Training The Sales Force Using Client Run Meetings
The customer run meeting is just one of the many on-the-job sales training methods that can be used
. Arguably, it can be one of the most effective because the sales people hear directly from their clients. At the meeting the customers will tell you what they like and what they do not like about your organisation. If you are going to hold a customer run meeting then you need to ensure it is organised properly. Six points for success are described below.
1. Set yourself clear goals
Successful customer run meetings are based on careful planning. It is not enough just to invite a few clients and put them in a room with some of your sales people. Determine, in conjunction with your colleagues, exactly what information you want to acquire from these meetings.
A frequent objection raised by sales people on the topic of customer run meetings is, "We are constantly talking to our clients anyway, so why do we need an extra meeting?" Make it clear to your sales people that a customer run meeting takes place in a completely different atmosphere to other sales meetings and is therefore more open and informative.
2. Invite the right clients
Invite two or three clients. The clients you invite can belong to the same company if you are aiming to improve your relationship with that particular company. You should also consider inviting clients from different companies. Your choice of clients to invite should be based on what kind of information you are aiming to acquire.
Send your guests a written invitation and confirm the appointment in writing too. Put the confirmation in a separate file and jot down in the same file the aims of the meeting.
3. Ask the right questions
Most clients shy away from voicing criticism openly. Therefore, ask a "harmless" question at the beginning of the customer run meeting, such as:
What is the main aspect of our product which interests you? What do you watch out for when you first meet one of our salespeople? What does your first impression of our sales person depend on?
Once the customers have relaxed and the atmosphere is open and friendly you can start to ask more critical questions, for example:
How would you assess our service on a scale of 1-6? What can we do to improve our service?
Further topic areas for customer run meetings include:
How do you make initial contact with clients? How can you find out about the client's branch of industry? How can you defuse typical objections? How can you get around budget limitations? What is the best way to structure an offer and product presentation? How can you find the right decision-makers?
4. Create a warm, open atmosphere
Most Customer Run Meetings take place in a conference room of the host's company. This has the advantage of being able to include a factory visit with the meeting, which usually goes down very well with clients.
Make sure that you create a friendly atmosphere in the conference room. Use the following checklist to help you get the right atmosphere:
Is it clean and tidy? Are there pictures on the wall? Are the seats comfortable? Are the tables arranged in such a way that the participants in the meeting can communicate with each other in a comfortable way? Are paper and pens handy? Are there sufficient refreshments for your clients?
5. Have a de-briefing immediately after the meeting
This gives every sales person the opportunity to summarize the information which has been acquired during the meeting and draw the requisite conclusions from this.
6. Draw up an action plan
Work out with your sales people the best way to translate the criticism and suggested improvements into action. As sales manager, you should also note down any issues that indicate that refresher sales training is required, either for the entire team or for named individuals within the team.
Also make a note of some suggestions for future customer run meetings. Try and summarize every customer run meeting on the following lines:
Goals: What were the goals of the customer run meeting?
Clients: What were the criteria used to select the clients to invite to the meeting?
Results: Make a note of the five or six most important results which the customer run meeting yielded.
Client reaction: How satisfied were the clients with the customer run meeting?
Sales people's reaction: How satisfied were the sales people with the way the customer run meeting went? What were the most important pieces of information they gained from the meeting?
Action plan: What suggested improvements came out of the customer run meeting and how are these going to be implemented in the future?
Running regular customer run meetings in this way allows you to maximise the learning opportunities for your team and should form part of a balanced approach to delivering effective sales training.
by: Richard Stone
Potential Dropship Disasters, How Shipping Could Sink Resellers Handle Objections And Close More Sales With Hypnosis Secret Selling Power - Is Covert Hypnosis Possible As A Way To Increase Sales? A Selling Tool-how Hypnosis Works In Sales A Powerful Sales Closing Technique-myths About Hypnosis I'm Not Selling Nonsense - Using Mind Control To Benefit Your Sales System Is Possible! Be Careful Who You Listen To - Sales Tips For Selling Success Amazing Objection Handling-the Power Of Hypnotic Control In Overcoming Sales Objections Mind Control In Your Selling Techniques - Create More Sales Now How To Increase Your Ebay Sales Instantly The Convenience Of Receiving A Sales Recruiting Shortlist Midas Integrates With Salesforce Crm On The Cloud! How To Have The Best Sales Revenue