Organizations of all kinds had a rare opportunity during the pandemic to re-evaluate their internal processes. The stillness and overnight pivots that resulted from the global shutdown brought systems and process weaknesses to light. Leaders rethought their approach and identified new ways to work. They defined cloud system needs, adopted electronic billing and payment solutions, created and attended online meetings, and offered employees remote working arrangements. These changes were the silver lining in a time filled with clouds. But there is an opportunity to do more. Now is the time to consider those internal efficiencies and their impact on the people outside of the business – your customers and clients.
What value do these changes in your business deliver for your customers? We need to examine all aspects of your businesses from the eyes of you customer. What does your customer experience at each point of their interaction with you? Where are the bottlenecks or gaps in your service delivery? How can we make it easier for them to complete a transaction?
As we shift from thinking about your own needs to those of you customer, we have the potential to add more value and to set ourselves apart from other businesses.
Start by reviewing your sales process.
Answer the following questions:
- Is your sales process documented? If not, start here. If it is documented, are members of your organization routinely following it? How do you know?
- Does your sales process have an owner?
- Does your website identify pricing? Or categories of service?
- Who answers initial inquiries? How are they received – phone, email, contact form on website? Is there an automated response or form they must fill out?
- Who schedules the first meeting? Is there a standard format and agenda for this meeting?
- Are proposals required? If so, are they automated? Do you have templates you can re-use?
- Can proposals, estimates or quotes be electronically signed?
- Are proposals focused on value to your customer or are you billing by the hour? What would your customer prefer?
- Is it easy for a potential customer to make a purchase? Can they buy online? What payment options do you offer?
- What happens after the purchase?
- Who maintains the relationship with that customer after the sale?
Sales, like every other aspect of your business, depends on the right focus across your team. Bringing everyone together to walk through and document your processes can be an eye opening training exercise and can have a substantial impact on your bottom line.
At KRD, we are all about accountability. We have tools that can help you gain insights into your customer interactions, educate your teams, and align their actions with overall business and financial goals. Contact Lauren Clawson for more information.
