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Rigs
on Biz…Relationships, Your Secret Tie Breaker
By
Ed Rigsbee, CSP
(491
words)
Have
you ever wondered, how come the other guy got the business? Great Biz
Relationships are the answer.
You
know that, your product is as good, your service is as good and your
price is as good as the other guy’s. But, you didn’t get the
business—Biz Relationships again. Today, ya gotta have a
tiebreaker to get the business, and outstanding Biz Relationships is a
magnificent tiebreaker. Let’s look at this from the perspective of you
being the customer.
So
many business owners have told me, “When it all goes to crap, that’s
when I know who my real suppliers are.” They continue to say,
“That’s when relationships really matter!” Don’t you feel the
same way? Sure suppliers can fill the pipeline, but what about when
supply is disrupted?
If
you know, understand and like someone, you are more apt to make an
effort to work out challenges, be they a supplier or customer. Better
yet, if you trust someone, when things go into the dumper—you
absolutely know that you’ll be protected, that they’ll make things
right. Isn’t that what you want from your suppliers? Isn’t it also
what your customers want of you? You know it is.
To
get the Biz, ya gotta build better Biz Relationships
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You
already know that you have to keep your word and follow
through.
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You
already know that if you break your word, you can’t be trusted.
After all, Business is about results, not excuses.
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But,
did you know that communication is the most important element in
developing and maintaining outrageously successful Biz
Relationships?
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When
was the last time you sat over a beverage (away from the office,
work site or factory) with your customer and asked, “How can I
serve you better?”
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Over
time, many companies have developed “score cards” or “report
cards” to more formally communicate with their customers. A number
have also done this to better communicate expectations with their
suppliers. I believe these reporting methods extremely valuable
conduits of developing open communication with customers, and
suppliers. This tool can easily become your tiebreaker in the
marketplace. If you develop this tool for yourself, focus on the
following two key areas: First, It is important to ask, “How are
doing?” and second, “What do we need to do to get a higher score
or grade?”
The
great benefit to you in developing better communication with your
customers will be a greater understanding of what “extra” services
and activities your customers perceive as being valuable to them. It
really doesn’t make much sense doing extra things for your customers
that they do not hold as being valuable, now does it?
It
will serve you well to build better Biz Relationships through a regular
reporting or scoring system with your customers. I believe you will also
find this to be an important tiebreaker that you have over your
competitors. Do more, sell more and have more!
To
access helpful additional information from Ed Rigsbee at no charge,
please visit www.rigsbee.com/downloadaccess.htm.
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Ed Rigsbee, CSP is the author of PartnerShift,
Developing Strategic Alliances
and The Art of Partnering. Rigsbee has over 1,000 published articles to
his credit and is a regular keynote presenter at corporate and trade
association conferences across North America. He can be reached at
800-839-1520, ed@rigsbee.com, or
visit www.rigsbee.com.
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