Category Archives: Customer Relationship Management

Sales Methods: Re-frame First

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Revised: 04/17/2017

Confronting a persistent slow down in sales, companies and individuals begin to think of internal changes – re-purposing their assets, intellectual and physical to better align themselves with external forces such as changes in technology and market structure that may be hindering their sales.  At times this can be a positive approach, however, this focus on internal change may miss significant opportunities in external changes: re-framing customer and prospect problems and solutions.   

Re-framing can be applied as a sales tactic to break through with a customer to a new engagement. And, re-framing is an ongoing process of making sure that your prospects and customers actually know what you do. Continue reading →

Developing Proposals

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proposalRecently I worked with a new client on their proposal process. This revisit brought me to expand my notes. 

(Download this article)

Objectives for proposals

  • Communicate with decision makers
  • Win business that you can successfully deliver at a profit.
  • Develop and retain repeat customers

The first point is key to the task. Your proposal must win the confidence of the prospect while defining the approach, scope, deliverables, and pricing in such a way as to assure that you can exceed expectations and do it profitably. Continue reading →

Condoms in DRC – Defining customer value and language – back to basics in marketing and sales

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A central business problem (and opportunity – these usually come in pairs) is to figure out who your customers are, what they value and how they talk about what they value.

A key concept FAB – Features and Benefits. Companies reflexively think about their products and services in terms of features. This is especially true of technically based ones – software, internet, medical, etc. Customers on the other hand buy Benefits. And most crucial to the concept of Benefits is that the customer decides what they are. Value is defined by the customer……

A classic example from the world of Web marketing is: people do not search for inexpensive airline tickets, they search for cheap tickets.

So, to round out this little rap, we need to understand who our customers are, what they value, and how they talk about that value.

Amy Lockwood

Amy Lockwood

Here is a link to a TED video I stumbled on that illustrates some of these principles: Amy Lockwood: Selling condoms in the Congo

Getting Paid For Your Problem Solving – a lesson from behavioral economics

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Dan_Ariely TED_in_2009

Dan Ariely at TED in 2009

I am currently enrolled in an online course at Coursera.org, Introduction to Behavioral Economics taught by Dan Ariely (well known for his  Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions, HarperCollins, pp. 304,ISBN 978-0-06-135323-9). 

In a discussion by Dan Ariely about the psychology of money he pointed out that people have a very difficult time paying for expertise. This doubtless even more so for problem solving expertise. Continue reading →

Planes Change. Values Don’t – No Sloganeering

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Plane change. Values don't United Airlines

Recently I was on an commercial air flight and was greeted by a bit of corporate sloganeering that accompanied by meal (yes, you guessed correctly that I was on an international flight). The napkin shouted out in bold blue text, “Planes change. Values don’t. Your priorities will always be ours.” Continue reading →