EXPECTED LEADERSHIP
In these days of uncertainty I can tell you one thing that I am positively sure of. I am absolutely, positively sure that your prospects and clients EXPECT leadership from you! They expect you to be the best at what you do or at least what they perceive you to do or your value to be. If you don’t fulfill their expectations they will find someone else to do the job.
That is a fact.
Our prospects and customers are on an ongoing search for “their” trusted advisor for each and every one of their key products or service needs. From the perspective of a prospective customer, when they choose you as a potential option to receive their business, they expect you to be the expert and the professional. Research continually shows that prospects are looking for someone that they can consider their trusted advisor on everything from lawn care to legal matters. They expect you to know the answers to their questions. They expect you to at least act like you know what you are doing. Gone are the days of just getting by. Gone are the days of having employees with the “ I don’t know that, I just work here!” attitude. Run off a prospect, more than likely they’re gone for good.
The aspect of maintaining and protecting your existing customers does not really change that much from what your prospective customer expects. The only real exception is that you need to understand that (many will say) more than 95% of all of your existing customers would move to a different provider for very minor perceived improvements of service and care. In other words, more than any other time in history, you must have a strategic plan on how to keep your current customers as loyal as you can, because today, there is very little product or brand loyalty.
Just remember that a business relationship can all go wrong when a business expects their prospects and customers to be the experts instead of assuming that “expected” role. In sales it’s the difference between the “order takers” or what I sometimes call the “commercial visitors” and the product or service sales solution experts.
The bottom line is the difference in taking what you can get (your perceived share) versus asking questions, understanding the needs of your client or prospect from their point of view and then offering solutions that make sense. The difference in results can be in the $millions of dollars.
As Always, BE GREAT!
Coach Dan