what is the point of this rather lengthy post? Take a good look at the current clients you have and look at how you manage them and then be 100% honest with yourself when it comes to the answers. If you are falling short then fix it. Meet with the customers and simply start over – this time on the right foot!
