Holden Advisors Blog

We meet and work with sales managers all over the globe and a question we are asked frequently is, “Why can’t my sellers close the deal?”  It is an important question to consider, but we must first establish a few assumptions.

I had lunch recently with Mark S., owner of a small manufacturing and distribution firm who announced, “I had to divorce one of my largest customers today.” I wasn’t taken back by his statement, as I have always known Mark to manage his business well. However, I was curious to know, “Why?” His response was simple, “We weren’t making any money, and I don’t have the deep pockets to keep them without compromising other business.” Six months prior to removing this customer off his books, Mark’s service manager came to him, complaining about the account. He let Mark know that the customer’s shipments had dropped outside their negotiated volume rate schedule and that service calls to the customer had doubled.  Mark and his Service, Operations, Finance, and Account Managers committed to a system of internal Quarterly Business Reviews (QBR) for all major accounts. Mark and his team uncovered additional customers who had taken this vendor’s value for granted which sadly, was the result of Mark’s Account Managers giving value away.

(Excerpt form Tannis' current featured blog)

We all like to believe we understand the value our products and services will bring to our customers.  We study our products and link the benefits of what our company delivers to our customers and their respective business; believing we can make a positive contribution.  However, why is it the messages we work so hard to develop often fall on deaf ears?  Why does it seem the value message we believe in, comes short of getting passed our immediate contacts?

It’s true, customers cook up delectable discounts every year to get high value deals for discounted prices – here’s how they do it.