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No business is just a buy-and-sell business in todays competition driven world. Customer service and superior after-sales have emerged as the two critical success-oriented techniques and the core drivers of competitive advantage.

Excellent after sales support can help improve customer retention, streamline service process, maximize efficiency and reduce overhead costs. But there are still a lot to it- customers of a business can be new ones, or current ones returning to buy more. The significance of good customer service can be seen in the fact that it costs 5 times as much to win a new customer than it is to retain the current one. This particularly goes well with short-term growth as the cost of acquiring new customers is typically much greater than the cost of retaining existing ones. With excellent after sales the repeat business is generally much cheaper for the company as their sales process is usually less intense. This is how the dictum goes Sales sells the first one, Service sells the rest. Let us understand this better with the help of an example. A mobile phone manufacturer may be a market leader, but if it has poor customer service, the customers may switch to its rivals. To stay ahead of the competition, he has to provide exceedingly good after-sales support that could bring back the customers- repeat customers we say them.

This repeat business can become much cheaper for the mobile manufacturer as its sales process would now be less intense and become more of an “order” taker effort. In contrast, poor after sales support could have made the sales process much more intensive. This would have required the sales function to overcome that poor after-sales support with more sales techniques like demos, sales calls, presentations, etc., which inculcate a higher cost.

On the flip side, happy servicing brings in loyal customers, and loyal customers are free advertising as they will not only tell others of the great service they have received, but also come back to buy again.

Why Companies are Unable to Provide Quality After-Sales Support

Many companies are unable to provide the high degree of after-sales support because they consider customer service as a cost and investment, and not a profit center. It does not make good sense as spending few bucks for keeping your customers happy would not only make them your regular customers, but would also act as revenue stream for you. Effective customer management with the help of Service Management Software and other service automation tools can actually be bundled into the original sales offer.

There can never be more opportunity to invest in sales and foster valuable connections by delivering excellent customer service and support.

You’ve got a hot prospect. You need a face-to-face opportunity to sell your product and services. So you stop by, without an appointment, hoping to make it past the receptionist and catch the decision maker in a rare unscheduled moment. “I was in the vicinity, and thought I’d just stop by to say hello.” Well, at least you tried.

Of course, there is a place for pleasantries and the social aspects of business, but let’s not confuse those with a sales call. Many salespeople focus on their own comfort area, on social calls and lunch dates or the product pitch. And as a result, the sales process never gets off the ground. Before you try to meet with someone, you must ask yourself “What is the reason this person is meeting with me?”

At Miller Heiman we call it a Valid Business Reason. It gives the potential buyer a reason for spending time with you. Having a Valid Business Reason for every sales call, whether in person or on the phone, is the considerate way of doing business. It tells buyers, no matter how long youve known them, that you’ve given some thought to their current challenges and that you’re looking for solutions that are “valid” to them.

Top sales performers understand the challenges of their customers 21% better than the competition.
(Source: 2006 Miller Heiman Sales Performance Study)

What is a Valid Business Reason?
1. It’s Valid: It’s all about the customer. Valid to customers means it’s worth making time to hear about how you can help solve a problem that keeps them up at night.

2. It’s Business: Research shows that many sales calls are too general and unfocused to be useful to buyers or sellers. Do your homework and manage your selling time. Understand their business. What are their challenges? What are they trying to fix, accomplish or avoid?

3. It’s a Good Reason: Not your reason. The customer’s reason – for taking time out of a busy schedule for you, rather than spending it on other priorities. Tell the customer what you’d like to meet about and why you think this could be of value. It’s about solutions. How can your solution help what they want to fix, accomplish or avoid. You are specific, because you’ve done your homework.

Now, write it down in 25 words or less, so it can be left on a voice mail or with a receptionist. And remember, it’s always from the customer’s point of view.

By defining your Valid Business Reason, you’ll never again make a “cold call”. You’re doing strategic planning before every call even the first visit to a new prospect. And your ability to get “face time” is improving dramatically.
For a deeper look, and to learn how to create winning Valid Business Reasons, the Miller Heiman Conceptual Selling workshop shows you how to:
Sell the way customers buy.
Get beyond the product pitch.
Reach decision makers.
Sell a win-win solution.
Craft winning Valid Business Reasons that get you face to face.

These recommendations are based on Miller Heimans proven sales system. Our system provides a repeatable approach to use with every opportunity to close more deals, fast. If youd like more information on this topic, or would like to discuss the results you’d like to improve, visit us at www.millerheiman.com and we’ll recommend a solution that will best address your needs.

Within the recruitment industry sales recruitment agencies have found a niche that differentiates them from the more generic recruitment agencies. They are not seen as an agency simply interested in head hunting but rather aim to deliver solid candidates to a prospective employer is they new or experienced in the area of sales.

Headhunting firms will often submit applicants to any sort of job advertised within the business community or being sought through their database. Sales recruitment agencies on the other hand specialise in building a database of employers and potential employees who are looking for a sales related position only.

As such it is their intent to ensure that any candidate recommended for a sales role has firstly undergone an assessment test to ensure that they have the personality traits to meet the challenges of the competitive business to business sales environment. There is little point in training a candidate who, while keen to enter into sales, does not have the characteristics identified as being critical to succeed in a sales role.

While some sales jobs may require well trained, experienced sales staff with product specific knowledge others will provide opportunities to those wanting to enter the sales scene for the first time. Sales recruitment agencies offer training to guarantee both categories of candidate: an update on the more recent selling methods and any innovation in technology that might enhance sales for those who are experienced; a short but intensive and comprehensive sales training programme for those embarking upon a sales career.

Sales staff who are properly trained and assessed by a sales recruitment agency are found to have far greater success in a job interview scenario – they present as more confident, the employer knows that they have the right characteristics (as opposed to employing ad hoc on gut instinct) and are also trained in sales to a minimum level at least. Taking on board a candidate via a sales recruitment agency also means that they will receive on-going training during the initial employment period.

This instils greater confidence in the new sales recruit and keeps them on track in achieving their sales figures. As a first time job applicant without training it can be difficult to pass the benchmarks set by some sales industries. This can be addressed with good sales training. By listing through specialist sales recruitment agencies and undertaking their training courses you will feel more confident of achieving benchmark volume requirements and targets.

In many cases these training programs revisit basic knowledge about sales and selling products and services but as noted they also explore more advanced modern selling techniques which equip a candidate to succeed in a career in sales. Sales recruitment agencies definitely add value when recruiting sales staff.