The ‘Customer – Sales’ connection
Salespeople should know what the customer wants but often this is based on a raft of false assumptions. They must be able to take an outside/in view (it’s about you, the customer) rather than an inside/out view (it’s about me, the supplier). Therefore WT aim to discover:
- How well do the salespeople understand their customers’ business and ascertain their business needs and challenges?
- Are the customers’ needs matched with the sales style, e.g. if the customer is looking for solutions and a partnering approach, do salespeople respond appropriately or just focus on product sales?
- How well are the sales people positioned – are they dealing with the appropriate personnel at the right level in the customer organisation?
- Does the customer proactively involve the salesperson in developing solutions to meet their business needs or do salespeople reactively respond to tenders?
What is Outside Innovation? It’s when customers lead the design of your business processes, products, services, and business models. It’s when customers roll up their sleeves to co-design their products and your business. It’s when customers attract other customers to build a vital customer-centric ecosystem around your products and services. The good news is that customer-led innovation is one of the most predictably successful innovation processes. The bad news is that many managers and executives don’t yet believe in it. Today, that’s their loss. Ultimately, it may be their downfall. Patricia B. Seybold, Author of The Customer Revolution |
