Ten Tips on Creating More Value for Strategic Accounts

10 Tips on Creating More Value for Strategic Accounts

Posted March 6, 2013

Whether you are a technology provider, a professional services firm, or sell some other product or service, being viewed as a trusted advisor is key to winning the sale, earning a price premium, or building long-term customer loyalty.

What does it take to become a trusted advisor, to stand out head and shoulders above your competitors as a partner who not only cares about your customer’s success, but makes it happen? Amanda Setili offers 10 tips to sales people, account managers, project managers and technology teams who want to create more value for their strategic accounts.

Make the client the star. You don’t need “credit” for their success – put the client in the limelight, and make sure they succeed. Later on, they’ll remember that you were there when good things started to happen.
Inspire. Help them see that there’s another way to do things. Show them how they can do it. Push them to set, and believe, aggressive goals. And, most importantly, help them to make a commitment to a new direction, to make a bold move, to capture early and visible wins.
Bring outside perspective. Look into their world and tell the client what they aren’t seeing, or help them understand the implications of what they are seeing. Offer a new perspective on the customer experience, a realistic view of competition, ideas for what their organization could do to be more effective, or a new way of thinking about their business.
Be flexible, but not a pushover. Listen. Accept that you don’t know all the facts and nuances. Admit that many of “your” recommendations are really their recommendations. Be honest – tell the client when they are making a mistake, and offer advice on how to do better.
Agree on metrics at the outset. Look at how the client company is being evaluated by Wall Street, by customers and by prospective employees, then tie your value directly to those metrics. Focus on what gets them excited, and get agreement up front on how the success of your product or services will be measured. Whether it’s employee morale and productivity, revenue enhancement, cost reduction, lead generation, customer satisfaction or some other measure, getting agreement up front assures that your efforts will be focused toward the most powerful levers for delivering value. And set your prices commensurate with that value, not based on how much time you put in or what your costs are.
Give them only what they need. Don’t sell the client a “big” solution if a small one will do the job. Leverage internal talent and capabilities as much as possible. You’ll build client buy-in, win points for saving them money, and will usually end up with a better solution.
Tailor your strengths and style to each client. If the client is very data-driven, give her data and facts. If he’s a visionary, help him communicate and realize his visions.
Lay out timing and objectives for your project, and explicitly recognize any deviations. This applies to your contribution as well as their accomplishments – keep the client focused on meeting their commitments and milestones. And recognize when they achieve their goals, even after you’ve left.
Look for opportunities to deliver unexpected value. Do something above and beyond. Keep your eyes constantly on the lookout for ways to improve their performance and results.
If you aren’t adding value, move on. Your success depends on their success, so find a way to make your client dramatically more successful than they were without you, or disengage.

Amanda Setili is founder and managing partner of Setili & Associates, a firm that works with Fortune 500 companies to improve business performance. Her clients include The Home Depot, Delta Air Lines, Wachovia and The Coca-Cola Company, as well as growth companies. As an experienced thought partner, Setili & Associates helps clients leverage their distinct assets and capabilities to produce lasting competitive advantage, zeroing in on key actions that will improve profit, performance and growth.