The walkthrough meeting is one of the few opportunities when you are face-to-face with your client and can be your best opportunity to build a strong, trusting, and professional relationship. You can get to know your customer on a personal level, learn their likes and dislikes, understand their priorities and expectations, and acquire budget information. Walkthroughs are also your best opportunity to initiate ideas and solutions for property enhancements because you are both there seeing it.
Here are a few ways to capitalize on this opportunity.
Ask the right questions: Is your client using the service appropriately and seeing recognizable value? Is the ROI significant? Are they excited about the service/results overall? Is the Service Quality on target with their expectations?
Check-in quarterly (monthly is better) if not more often: These walkthroughs will help you assess the overall health of the account and clarify any confusion with service updates. If you’re working with a larger client, plan to check in at least once a month because a larger property typically means additional issues on site and therefore more questions to answer.
Stay involved! Make sure your CSMs continuously engage with your clients to show off new features, clear up questions, and provide any additional services they might need. If your clients feel special and supported, they’re more likely to trust your professional guidance and recommendations.
A successful client relationship relies on both enhancement or extra sales and renewals to continue harmoniously. It’s hard to have success if you don’t have one or the other.
Enhancement or Extra Sales brings in new monthly revenue and renewals extend the lifetime value of customers. Continue to fill your sales pipeline, just remember to engage and track those relationships.
Close your mouth: The golden rule in service and sales is simple: "After a question is asked, the first person who talks loses." In other words, if you've earned the right to ask for an enhancement or a renewal, ask for the sale or renewal then say nothing. Often sales folks talk themselves into and out of a sale. Their excitement and nervousness put their mouths on auto-drive, and they often end up missing a buying signal.
The temptation to talk is great, but once you learn how to resist the temptation and how to close your mouth, your sales and renewal closing percentages will increase.
Give and receive: In most service and sales cycles, your clients will ask for something. Whether they ask for information, a lower price, service demonstrations, or customer referrals, expect that you will be giving a lot during the sales cycle. A good rule to remember is that you should always ask for something after you give something.
For example, if the customer asks for a service demonstration, ask for their commitment to move forward to the next steps if the demonstration proves that your service will fulfill their need. While it may be better to give than to receive, in the sales world, giving and receiving are both equal players with equal amounts of importance.
Be positive: No matter how the client responds, keep it light and maintain a can-do attitude throughout the negotiations. When you go negative due to the buyer being negative there is only one outcome and it's not good. Negativity always succumbs to positivity.
Always smile: This is not just about your attitude, but also your physical manifestation. For the next week, practice smiling with everyone in every situation you encounter. Do this until you are able to argue with a smile, disagree with a smile, negotiate, overcome objections, and close with a smile. Have you ever noticed that very successful people are smiling all the time? It is not because they are successful that they are smiling, it's how they got successful.
This guest post was contributed by Fred Haskett of TrueWinds Consulting.
