MISSING THE EXIT – AGAIN AND AGAIN

Posted September 26, 2019 In blog

When I initially wrote this post about 3 years ago, I was being nostalgic about the town of Carmel, IN which has converted nearly every intersection in town into roundabouts, which have proven to reduce accidents, to render accidents that do occur to be of less damage overall, and make for great locations for outdoor art! We used to live in Carmel and the conversion projects were in full speed mode during our 10 year residence. Carmel has invested significant money in these roundabouts all toward public safety and some enhanced aesthetic appeal. Granted the roundabouts in Carmel are not the many-lane variety like some found in Europe - I think of the one in Paris as I’ve seen while watching the Tour d’ France. Those in Carmel are mostly 2 lanes so getting caught is not really a factor. But if drivers don’t pay attention or know how to safely and effectively navigate the roundabout, mishaps can occur. Much like these minor accidents that do happen, account managers can cause minor mishaps as they engage customers when working to get a solution on the table.

In the world of account management, this analogy of a minor mishap comes in the form of : not knowing when to shift from inquiry to proposal with a customer. Said another way, the account manager misses the buying signals the customer is indicating by continuing to build a need or develop consequences. Instead of pivoting toward solving the concern or challenge the customer has stated, the account manager continues to ask strong, thought-provoking questions of the customer, even though the customer has given indications they are strongly interested in making a change and doing so in a timely manner.

So what is it that causes the account manager to miss the buying signals? For some, the inability to pivot to selling feels contrary to the training they’ve received. They are taught to ask good questions and align to the customer’s need. In the example above, the customer is ready to buy but the account manager fails to pick up on the fully developed need. There may be a focus on continuing to ask questions due to a lack of listening, a drive to ask all planned questions toward a legalistic requirement, or an inability to shift to proposing a solution. Once the need is developed the account manager should then cease asking and begin proposing a path toward solving the need with their product or service. Instead of asking to present the solution or asking to schedule a meeting, the account manager should be proposing the next steps and confirming the customer’s agreement. Being able to read the customer, adjusting tactics on the fly and being confident in the company’s products and services are essential to success in the solution proposal step. These are subtle changes in mindset and in customer engagement tactics. Many sales professionals believe they do this effectively by asking gentle questions and seeking buy-in via deferring to the customer’s preferences, rather than taking ownership of the meeting and making a recommendation toward a next step or a solution. In our experiences, account managers who make recommendations make the customer less comfortable when saying no or challenging the suggestion. By using a question as the vehicle to deliver a nest step or recommendation, the sales professional is allowing the customer to be in control of the dialogue. By making a recommendation and seeking agreement to it, the sales professional maintains ownership of the conversation and proceeds toward next steps with the customer.

For coaches, the best support you can provide your account managers is to rehearse any calls which are at or near the proposal phase to encourage the account manager in making the pivot. Suppress the tendency to grade your account managers on quantity of questions and focus instead on effectiveness of questions and the account manager’s flexibility and nimbleness during a call.

By utilizing good listening skills, strong EQ and confidence in the products and services, the ability to exit the selling cycle and merge onto the proposal cycle will grow, driving greater success and increased customer-centric solutions.

Contact Michael Hillan at 919.665.8658, or via email at michaelh@drivetrainlearning.com, or online at drivetrainlearning.com