Sales Strategies During a Recession- Part 2 By Tiffanie Z. Lyon, MBA
June 16, 2009 | Leave a Comment
PART 2
2. Identify and Nurture Referral Sources
We know how important and effective it is to ask our existing customers for referrals, but are your developing your referral sources beyond our customers?
Who are Referral Sources?
Referral sources can be other sales reps or professionals who provide complementary products/services to what you 0ffer and who have a similar customer base. They sometimes are called Centers of Influence or Contact Spheres. Don’t forget about others within your industry– they are not all direct competitors!
Why are referral sources so important?
• They are another channel, in which to gain information and will facilitate new business.
• With proper strategy and consistent nurturing, it’s behind-the-scenes business development for your business; your sales force.
• When appropriate, their services may be able to add value to your customers.
Ask yourself: Who would be a good referral source for my business?
Start with the general industry category, then identify specific names/companies.
Once referral sources are identified, TAKE ACTION:
• Identify 3 referral sources you’d like to start with this process.
• Schedule a time to call — put it on your calendar!
• Call to set a time to meet — lunch? coffee?; The introduction is all about THEM.
• Conduct an informal interview to get to know one another better. Ask:
Tell me about your business.
Who are your typical customers?
What is an ideal referral for you?
With whom do you compete and how do you differentiate?
How can I help you? How can we best work together?
• Inevitably you will get to explain your business and your ideal referral; be specific.
• Agree to keep each other in mind next time a need comes up.
• Confirm next steps in working together.
• Set a plan to call 3 different referral sources for appointments – 3/month
• Track your activity in a separate process than prospective clients.
What’s your strategy for creating and nurturing referral sources? This is a great sales strategy at all times, but especially during a recession.
5 Simple Sales Strategies During a Recession (5-Part Series) By Tiffanie Z. Lyon, MBA
June 9, 2009 | Leave a Comment
PART 1
1. Develop and Nurture Existing Customers
We all know it’s easier to develop and deepen existing customer relationships than to go out and find new ones, especially during a recession. Now’s the time to look more closely at your existing client base and analyze them. Who spends the most? Who buys most frequently? With whom do you have the best chemistry or relationship and why?
Once you’ve re-connected with your customer base analytically, then reach out to them and discover additional needs they may have. You could be in a prime position to cross-sell or up-sell additional services that they may not have even realized you offer. Conduct a mid-year analysis or review with them.
It’s also a good idea to ask your best customers for a referral. But remember to show that you appreciate their business and also narrow the request down for them. It’s easier to think of people and companies when the universe is narrowed down versus asking, “who do you know who may be interested in my services?” For example, “Tom, you’ve been a long-time customer of ours and we sure appreciate your business. Who do you recommend I speak to in this office complex/on this street/in your Rotary Club who may be interested in our services? A referral from you would bring the kind of people we love to work with.”
Dig deeper within the organizations of your customers. Be certain you know all the players and have a connection “up the ladder.” For example, you may have a great relationship with a key person at the client company, but you really have never met any one else, such as the divisional manager or president. It’s important to have the endorsement of top management in case things change or your primary contact loses their job. A strategic approach is needed since you may be going over the head of your contact. This can be done, if it’s approached the correct way. Ask your contact if they can help you arrange a meeting with them, as well as a couple other key people. You should know who this people are if you know your customers well. Position the meeting as a way you are providing value-added service to your best customers, while stressing the importance of getting to know your customers even better. Offer a mini-training session, a product demonstration or something else considered value-added for them. Also, say that you want their input and feedback on how you can improve your products and services. This should warrant a meeting with several key players and keep your foot sturdy in this customer relationship.
Send your customer referrals when possible and do business with them, when possible. This shows your dedication and loyalty to helping your customers grow their businesses. They WILL remember these small efforts.
Send your customers cards often. In this electronic age, we seldom get snail mail letters and cards. Send a note letting your customers know how much you appreciate their business.
These are just a few things you can do to develop and deepen customer relationships. Keeping current customers happy is important at all times, but especially during a recession. What do YOU do to develop and deepen customer relationships??? Please share!
Does it make you feel good or does it make you feel bad? by Ellen Martin
June 7, 2009 | Leave a Comment
Getting organized often requires taking a hard look at the things, paper, “stuff” and time commitments, that are in your environment, and deciding what will stay and what will go away. This is a tricky issue since it’s sometimes really difficult to let go of things whether you like them or not.
I realized that it really comes down to one simple question. Does the thing make you feel good or does it make you feel bad? This can be applied to absolutely everything! Here are some examples:
Going through paperwork you find material from a project you wanted to do a few years back. Does the sight of that paper make you feel good or bad? You may be feeling guilty or annoyed with yourself that you didn’t do something you set out to do. Or you might feel excited because you had forgotten about something that brought you so much joy.
You are asked to plan an event for one of the organizations you are involved with. Do you really want to do it? Does the thought of it make your stomach sick and cause anxiety? Or do you feel happy to help because you love event planning and have a passion for the organization?
The key here is paying attention to how you feel and what you really want. Honestly, we women don’t pay attention to ourselves nearly as much as we ought to. We are often focused on the needs, wants, and happiness of those we care about. Of course, this is important and necessary, but it’s also so important for us to be happy as well. How can we really support the happiness of others if we aren’t happy?
When faced with decisions about time commitments, things you are keeping in your space, relationships you are developing, take a moment to pay attention to how you really feel about it. Your decision will serve you in the long run. Your life will be filled with things that you really love and that make you really happy!
Ellen Martin
Organizing Your Space. Simplifying Your Life.
www.organizationalexperts.com
Profiling Your Existing Customers and Expanding The Business Relationship By: Tiffanie Z. Lyon
June 2, 2009 | Leave a Comment
During difficult economic times, it’s especially important to maximize our relationships with existing customers. We’ve all heard and have experienced first hand that developing and nurturing our relationships with current customers is a heck of a lot easier than going out to get new ones, right? The fact is, we DO need to do both, but this post will focus on our current customers and how to maintain and grow the relationship.
DETERMINING YOUR MOST PROFITABLE PRODUCTS/SERVICES:
Many companies have a gold mine of business sitting right in front of them in their existing customer base; we just need to be strategic in how to “mine” the data. The first exercise before we even begin to profile our customers is to look objectively and deeply at our product/service offerings. You might not be able to answer these questions on your own and/or right off the top of your head, but it’s well worth investigating. You may need to get your manager involved.
List out all the key products and services you sell.
Now, go back through the list and circle the products/services, which are most profitable to the company and frankly, to your pocketbook. Assume the “ideal” customer for each of these products/services. This is where you may need assistance from management. Most companies know (or should know) which offerings are the most profitable. It’s just smart business. Clearly, you will offer what makes the most sense to your customers’ needs at the time, but with all else being equal, it’s good to know what makes us the most money.
Now go through the list again focusing on the products you circled. Next to those, write down the traits or characteristics of the IDEAL customer for each. You should do this for ALL the services, but start with the most profitable. Where are these ideal customer located? How much do they spend? What is their age? income? etc.
So now you should have a good idea of what you have to offer and who is an ideal (and profitable) candidate for each one.
UNDERSTANDING YOUR CURRENT CUSTOMERS:
Let’s look at our existing customers. Run a report on all the people who are considered your customers-current and past. Customers are customers – past or present. It’s a “warm call” verses a “cold call” when you re-connect with a past customer. They trusted and invested in you and your products in the past.
Next, make note of what the product was/is in which they invested, when did the relationship begin, what are the demographics and characteristics of the customer, etc. Really analyze them. What potential do you see? At first glance, can you get an idea of how you could help them make more money, save money, save time, offer convenience, and/or give them peace of mind or security? These are the key benefits most people are looking for in many products and services (as I’ve mentioned in a previous post).
Hopefully once you do this exercise you will re-familiarize yourself with these past/current customers and you will begin to see some potential for additional business from the active ones and ways in which you can re-kindle the “old” ones. What are you doing to re-capture past business? Are you focusing on your most profitable products/services? Why/why not?
