What value does your product or service create for your customers? By value, we mean financial value. So, what financial value does your product create for your customers? Sometimes, when we ask our clients what financial value they create for their customers, clients get frustrated.
Read MoreA key to long term success is how well an organisation transforms to manage strategic accounts differently. Recently, we worked with a CEO of a large global client who decided the way of the future was managing their most important accounts in a structured way. Our recommended approach, which was not accepted, was completing a structural internal audit to see how they currently managed strategic accounts and then interviewing a few of their top accounts.
Read MoreWhat if your salespeople tell you your customers don’t see any difference between you and your competitors? Well in our experience, this might be true but it’s unlikely. How can we say that?
Read MoreValue with your strategic accounts means focusing on the concept of joint value creation between a strategic supplier and a key account. The joint value creation process often impacts both growth and strategic relationships.
Read MoreEverything written about managing major accounts strategically has one theme: it’s not a marketing or sales campaign, it’s a leadership initiative driven by the C-Suite.
The overarching key to long-term success is how well the organisation changes to manage strategic accounts differently.
Read MoreThis week I needed a refill for a rollerball pen and a replacement light bulb. Two trivial tasks, or so I thought. First, armed with my dead light, I visited my local hardware store. “I want a 50W halogen Philips light like this please”.
The helpful assistant took me to the shelf, and we could only find 35W bulbs, “sorry we are out of stock”.
Read MoreImagine, you are the General Manager in a pharmaceutical company. Into your office comes a Division Manager. “You know you asked for ways to improve our relationship with United Hospitals”, she reminds you about the last management meeting. “I’ve got it. We need to innovate for them!” She says with a grin. What’s your reaction?
Read MoreWhat does it mean to have courage when you need to deal with tough competitive market conditions and digital disruption affecting your market share?
Read MoreIn these challenging times, if you are looking for ideas to improve your business, then best companies focus on their greatest asset — their most strategically important accounts.
Read MoreOften when I speak about the power of growth through a company’s major accounts, managers ask what is the secret or short cut to success? My answer disappoints, there is no short cut.
Read MoreExecutives regularly complain their departments are not working together well. In some large organisations, executives spend most of the time refereeing disputes between departments. Why does this happen?
Read MoreWe’ve worked with global companies embedding account management frameworks and these companies continue to be successful. What drives that success?
Read MoreYou live in changing times, and your decisions with your strategic accounts need to be faster, smarter and relevant to key decision makers.
Read MoreCompetition in the B2B world has never been fiercer. With more companies fighting over every contract, the sales teams are now laser-focused on the next sale and holding on to each customer, whatever it takes. How organisations measure their employees, and what behaviours they reward add to the laser-focus on short-term gains.
Read MoreIn July, CEO Sigma Healthcare Mark Hooper announced losing a contract worth $1.7 Billion and in the next financial year earnings would half to $50 Million. Sigma distribute products to 400 stores for My Chemist and Chemist Warehouse and could not negotiate a new contract with their biggest customer.
What does this mean for Sigma?
Read MoreCustomers you can't afford to lose are those customers who supply a good portion of your revenue or profit. Or they can be customers who are growing faster than the rest of the marketplace. The thought of losing one of these customers scares you so much that you might feel tightness in your stomach.
Read MoreWith the SAMA annual conference in Florida fast approaching this is a good time to share an insight from our book Managing B2B customers you can’t afford to lose about managing rewards and insights within strategic account management (SAM).
Read MoreSaving costs is good, improving productivity is good, increasing sales is good, executing strategy is good, more growth is good and more profit is good. Well, experience shows it’s easy to make savings on a spreadsheet, it’s a little harder to announce the changes, and it’s tough to deliver the improvement in profit.
Read MoreTodd Snelgrove now Founding Partner at Experts in Value, was previously the Global Vice President of Value for SKF. During his 20 plus years in the industry, he has identified five reasons why companies do not take the time and effort to quantify their value and equip their sales teams or account managers with the tools and techniques they need to discuss value with customers.
This extract is taken from The Creative Negotiator by Stephen Kozicki.
Why can’t you quantify and prove value?
Read MoreWhat insights did I get from attending last week’s Medical Technology Association of Australia’s (MTAA) summit on Value-Based Health Care?
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