Hi guys,
I thought I would do a blog about what I do and why I think relationships are a major part to being successful.
Now, I am in sales, tool sales in particular but the principal of this post is universal.
I work for the largest industrial tool supplier in Australia as a Key Account Manager. I have been working here for 7yrs (I'm 26 now) and I was originally hired for the warehouse but was moved to the sales floor not long after. Once i was on the sales floor, I knew it was what I wanted to do. Within 6months I was made Assistant Manager then Store Manger a year after. Eventually I grew tired of our seemingly never ending cycle of Account Managers and low end account sales. So I sat down with the owners of the business and said I would like to take on the role, which they were keen on.
Source:https://sourceable.net
My clients include major construction companies, major boat building companies, rigging and precast companies plus plenty more. All of which are just trying to find someone to help them build their business and make it as efficient as possible. Which in turn, is exactly what i want as well.
The biggest thing that is building my account sales, is the relationship I have with my customers. I pride myself on spending time talking to them about non business related topics. Do you know anything more than the face value of your client? What they do on their weekends? What music they listen to? What about how they even got started in what they are doing as a profession?
You need to create a point of difference for clients. They will have plenty of other people trying to "sell" them products. Advertisements, Media, Sales Representatives, etc.
Relationships open up a whole new door of possibilities. I joke around with my customers all the time because lets face it, everyone loves to laugh (some more than others). The relationships I have built with my accounts allow me to be able to help them work out what they honestly need and it generally leads to larger sales because they trust my advice. In other words, they won't choose an inferior, cheaper product if I am recommending a better alternative because they know I am trying to help them.
Another key thing relationships help is bringing up any issues or problems that may pop up. It takes away the sting and nerves of an issue that you may need to bring up with a client. An item hasn't arrived that they are desperately after, A deadline hasn't been met, etc. That doesn't mean you can make a habit of it but it will help in a tight situation.
My customers know and have told me that they know I am on top of their orders and will supply them as soon as I can so I very rarely have a cranky customer. Usually the cranky ones aren't cranky with me but with the supplier of the tools I am getting for them.
To start building relationships with your customers, try taking them a coffee or some donuts. Maybe its a slab of soft drinks (soda pop for the Americans) for their staff. The more people within a company that are happy with you, the better. Why? Because the will affiliate your kind gesture with what you do and you will become the person they think of when they need something.
This leads me to my last key point. Build relationships with the company, not just the boss.
Learn the admin ladies name. Learn the names of some of the staff. The more, the better. You will forever be front of mind and a heavy influencer if you do this. The only downfall of this is that you need to allow extra time to get past these people to the meeting with their boss.
So try building some relationships with your customers. The worst that can happen is that they choose to give you closed answers but they can see you're interested in them and their business. CEO's and purchasing officers can be like onions... you have to peel back the layers...
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Well feel free to post any questions or thoughts you have on this. I would be really keen to read them.
Please remember that this is only one of the things that I believe is a key to success. I also believe discipline is the top of the list to be successful.
Thank you for reading and please upvote and check out my other blogs. Cheers!