Stop Selling, Start Helping Your Clients to Buy!

Increasing your sales isn’t all about selling. Instead you should focus your energy on helping your customers to make a buying decision. Customers are more in control of their buying decisions than ever before. They have a wealth of alternatives and information available online, and interactive access to sources they trust via social media. They don’t want to be pushed into a sale, but they are happy to be pulled in by what is important to them.

If you want to help your customers to buy, you need to spend more time understanding what motivates their buying decisions. This means understanding the buying process.

The buying process begins with customers understanding that they have a need for a product or service. The stimulation for that need may have come from the obsolescence of an existing product or service or perhaps a desire to acquire a significant one off, high value, purchase.

At this stage, two groups are responsible for attracting these potential customers - the marketers (who raise awareness of your products / services) and the people involved in the previous sale (who generate recommendations from existing customers).

The next phase of the buying process involves your sales team directly. Customers seek people they can trust. Trust is enabled by the provision of a referral from an existing customer who has had a good experience; the presence of a strong, reputable brand; or the level of service received from a business.

In terms of your sales team, having conversations with customers helps to develop rapport. Asking open questions which cannot be answered with a yes or no engenders trust. The opposite, closed questions, when strangers first meet, sound like and feel like an interrogation and should be avoided. Good sales people know how to start a conversation and build rapport with clients. If your sales team can’t seem to do this, perhaps they need some training.

The final phase is where the traditional sales approach kicks in. At this stage, the buyer is looking to determine the value of your product or service offering. Your sales process needs to demonstrate this value to the potential customer.

Customers who have developed trust in your firm and / or your sales people will place an unconscious premium on the relationship when it comes to considering perceived price versus perceived value. Once you can demonstrate value to your customer you should be able to help them to close a deal.

The Art of Listening!

We all know that listening is an important business skill. However most of us are guilty of not listening to what our customers are telling us. Do you really want to understand what your customers want and why they buy certain products or services? Why not ask them for a customer feedback meeting and listen to what they have to say...

Before you start your feedback meeting with your customer(s), make sure that you have prepared for the session. It is helpful to run off a report that shows which products or services the customer has bought in the past. Write down what you want to achieve from the meeting. Do you want to understand why the customer bought from you? Maybe you want to understand more about their needs so that you can cross sell additional products or services to them (and to similar customers). Read through your list of questions before the meeting and be prepared to listen and to take notes.

If you are going to engage in client feedback make sure you are actively listening to what your customers are telling you during a session. Active listening means, as its name suggests, actively listening. That is fully concentrating on what is being said rather than just passively hearing the message of the person you are in engaged in conversation with.

Active listening includes things like making good eye contact, nodding / body language and saying things like, “I understand” or “yes, tell me more about that”. This type of feedback shows that you are engaged in the conversation and you want to hear more of what the other person has to say.

If you want to spend time listening to what your customers have to say about your firm’s products or services, do so in the right environment. It can be difficult to listen to another person when your phone is buzzing, there are lots of other people around or there is lots of traffic noise, etc. When you remove all of these distractions and find a quiet place to sit down and listen, it makes the whole process much easier and shows care and consideration towards your customer.

When asking customers to provide some feedback, it can be difficult to avoid interrupting. A little bit of self-control goes a long way. Avoid being defensive and try to take negative feedback as constructive criticism rather than a personal attack.

Remember, no business is perfect and you can’t improve if you don’t listen to the negative things that your customers might have to say about your firm. The aim of the exercise is to shine the spotlight on them, not you.

Key Account Management Strategy!

Anyone in business will tell you that it is easier and cheaper to sell more products and services to an existing client than it is to go out and find a new client.

Key Account Management or “KAM” is all about focusing on your key existing clients – your very best customers. In theory, this is the perfect way to increase your profits and develop better relationships with your most valuable clients. If we apply the 80:20 rule then, in an average business, 80% of profits tend to be generated by the top 20% of the clients. So, these key accounts are the most valued customers of a business.

KAM strategy

A KAM strategy is a marketing and business development approach which focuses on taking special care of these customers. Each key account should have a business plan, dedicated resources (such as an account manager or single point of contact in your firm) and should be identified throughout your business as being a strategically important relationship.

Choosing Key Client

The most important thing here is to select the right customers for investment. Many businesses tend to underestimate the importance of this step and often show a casual attitude when it comes to selecting the right clients to develop. Some firms simply select all their big clients. There is nothing wrong with that strategy; however, they often fail to consider the potential to grow those particular relationships. After all, just because a client is big doesn’t necessarily mean it is particularly profitable.

Key Client Relationship Plan

In creating a KAM strategy you should also consider resources. There is no point in creating a strategy to develop 60 key clients if you only have the resources to actively manage 10 key clients. These key client accounts will need to be managed in an active way and this will require time and effort. Ideally, you will want to create a specific business plan for each key client relationship and you will need to dedicate some financial and people resources in order to execute these business plans.

Key account management, if executed well, can be a very effective marketing strategy in that it focuses your firm’s business development and marketing resources on the targets where you are likely to make the biggest impact.

Are you looking to develop your business but struggling to find the key client and manage them? 

To know how we can help you, please contact us at:
☎ 020 89310165 | ☏ 07900537459 | ✉ info@apjaccountancy.com 

How to Segment Customer List & Focus on Your Best Customers?

Some Customers are More Equal than Others

Businesses will always say that all of their customers are important to them. However, when it comes to making money, your best customers are always going to be the ones who buy the most from you.

Customer Segmentation. Source: PanoramaStock

So how do you identify which customers you should focus on? 

 First segment your customer list, and separate your best customers from the rest. You know that they're more serious than others, and chances are, the reason they're spending that money with you is because they have more money to spend. The secret to growing your business is to continue to get these customers to re-buy from you and if possible, attract more customers like these.

Segment your customer list data in different ways. 

First, split clients up by the amount they spend. You can also segment them by the type of products or services they buy from you. In some cases, you can segment them by the year or the quarter that they start buying from you. Now rank your lists as A, B, C and D, with A being your best customers.

When you're developing a new product or service offering, do so with your very best customers in mind. Present the offering to the A list first. You have built a relationship of trust with these customers so they will want to buy from you. As long as your product or service offers them an attractive benefit (faster, cheaper, better, etc.) they are more likely to buy from you than anybody else.

Once you get through the A list, move on to the B list and so on. By the time you get to the C list you need to consider how well you are doing. Is selling to the C list taking far more time and effort than selling to your A list? If so then perhaps it’s time to stop. Maybe your time would be better spent creating a new product or service to sell to your A list.

With your client list segmented this way, every time you have an idea for a new product or service, take it straight to your  best customers and try to sell it there first, maximising your chances of success. You will have to try harder and invest more resources (time and money) to sell to the rest of your customer base or indeed, to new customers.  Since all customers aren't equal, those who spend more money with you deserve more.

As such your business can afford to spend more money on them in an attempt to cross sell to them and to retain their custom.  
You should reward your best customers. 
Show them that you appreciate them by making them feel special. 
Send them a card at Christmas and invite them along to an annual client drinks party. 
Anything that shows them that your company values their custom will help to maintain their loyalty.

How will you segment your customers? or will you treat all your customers the same?

How to keep your clients happy? 8 Simple Steps!

Keeping existing clients happy is a lot easier than acquiring new ones. But that’s easier said than done.

Think of yourself as a customer. When you walk into a shop, you expect to be treated in a certain way - a smile, a small greeting, “Hello, how are you?” and you want to feel like you matter.

You don’t want to be treated as just another customer. Excellent service makes a difference to how you perceived the experience and if you return to that store again.

Opposite our office we have a coffee shop called Rise. If I ever want a coffee, I go there and wouldn’t think about going anywhere else. This is all because of their excellent customer service.

Even before you are at the counter ready to order, you’re greeted with a friendly “Hello” and the staff make you feel valued and appreciated. Here are a few ways you can keep your clients happy so they are amazed by your service and never want to leave…

1. GIVE FREE ADVICE

If you come across as only wanting fees from your clients, they’ll run in the opposite direction. Giving free advice shows that you care about your clients’ success. It doesn’t mean you have to be on the phone with them every day answering a list of questions, but if they know you’re available to give advice when they need it, you’re more likely to be referred.

Don’t think about trying to sell them other services - treat it as a form of developing the relationship with your clients.

2. UNDER-PROMISE AND OVER-DELIVER

We say this a lot to our clients, but it’s true! If you promise someone too much, you’re putting pressure on yourself just to impress.

If you can see them for one hour a week, but you tell them they’re entitled to 30 minutes of your time every single week—they’ll be blown away when you over-deliver.
 

That’s a lot better than making promises you can’t keep (even though your intentions are never to break them).

3. COMMUNICATE CLEARLY WITH CLIENTS

If there is anything clients like - it’s to be kept informed, even if you have some bad news to tell them. Don’t let months go by without speaking to them. And this goes for your team too. Make it part of your team ethos to regularly keep in contact with clients about their workload. No matter how small the situation may seem, if a client’s work changes, they should be informed. 

It will go a long way in creating excellent customer service. 

Feedback emails are a great way to check in with clients to make sure they’re happy with the service provided. Ask your team to send an email to clients every few months making sure that everything is running smoothly. (This is a great way to keep your firm moving forward.)

4. BE AVAILABLE

Similar to point 3, communication is key to developing a strong relationship and making sure everything runs smoothly. 

You can’t be available every hour of every day, but there’s nothing worse for a client than not being able to get in touch with their accountant. Set aside a few hours a day when you are free to chat to clients if they ever need you and let them know that you’re unavailable any time outside of these hours.
 

People don’t like to be left in the dark about things, and if they haven’t received a response back from you within a few days, then they will lose confidence that you care.

5. DELIVER WORLD-CLASS WORK

This goes without saying really, but if clients aren’t satisfied with the service provided, they will cancel.
The primary reason clients came to you is because of the service you provided, and not how great your customer service is. Keep track of any work your team might do for clients, so you are always aware of the status of their work.
 

If your service isn’t up to scratch and they don’t see results - you can expect a cancellation.

6. ASK YOUR CLIENTS QUESTIONS

The only way to know what your clients want is to ask them. Feedback emails (as mentioned earlier) are an excellent way to over-deliver. And it goes a long way that you made the effort to ask.
 

Ask questions about their company too - find out the best times to communicate with them, what excellent customer service means to them, what their goals are and more. Establish what their expectations are and exceed them. Treat this as an opportunity to get to know your clients too.

7. MAKE EVERYTHING PERSONAL

People like personalisation and not being treated as just another client (think back to what I said about Rise earlier). This means every moment of truth with the client should be personal - from their name on letters to a personal touch to emails.
 

Make all of your clients feel appreciated. If you’re holding an event - invite them along. Invest time in building a relationship with each and every one of them.

8. UNDERSTAND THEIR POINT OF VIEW

Your clients are busy people and you won’t always get a response from them as quickly as you’d like. If you know that you need something from them, then asking the day before isn’t sensible. You have to put them first. 

Put yourself in their shoes. If they’re upset with how a member of the team has spoken with them, empathise and do everything you can to turn the situation around. Get the facts from your team and see the situation from the client’s side. (This doesn’t mean they’re always right, but look at things from their side)

PJ

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You Can Only FOOL Your Customers Once!

As you know, earlier in the month we had April Fool’s Day. Practical jokes are played out all over the world during the morning hours of April 1st.

That got me thinking… I wonder what some of the best-ever April Fool’s jokes to have been orchestrated, that fooled thousands of people, include. Here’s my top 3 (keep reading to the end, there is a business lesson here too)…

1. Edison’s food creator, 1878

American newspaper The Daily Graphic published, in 1878, news of a technological breakthrough: Thomas Edison had invented “the Food Creator... a machine that will feed the human race!” How, exactly, was unclear, but it would be able to manufacture meat, vegetables, wine and biscuits using only air, water and “common earth”. A final paragraph in the April article revealed that “the Food Creator” did not in fact exist; but not every reader got that far, and Thomas Edison received “a flood of letters from all parts of the country”, as he wrote to tell the Graphic’s editor. “Very ingenious,” he said.
 

2. Alaska’s volcano, 1974

In Sitka, Alaska, the volcano Mount Edgecumbe had been dormant for around 9,000 years when, one morning in 1974, residents noticed dark smoke spooling from its top. When a coastguard helicopter flew in to investigate, the pilot saw that 100 tyres had been doused in cooking fuel and set alight in the volcano’s crater.
Meanwhile, around the rim, someone  had  spray-painted April Fool”  in 50ft letters. It was the careful work of a local joker, Oliver Bickar, who’d been planning the prank for four years. ...and my favourite…
 

3. Left-handed burger, 1998

Burger King’s 1998 unveiling of a “left-handed Whopper” – a normal burger, with “the condiments rotated 180 degrees” – fooled thousands in the US and UK with left-handers going out of their way to order one, and righties making it clear they’d prefer the original version. That’s funny!

So what’s all this got to do with you and your business? Well, it concerns your customers and makes sure you OVER-deliver on your promises. Your customers won’t be fooled into buying from you a second time. You owe it to them and to your own business to under-promise and over-deliver. I know that’s a cliché, but it really is a truism in today’s highly competitive market and with highly demanding customers!

How to Stop Customer Attrition & Win them back?

How to focus on your customers, clients or patients. More importantly, why we need to make them feel ‘LOVED’!

On average, and for a variety of reasons, most businesses will lose between 10% and 20% of their existing customers each and every year. Customers come and go. It’s simply a fact of life.  

Some of the reasons for customer attrition are unavoidable but others are in the complete control of the business.

 Interestingly, according to a recent survey by the Sales and Marketing Executives International, customers stop buying for the following reasons:

·  1% die

·  3% move away

·  5% develop other friendships

·  9% leave for competitive reasons

·  14% are dissatisfied with the product or service

·  68% leave because they were treated with indifference, disrespect, apathy or neglectful behaviour on the part of employees of that business organisation with whom they interacted

But what is good news is that 82% of a business’s customers leaving because they are unhappy is not good news in anyone’s book.

Because   68%   of    people leave through indifference, with a bit of ‘handholding’ many of these customers wouldn’t leave in the first place, and those that do can be ‘won’ back. 

As a business, we work very hard to keep our clients happy. We’re not perfect by any means but we focus on every interaction we have with them and make sure at the very least they are happy with the outcome. We also regularly tell them we appreciate their business, and when they refer people to us, we say ’thanks’ and send them a gift.  

There’s more we do, but I can tell you from my own experience that once you get a customer it’s your job (and the job of your team) to make sure you hold on to them. It’s not difficult to ‘love’ our customers, as long as we don’t forget . After all, even a loved one needs telling how much you care every so often!

Focus On Customer Frustrations & Your Profits Will Take Care Of Themselves!

We recently returned from a week’s holiday in Turkey. I love spending time away with the family—these days it’s the only real quality time we get together. Plus, it gives me time to catch up on reading. I often read what I consider to be  ‘classics’ again and again. One of those books is  ‘Broken Windows, Broken Business’ by Michael Levine. I read it again in Turkey.

The book focuses on the principle that neglecting ‘small’ problems ultimately ends in anarchy. It was a principle founded by James Q. Wilson and George L. Kelling in 1982 and put into practice by mayor Rudy Giuliani in 1993. He basically cleaned up New York with his tough stance and zero tolerance on the ‘small’ crimes such as graffiti and prostitution. The results are well documented and now New York is a transformed city (I actually haven’t been to New York for over 20 years, but I’m returning there on business in a couple of days’ time). The philosophy is that even if there’s just one broken window in an area, if that window isn’t repaired quickly, people will assume no one cares and this leads to more broken windows and so on. Within a relatively short period of time a once-peaceful, clean and smart neighbourhood can be ruined. 

This is what happened to New York in the 70s, 80s and early 90s. Now it’s a wonderful city and it’s booming.

So Michael Levine’s book takes this same philosophy and applies it to the business world. I agree with it 100%.

You don’t need to be a rocket scientist to recognise that many businesses fail or don’t reach the heights they could because they don’t focus on the small problems, irritations and frustrations (broken windows) of their clients or customers. Thing is, if the owners aren’t bothered, this permeates throughout the organisation (more broken windows) and ultimately the customer goes elsewhere.

You know this is true just from your own experiences. The key is to  make  sure  that   whenever  you spot a broken window, it’s fixed. And fixed immediately.

That shows your whole philosophy and approach to any broken window and again it will permeate throughout your business.

The hotel we stayed at in Turkey is a fine example of ‘fixing’ the broken windows.

Here’s two great but very simple examples of how the Voyage Belek Golf & Spa has fixed two very common broken windows…

Let me begin by saying we are very fortunate that we can holiday in fine hotels.

The Voyage Belek is one of them but this is the first time I’ve stayed at any family hotel that has taken note of and fixed a couple of common frustrations (broken windows) that virtually every family must encounter often.

First, around all the pool areas they have an abundance of sun loungers and parasols.  This is a big hotel. But there are more sun loungers and parasols than guests.

Joy. 

No more getting up at silly o’clock to ‘reserve’ parasols and loungers (there are 5 of us, so making sure we’re all together is an important part of our holiday—we don’t want to be walking too far to throw mum in the pool!).

And whilst getting a parasol is not as important to us now (my children are aged 17, 14 and 11), we do want one between us. Again, no hassle at any time of the day.

So by taking away this key frustration, the hotel have completely extinguished a big problem that virtually every average, good, very good and excellent hotel faces every single day.

There are no losers, just winners all round!

Second, they give you as many pool towels as you want. They don’t count them out and don’t count them in. You don’t need ‘towel passes’ or anything like that. You can change them at any time of the day and you can change them as often as you want.

What a breath of fresh air this is. Once again the hotel has taken away another key frustration and benefitted accordingly.

The lesson is insightful.

It doesn’t matter what industry you’re in, you can easily replicate the ‘broken window’ philosophy! What broken windows can you fix in your business right now that will have a similar effect?

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