Client Service

“Too many people think only of their own profit. But business opportunity seldom knocks on the door of self-centered people. No customer ever goes to a store merely to please the storekeeper.”

-Kazuo Inamori, entrepreneur and founder of Kyocera Corp

How much do you cost your firm?

Your company makes a significant investment in you every day. 

First, there’s your salary.  Assuming you have used your sales skills to negotiate a decent wage, you’re likely making more than the average member of the American workforce (never forget that).

 

In addition to your salary, your benefits are a direct cost to the company.  The value of your benefits is generally equivalent to 25 percent of your base salary.  On top of that, add the tools you are provided to perform your job (e.g. a computer, software, office, cell phone, copiers), which comprise the operating overhead of your firm. The amount of this overhead is roughly equal to 75-150 percent of your salary.  So, in round numbers, with direct salary, benefits, and overhead, your cost is essentially double your salary. 

Next, your company needs to make a profit, doesn’t it?  That’s an important concept.  The ability to improve people’s lives by providing them an income is contingent on a company’s sustainability.  And for a company that strives to stay in business, it needs to grow and invest in itself, or it will stagnate, lag behind its competitors, and eventually falter and fail. So, in addition to the costs you incur as an employee, your company would like to make, let’s say, a 10-20% profit.  

That’s a lot of coin.  The question you should ask is, am I providing the equivalent return on that investment?

Are you in the Food Chain?

The focus of our careers has been on competing for and winning new work. Responsibility for the cost of those activities always fell on our bosses. Often, in sales and marketing, the last thing on your mind is controlling costs. The natural instinct for business developers is, “We need to win the contract, whatever the cost.” 

But then you reach a level in your career at which it becomes your job to monitor, manage, control, and squeeze usefulness from every penny of overhead. You also understand that every dollar not spent is a dollar added to the bottom line, of which you hopefully share a greater part.

It’s an eye opener to learn the importance of prudent spending and to develop a strong compass for guiding decisions. For young marketing staff, it is imperative to always remember that we are a direct cost to our companies. As overhead, we walk a fine line between being imperative to the success of the firm and being a costly burden.

In our opinion, that’s actually a great place to be; it provides clarity in our careers and in our daily decision-making. It forces us to constantly ask ourselves:

“Am I providing value to the company today?"

“Am I in the food chain - that direct connection between the people who need service and the people who provide service?”

And when we say “between” we mean a valuable link, rather than a hurdle. The constant reminder of measuring your financial value is one of the more exhilarating aspects of the sales profession.

Avoiding Business Relationship Pitfalls

When developing business relationships, there are some specific pitfalls to be avoided:

•     Relationships, like construction projects, are not built in a day. Do not become a stalker. It’s easy to overdo it, especially when an upcoming pursuit is on the line. If you’re not careful, you can become a pest. This is shooting yourself in the foot.  To avoid this trap, go slow and look for signs of reciprocation.

•     Don’t boast or tell white lies. This should go without saying, but we’ve seen it happen. There’s a lot to be gained from staying humble, and having humility on your side. One little lie, or half-truth, and you may be damaged forever. Worse yet, your poor reputation will spread, and it will damage your efforts with other clients (and likely your own colleagues).

•     Good news travels fast, bad news travels at light speed. If your firm makes a mistake or gets bad press, be sure to reveal the information to clients with whom you’re trying to build a relationship. It’ll sound better coming from you, than from your competition.

•     Keep it platonic. We’ve watched technical professionals develop personal relationships that lead to dating, significant other-ship, and more. We suppose sometimes these things can’t be helped, but nine times out of ten they’re never good. They create a perception of the ultimate conflict of interest and often damage both parties in the eyes of their colleagues.

•     Don’t even try to be all things to all people. In an age of specialization, the client knows you can’t be an expert on more than a few topics. Bring the subject matter experts with you to discuss complicated issues. You’ll be respected and the client will gain an appreciation for the depth of your firm’s capabilities.

•     Heighten your sensitivity to the competition. Do they periodically meet with you to discuss teaming opportunities? Assume the worst– that they are using you to perform their own triangulation of your positioning with the client. If the teaming discussions never lead to anything, then they may be using you.

•     Never cross the line into territory that is illegal, unethical, or immoral. We could tell stories that curl your hair. Many of the rules, policies, or laws that apply to procurements are in place for good reasons. Though contracting rules tend to apply more to the buyer, you would be well advised to become cognizant of them because what makes your client look bad will also drag you down. One of our favorite tests is to consider how an idea, event, or gift will look on the front page of your local paper. If you don’t like how it would look, then it’s not worth it.

How long it takes to develop a business relationship? The Rule of Seven.

We are frequently asked how long it takes to develop a relationship. Our wishy-washy response is that it depends on the individuals and their personalities.  It can also be a function of the targeted level of mutual trust and respect. Needless to say, this confuses many technical professionals, who are always seeking a number.

Harold once had a mentor who also seemed to struggle with being constantly asked this question. Finally, in a fit of frustration, he looked an engineer in the eye, and said, “It takes seven meetings.”

Harold took this to heart. From that point on in his career as a business developer, he always says it takes seven meetings to develop an effective relationship in which two parties can say that they know what the other thinks about a relevant topic.

Needless to say, there are no formulas, proofs, nor even consistent anecdotal evidence to support this number. On the other hand, no one can disprove it either.

Building Effective Relationships

The foundation of sales for most industries (but especially for technical services) is the art of developing and maintaining personal relationships.  You only succeed when your client says they are eager (not just willing) to work with you.  The ability to develop and maintain effective relationships is the one skill that is essential to sales, yet is the most difficult to teach.

In building relationships, we’re not talking about becoming a schmoozing social butterfly, nor acquiring the magnetic personality of a movie star; we’re talking about developing an awareness of how you are perceived by the people with whom you interact, then adjusting yourself based on your audience’s reactions, while pushing aside the mirror of self indulgence.  Simple?  It’s a matter of awareness, being empathetic to other people’s thoughts and feelings, and a healthy dose of listening to voices other than your own.

Our honest question: are we building an effective relationship with you through this blog?  We’d truly like to know.