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We all know about success being 99% perspiration, but what
about the 1% INSPIRATION that is worth sweating for? Where does it come
from? Can it be provoked?
Particularly in mature business-to-business markets, finding
the creative spark to get the customer’s attention is a challenge for all of us.
Teamwork
It is rarely an individual act of brilliance that creates
an original value proposition. One of the reasons for key account team meetings
is to bounce ideas around. I’ve run meetings with engineers, accountants and factory
workers involved, and I am absolutely convinced that everyone can be creative
when interaction with others is helping them to see their everyday world in a
new way. The other great advantage of multi-disciplinary idea generation
is its potential to facilitate buy-in. It takes more than one department to implement
change!
Stimulating ideas
Sometimes the wackiest ideas lead to feasible offerings, so
idea generation sessions have their own set of rules, most importantly that people
suspend judgement and give each suggestion some space. Brainstorming, forced combinations
and scenario building are familiar mind games that can help creative juices to
flow. More advanced techniques are available. Try “why-why”
problem solving, which involves asking why to each answer until you have built
a root and branch diagram of all the contributory causes to a customer’s problem.
No price reduction without cost reduction
So much for abstract mind games, I know the harsh reality
is that the account team will more than likely have to brainstorm in response
to a customer demand for reduced price, in which case the offering has to be de-engineered.
What will the customer trade for a lower price? Perhaps they don’t need
a high quality model for their application of the product; perhaps frequency of
deliveries could be reduced. Will they self-install? Will they pay on receipt
rather than take credit?
Risk reduction
On the plus side, what extra can we add as a supplier to justify
a price differential? Risk reduction is a popular topic at the moment.
A supplier of specialist ceramic pipes solved a customer’s problem with breakages
by offering to manage use of its product in the customer’s factory. Although
the service cost more, total cost of ownership to the customer was reduced because
breakages were virtually eliminated.
Any customer faces a number of risks in their day-to-day business
that a supplier can help them to minimise. These risks include financial
risk, operating risk (the risk that something fails to function) and last, but
by no means least, psychological risk. Buying decision-makers are human
beings. No one wants to look like an idiot and lose their job because any of the
other risks are not covered.
Anticipating needs
All products and services fulfil basic needs. Some companies
are able to differentiate on expected or desired needs. The real trick of
the first-mover in an industry is to fulfil the unanticipated needs, which have
been nicknamed IKIWISI (I’ll know it when I see it). Unanticipated needs
can only be understood by observing how the customer uses the product/service.
Get into their factories, or on the hospital ward, or into the call centre, see
how the product is used, and work out how you could make the user’s life easier.
Reducing customer effort
For years I have been hearing from purchasing decision-makers
that they favour suppliers who are “easy to do business with”. Most organisations’
systems are designed for the convenience of internal reporting for historical
financial purposes. Little thought has been given to customer-focused administration.
In one partnership I observed, which involved thousands upon thousands of small
transactions, the supplier allowed the customer to self-invoice, as it saved so
much time for both parties in reconciling their records. Obviously the customer
was only ever going to pay for what they thought they had received, so why not
have a process to reflect that?
Ask them!
And finally, I am grimly amazed at the amount of agonising
about value propositions that companies do internally before asking customers
“what pain do you have that we might be able to solve?” If in doubt, ask.
And then of course, listen. Shortly afterwards, the ideas should start to
flow.
Reprinted with kind permission of USP Magazine.
About the Author
Beth Rogers FCIM is Research Director of the ISMM and a member
of the sales steering group of the Government’s Marketing and Sales Standards
Setting Body (MSSSB). She is co-author of “Key customers – how to manage
them profitably” published by Butterworth Heinemann. If you have any questions
or comments, you can contact her at beth_rogers@btinternet.com
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