Growing Your Customer Connection

Are you ready for business in the information age? The world has changed over the past 100 years, yet many strategies to bring in new business remain the same. I started my career at NCR, and as a salesperson and the division sales trainer, I learned how John Patterson, the founder of the company, essentially invented the role of the salesperson. I learned the structured approach to get in front of the people that could purchase my products, educate the potential customer and use techniques to close the sale. In fact, those same lessons have served me well over the past 16 years.

Then, a while back, I received a knock on my door at 9:00 in the evening from someone selling citrus cleaner. I thought to myself, I do not need to know about citrus cleaner and if I want to learn more, I can simply google the words “citrus cleaner”. The short story is that your potential customers have already reached this same conclusion regarding your company’s products or services.

So I ask, is your business ready for business in the information age? Are you ready to grow your customer connection? Be honest and ask yourself the following questions:

Are your sales and prospecting efforts only focused on unsolicited cold calls?

• I really like salespeople, but the role of salesperson has to change with the times. There is more than one way to “hunt” for business, and along with some of the traditional approaches, new ideas need to be explored. Salespeople should look for linkages to their customers. Salespeople should improve the information that can be found on the internet and make the information easy to find through the major search engines. Salespeople should realize that the majority of their future business will come from people finding them, and they need to maximize their chance to grow their customer connection.

Do your customer service reps simply take orders?

• A great customer service representative is money in the bank, but a customer service rep that simply takes orders is missing key opportunities. Customer service reps should study your products and services and look for the natural opportunities to offer more of what your customers need. Encourage the customer service rep to take the time to walk the customer through your company’s web site for a better understanding of everything your company can offer. Reward the customer service rep that provides excellent customer service and encourage them to offer just a bit more than what the customer has requested.

Do your service technicians refuse to identify opportunities for business growth?

• Service technicians are the lifeblood of many businesses and without good ones, many of the businesses today would have only low margin products to offer their customers. The challenge is that many service technicians have become anti-sales over the years and the mere mention of selling is like introducing nails to the chalkboard. Let’s face it, we have all been in a situation where service technicians have been forced to sell (my local oil change place comes to mind) and it can be an uncomfortable experience for everyone. However, service technicians are the eyes and ears for future sales opportunities. Service technicians need motivation and training to bring those opportunities for sales growth “to the table” and contribute to the goal of improving sales results.

In summary, we are overwhelmed by incoming sales messages and most of us have the capability of learning what we want to know without the direct assistance of an unsolicited sales call. Before the internet, many potential customers would let salespeople in the door as a way to further their own education, but customers today are reluctant to let salespeople educate them when they feel they have all the information they need at their fingertips. The best way to grow your sales in the information age is to enlist the help of everyone in your organization. Gain the support of everyone that is in contact with your customer and help them see the value in growing your customer connection.

Bob Riess is the President of The Customer Connector and can be contacted through www.thecustomerconnector.com or at (859) 240-2550.