… if your Mother ran it?
In my case it’d be just great. Ok, so in your case it’d be different. That makes your smart or funny or something.
So here’s the really big question.
Not for you.
For your kids.
What would your school/office/whatever be like if your ma or pa ran it?
I think there are few things more frustrating than trying to sell to a buyer who is already happily buying from another supplier. You know you’ve got a good product or service, maybe even better than the competitor’s, but your buyer is perfectly happy as is.
Don’t give up. I’m the kind of person who will the same thing for lunch every day, so I relate to the buyer not wanting to change suppliers. But here’s the deal. If my lunch place puts the price up, or the quality goes down, or the staff suddenly change and are no fun, then I quietly go and find somewhere else to eat. Your buyer might well be just the same. Resistant to change, sure, but not impossible to change.
And things do change. If you are patient and work at it, you’ll become part of the buyer’s landscape too. When they become dissatisfied with the supplier they will come to you because they know you.
If you are working in sales (and if you have your own business you ARE working in sales) you have two issues to address – a) maintaining your existing customers, and b) finding new customers. You have to do this ALL the time.
In the same way that you are maintaining your customers, your buyer’s supplier should also be doing the same thing. The question is – are they better at maintaining than you are at finding?
Thing change, all the time. I like to take the approach that, “the supplier’s goods are good, sure, however, in the event that you’re looking for a new choice, this is what my product has to offer. In fact, here’s the comparison. Today so many things are much the same, so, let me point out the difference that makes the difference… and here’s my card. Call me, I’ll be standing by to help.” And I move on fairly quickly, to either service an existing client, or find a new client. It is vital though, to leave your doors open for communication. Under promise, over deliver.
If you come up with a new product, go back as soon as possible and touch base with the buyer. Could be just the thing they’re looking for. Service existing or find new customers. I’m also inclined to ask for referrals – if this is not for you, can you suggest someone who might be interested?
Buyers can also be interested in window-shopping – out of curiosity or comparison, or long term planning. They’re not making a decision today, or indeed any time soon, but they need to know what’s available for strategic purposes. Things change all the time. If you give the impression of being a credible performer you will have an edge over the long haul. Existing suppliers can grow fat and complacent – their service might lose some of the gloss over time.
Buyers also change – they move on for one reason or another. Their manager can equally move or change. I know very few people who are doing exactly the same job, in exactly the same way, that they were doing five years ago. Read the papers and trade journals to spot change – you might even get a chance to preempt it because of your excellent business intelligence. Keep up to date on the changes and diversifications in your field.
Quick Questions:
1. Do you know of an existing buyer/seller relationship that might be eased apart?
2. Are you calling regularly on buyers who buy elsewhere, “just keeping you informed?”
3. Do you thoroughly inform buyers of the benefits of your products?
4. Does this include delivering great presentations, even if the buyer is otherwise committed?
5. Do you stay up-to-date with finance/business intelligence via papers, net, journals?
6. Do you give outstanding service to your existing customers?
7. Do you ask for referrals? How about any upcoming changes in the buyer’s organisation?
8. How many new accounts have you landed in the last three months?
9. How many of these were previously serviced by another supplier?
10. Who is a prospect, right now, whom you think you can make into a customer? Call them, set up a meeting.
Malcolm McLaren (impresario and cultural plunderer) had this to say in Design, August 1981:
Now we’re entering a period in which fathers can be as childlike as their sons. Children will be teaching their parents at least as much as they learn from them. ‘People of all ages’, McLaren argues, ‘have been forced by the recession to adjust to the prospect of permanent insecurity and unemployment. The work ethic is being undermined and, in its place, fresh attitudes to leisure are evolving. People want adventure whether they’re 14 or 40.’
Recession? In 1981? Seems like we have a recession every 5-10 years these days. It’s worth having a look at McLaren’s thoughts nevertheless. In the west it is probable that insecurity and unemployment remain common prospects. In 1981 we blamed El Nino rather than global warming. It’s interesting that McLaren saw the work ethic being undermined, so much for the Gen-Y garbage.
Every day I see adults playing games on their cellphones, or sending txt messages in the same way they passed notes at school. I’ve seen more than one workplace monitor with a half finished solitaire – people being childlike.
Quick Questions:
- If adults are becoming more childlike what goods and/or services can you offer?
- Are adults becoming more childlike or more playful?
- Nintendo Wii – I think it’s become the first intergenerational ‘toy’. Kids are trying to figure out ways to pry Gramps away from the bowling/boxing/fishing/tennis etc… high tech, high touch, low level learning curve – even using them for yoga – what could you offer to add value to this? Exercise mats? Extra software? Music to play along with? Apparel? Fragrances?
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