How to Keep Your Best Customers Loyal and Buying More
By Jim Meisenheimer
When I do my sales training programs I always ask my participants, “How many of you are doing quarterlybusiness reviews with your best customers?”
I get lots of blank stares.
It’s probably less than five percent of all the people I’ve ever worked with. So that means there’s a great deal of opportunity out there to do something that helps you solidify your relationship with your best customers, and build stronger relationships with newer ones.
As we go through these challenging economic and turbulent times, you want to do things for your customers that nobody else is doing for them. In addition, you want to get a heads up as early as you can if there is any kind of dissatisfaction from your customers. One of the best ways to do this is to establish a schedule for quarterly business reviews.
Here is how.
On a quarterly basis call 10 or 15 of your biggest customers, and ask questions like,
“What are the biggest challenges you face in growing your business?”
“What are your priorities for the rest of 2009?”
“What do you like most about working with our company?”
“What, if anything, would you change about working with our company?”
“What qualities are you looking for in your new suppliers?”
“Describe any changes to your decision-making process for your current suppliers.”
This is one of my favourites: “What would it take to win your supplier of the year award?” Now even if they do not have such an award they probably have an opinion and wouldn’t you benefit from knowing how they would respond to that question?
Then, of course, “What new projects related to our product line are on the drawing board?” Wouldn’t you like to be the first to hear about that?
These questions will get your biggest customers talking and that says a lot about the relationship. It says that you care enough to ask the tough questions and of course listen to the answers and anyproblems that come up so you can deal with them.
Again, keep in mind that very few salespeople do this with their customers, so your customers likely won’t be used to it. They will appreciate you, and continue buying from you.
Quote of the week
Practice does not make perfect. Constant perfect practice makes perfect
ANON