The Changing Landscape of CRM Part 1-Technology Changes Everything,Technology Changes Nothing!

In the last 20 years or so client management has been transformed by the technology boom. internets, web sites, mobile phones and e mail are just some of the changes now seen as commonplace. And this is not restricted to large, multi national companies. Pretty much any small to medium sized organisation now has these tools, and more, at their disposal.

And yet in my view this new technology doesn't provide the competitive advantage itself. Having these tools is, in my mind, the cost of entry into the 'game'. To compete and win business with clients we need to rely on something else other than the latest generation of IT products.

Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that IT solutions do not play a large part of how we manage our client interactions. I use a number of CRM solutions to help keep on top of my actions and communications. But in my mind I think that there are a number of threads that have to be tied together to successfully manage our key client relationships. And the one thing that ties all these things together, that differntiates you from the rest, is the ability to build relationships that bring our clients measurable value over time.
Nothing new in this, this has always been one of the keys to success, but the world is a very different place now, and only marginally related to new technology.

Let me give you a few examples:

1. Technology changes everything:

Of course one of the things that this new technology gives us is quicker, almost instant access, to data that, 20 years ago, would have taken weeks to get. Google, Yahoo! and a massive range of databases make this a much simpler task. This means that we can be more prepared, and can plan to offer more value, based around a deep knowledge of our clients business with very little investment in time.
Of course the flip side of this is that our clients have access to the same information. They are using this, not just to investigate us, but also to look at our competitors to see if their value offering is more attractive. And they are not shy about bringing that information to the table!

In my view this brings both an opportunity and a challenge. It is a more open field than 20 years ago, but one in which the volume of information becomes a problem in itself. Think about how a client would feel about you if you didn't know something high profile about their organisation?

2. Technology changes nothing:

How many of us have experience of 'Sales Force Automation', 'Customer Relationship Management' and 'Enterprise Relationship Management' software?? How many have of us have tales of woe and/or failure of implementing these?

These systems failed for a couple of reasons. First, poorly trained and suspicious sales people thought that it was just another form to fill in with no return, so they didn't bother. Second, many organisations were blown away with the great features and failed to analyse the processes they were going to automate. What they got then was the same old problems, only faster!

The lesson therefore isn't to avoid CRM related software, or any technology for that matter. Used properly, good software is vital tool. And that is all it is. Software can no more turn an incompetent person into a star than a £500 driver can turn an average non golfer into Tiger Woods!

Results aren't provided by the tool itself. They are the result of the tool in the hands of a professional who follows a tried and tested process for being successful.

And despite all the sophisticated systems in our toolbox, it's still the effective management of relationships that drives long term business.

No Plan, No Value Proposition = No Key Account!

Welcome to 2010! - Happy New Year.

After enjoying the Christmas break I was eager to return and start work on the plans and goals I set for 2010, building momentum from the start of the year.
During the last few weeks of 2009 I took the opportunity to build a much more robust business plan for the coming year and beyond. Although I do believe this year needs to be approached with a healthy dose of both cautious optimism and realism I am very much looking forward to the challenges and opportunities that it will bring.

Part of my business plan includes an operational plan broken down into the various parts I see making up my business. After setting the outcome, performance and process goals I want to achieve the natural progression was to look in detail at the How?

In terms of growing our level of client interventions, and therefore increasing the number of projects with each client, I decided to develop specific plans for each of our key clients where further development has been identified and, most importantly based on my last posting, there is an intention on both parties to develop our relationship. It was a really useful process. It made me think about how often I have seen Key Account plans written, and the answer is - rarely! I feel this is a major shortcoming when you consider the size and potential value that could be delivered for both us and our clients.

So I thought I would consider the purpose of a 'client development plan' so that we may be able to derive more mutual value for us and our clients.

First question is usually "How big should the plan be?". The answer must have something to do with the following uses:

1. Collect all the data and information on the client
2. Get your thoughts together

I don't think these are valid reasons. Yes, we have to collect all relevant data and information. And, yes, we should get our thoughts together but these shouldn't be the focus of the plan.
The plan needs to be the outcome of these.

In my mind the client development plan should be about communicating objectives and actions, providing a way to track progress and ensuring we are offering the right value proposition.

If this is the purpose then the answer to "How long?" must be: "as short as we can make it!"
Plans that run to dozens of pages with endless analysis and background data are not very helpful (and rarely read!!), and in my experience plans that are this size are usually written to prove how much expertise and importance the CRM has!!!!

So, the ideal plan should be focused on objectives and the actions required to achieve those objectives, which may even have you shrinking it down to one or two pages.

Of course we shouldn't try to limit the scope of a client development plan, and we should remember that it is more than just a sales plan, differentiating itself by the breadth of the objectives, which goes well beyond just the figures. This may run to more than one page and it is the sign of an effective CRM when this balance is just right for everyones needs.

In completing this process for myself I have found that, in fact, each client will have differing content based on our mutual strategic intent and that by producing something that I can refer back to I have a working document that provides the "How" to my goals and milestones. And given that we really don't know if this year will be all uphill or not having this at least means I can drive my business forward in a planned, foucused manner!

The journey to "Delighted Client"

I had a chance the other day to reflect on where we are trying to get to in a particular client relationship. We have delivered on the initial phase of our work and I am preparing to meet with the executive board to discuss further opportunities in the New Year.
Instead of just going back to our proposal I wanted to develop what we have learnt since starting work with them, and in particular how we can develop a mutual goal in terms of sustainable cost and purchase management, rather than just savings.

The more I think about it the more I realise that the client development process is relative only to the strategic intent of both ourselves and, most importantly, the client. What I mean is the extent to which each side sees value from putting more effort into the relationship. Obviously the higher the strategic intent the greater the envisioned results and therefore the greater effort applied.

Effort can be categorised in two ways: firstly an increase in points of contact, ie moving from a simple 1:1 relationship through to a more complex, team on team basis. Secondly, the nature of the relationships will move from a 'transactional' basis towards a genuine mutually beneficial one - where we are working towards joint objectives.

So what tools can we use to help guide us as to where we want to go? There can be 4 models of relationship we could aim for, remembering that we need to be driven by our understanding of the strategic intent of the client, which in itself means we have to ask good questions and really listen to the answers.

The 4 models I have used in the past include:

1. Bow Tie
2. One on many
3. Cotton Reel
4. Diamond

Whilst it will appear that these are just business speak clichés, in reality they are a great way of mapping where we are going with a specific client and also to direct the way we continue to grow with the client.
In my next post I will try to explore each model so that we get a clear view of each one.

The need for mutuality
Just a word of caution to this though - no particular model can be forced onto a client so in this sense the model you get is the one you deserve.
This will need a great deal of patience on our part as it is not unusual for our strategic intent to be way ahead of the clients!
At our recent conference we heard from a client who is not only delighted by us but also introduces us to other businesses and he gave us a list of why he is a delighted client, he used the acronym TRUST meaning Time, Risk Free, Understanding, Specialists and Trust itself. This last point is important for us to recognise - that they have to trust us through the actions we deliver first before any development can take place. Powerful insights that are invaluable to us.

A different way to look at Client Review meetings 2

Last time I discussed the NISE framework and fleshed out the first two steps. Here are my thoughts about the final two areas S and E.

Services: that could add value. As I said earlier it is highly unlikely that the client is aware of everything we can offer. This is our opportunity to familiarize them with services they currently do not use.
You can link this into the simple client development matrix I discussed in a previous posting. Case studies are a good idea to show success previously or better still invite the relevant expert to talk to the client. Again it is upto us to ensure that it is meaningful and relevant to the client.

Extra: by providing something that adds value to what we do, however small. It might be an article or a book you have read recently. Perhaps a piece of information that shows we are thinking about them and the issues they face.


If the meeting goes well, and there is every chance if you follow this process, then it is an ideal time to ask for a referral to others who they feel would benefit from our services. And let's not forget that asking for a testimonial , which in turn helps you with reassuring other clients, is invaluable.

A different way to look at Client Review meetings

After a successful client meeting this week I had a chance to review why it went well. I use a process that has the acronym NISE. Very simple to use as a framework ( which is why it is rarely used I guess!) Below I discuss the first two:

News: about us, events, results etc. This should be sharp and to the point. It always concerns me that companies present their credentials only to potential new business! Why not existing clients as well?? It makes sense if you think about it - the clients view of our business is only relevant at the last point you told them about us.
The other thought is that they will more than likely have our competitors calling them and they will be presenting their case from the point of developing new business. It follows that the client may well know more about our competitors abilities than ours!!!
Final word on this is just to say this must be brief.

Issues: about the clients business. This should be the main part of our agenda. What are the two or three most pressing issues that the client is facing? Where could we potentially help them? For example are they facing currency issues and can we assist them in reviewing their banking options? Are fuel costs a large expense and due to rising prices hurting margin? Could we review this area and attempt to redress the balance? Are they having to keep investing in new IT infrastructure to keep competitive? Can we advise them?

I'll discuss the other two areas next time but suffice it to say that ithe onus is on us to make these meetings both stimulating and informative!

Planning for the future

Spent some time today building up both a current picture of where we are with a client at the moment and also looking at where there may be opportunities for us to assist the client further in their cost management activities.
Using a tool based on a simple matrix I quickly identified, based on my discussions with the client, that we were only seeing about 5% of the potential with this client. Just plotting all our potential cost areas in which we have expertise and comparing that with the current areas under review showed this in a simple format. This simple analysis helps drive our thoughts and in producing a proposal that means something to the client.
Of course there are a number of other things to consider, such as the relevant stakeholder in the client and whether the client sees each individual cost area as a priority, but at least this can now aid a planned approach to the client and help us to agree together what the priorities should be.
Matching our expertise alongside the clients needs is always a moving target and will always be driven as much by our 'gut feel' as by the analysis. We are a relationship business after all.