Scaling private companies is tough. We work with our portfolio clients to help prioritize and execute activity that will move the dial. This ensures our clients grow safely, in control, aligning all actions to the the strategic plan, and thus improving the predictability of the business. One specific activity that makes a huge difference to scaling, is the ability to farm your key accounts. Increasing your market share of your top client’s spend is a game changer. Here are 10 key operational actions that will help:
Top 10 Actions
- Establish a Company Fact Sheet on your key accounts. What does this look like? I’ve made it easy, here is a free pdf listing on what you should know. Free pdf.
- Establish Economic Values. I define this as the difference between what you can realistically sell them, if all relevant profit centers in your client purchased your services, minus of course, what you’ve sold to date. Now of course for many reasons, a powerful brand name in your sector may have low economic value.
- Establish an Engagement Strategy. What’s your insightful angle of attack? How do you believe you can improve the life of the individual manager inside your client? Think client manager. Think people not company. People improve then companies improve. What’s the competitive value proposition?
- Build great diagnostic questions that will help you uncover the truth behind your customer’s operation. My favorite sales process that is built around “Diagnosis” is called The Prime Process. See my take here.
- Conduct war room sessions with your management team to rehearse all the scenarios, all the ways your company can bring improved performance to your customers.
- As part of your strategy be gutsy. Call at the highest possible level in the customer account. Explain your engagement strategy. Ask for help on how to execute it.
- Consider after qualifying the size of the opportunity, a site visit. The Land and Expand strategy is essential for long term relationship building. But this visit needs an agenda. It needs to ensure the right people are available and the visit itself needs to add value to the customer.
- Consider a strategic workshop with your customer’s senior management and your senior management. What could you be doing more of together?
- Consider long term framework arrangements on pricing and product collaboration.
- Review the possibility of detailed Case Study testimonials.
Closing deals with customers is the beginning of a relationship not the end. Build a Strategic Account Management Strategy and you will scale your business for the right reasons.
The Portfolio Partnership scales businesses to assist entrepreneurs fulfill their potential, both organically and by acquisition. Start a dialogue with Ian, Ian@TPPBoston.com.
