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.
Alan at 80™ — Episode #64
1 day ago
