FROM THE TOP
by John O’Brien, CPMR
ERA Chairman of the Board
Sometimes, it gets difficult to come up with ideas for my articles, so I’ll reach out to others in the industry to see what’s on their minds. Two early career professionals gave me inspiration for this article’s timely topic. I broached this topic back during COVID-19 and thought it would be a good idea to see where we are now. In general, talking to a lot of salespeople, the face-to-face meeting is getting increasingly difficult to confirm.
We’ve all faced it: we have a principal coming into town and the sales team is having difficulty filling time slots for in-person visits.
As the work market has shifted, so has access to customers. Almost all customers are doing some percentage of remote work. While we’ve seen a small swing in companies requiring people to come back to the office, it is not full-time, nor is it always on a particular schedule. Therefore, accessing these customers can become a logistical nightmare. How do we coordinate their availability with our travel timing?
Also, in a down market, companies may have started cutting back on employees, causing those left to pick up the duties vacated by someone’s departure. Customers are doing more with less people. Their time is being managed by their superiors and in order to get some of that precious time, we need a compelling story. How do we get access to that time they do have?
We have found that it is more critical than ever to be able to articulate our need for a meeting with the customers. Answer the question, “Why do I need to meet with you?” There are a number of methods I’ve found that can help pave the way:
1. By understanding the customer’s drivers, you can tailor your approach to helping them meet their goals. It may sound pretty basic but just asking them, “What are you trying to accomplish and how can I help you get there?” is an easy way to start.
2. Have a detailed agenda and stick to it. We have found that especially with engineers, if we can provide a detailed agenda, they can run it by their management and likely get a sign-off to attend.
3. Don’t be afraid to go offsite. Using a coffee shop or restaurant close to where the customer works remotely can be very successful.
Our principals pay us for access and influence. We need to be able to access the customer’s decision makers. Nowadays, that means on the customer’s terms, but it’s still critical we can gain access to them. Influence is our ability to entice our customers to utilize our products. Again, that’s where the prep work becomes critical. The prep work enhances our ability to articulate our principals’ products and influence the customer’s use of them. I’ve said it before and will say it again: Our preparation is the key to accomplishing both.
> Accessing the customer
FROM THE TOP
by John O’Brien, CPMR
ERA Chairman of the Board
Sometimes, it gets difficult to come up with ideas for my articles, so I’ll reach out to others in the industry to see what’s on their minds. Two early career professionals gave me inspiration for this article’s timely topic. I broached this topic back during COVID-19 and thought it would be a good idea to see where we are now. In general, talking to a lot of salespeople, the face-to-face meeting is getting increasingly difficult to confirm.
We’ve all faced it: we have a principal coming into town and the sales team is having difficulty filling time slots for in-person visits.
As the work market has shifted, so has access to customers. Almost all customers are doing some percentage of remote work. While we’ve seen a small swing in companies requiring people to come back to the office, it is not full-time, nor is it always on a particular schedule. Therefore, accessing these customers can become a logistical nightmare. How do we coordinate their availability with our travel timing?
Also, in a down market, companies may have started cutting back on employees, causing those left to pick up the duties vacated by someone’s departure. Customers are doing more with less people. Their time is being managed by their superiors and in order to get some of that precious time, we need a compelling story. How do we get access to that time they do have?
We have found that it is more critical than ever to be able to articulate our need for a meeting with the customers. Answer the question, “Why do I need to meet with you?” There are a number of methods I’ve found that can help pave the way:
1. By understanding the customer’s drivers, you can tailor your approach to helping them meet their goals. It may sound pretty basic but just asking them, “What are you trying to accomplish and how can I help you get there?” is an easy way to start.
2. Have a detailed agenda and stick to it. We have found that especially with engineers, if we can provide a detailed agenda, they can run it by their management and likely get a sign-off to attend.
3. Don’t be afraid to go offsite. Using a coffee shop or restaurant close to where the customer works remotely can be very successful.
Our principals pay us for access and influence. We need to be able to access the customer’s decision makers. Nowadays, that means on the customer’s terms, but it’s still critical we can gain access to them. Influence is our ability to entice our customers to utilize our products. Again, that’s where the prep work becomes critical. The prep work enhances our ability to articulate our principals’ products and influence the customer’s use of them. I’ve said it before and will say it again: Our preparation is the key to accomplishing both.