Help Customers with their Strategic Outcome

Stuart, a sales rep for an Express Courier Logistics provider based in the UAE, looked at me with a sad face. What happened? I asked. He answered that he had lost another customer to a Forwarder who offered a much lower price. “My manager won’t approve of dropping the rates anymore”, he said as if a price war was what he was after.

I offered some coaching. Why did they choose a lower-cost option? Stuart said that their CEO had mandated lowering the cost in all departments so they could stay competitive in the market. They were targeting a 10 per cent cost saving across the board. And our rates are 30% higher. Who are their customers? I asked. It turned out that their products were destined for engineers on location in the Middle East countries.

That reminded me of a similar case I had experienced four years ago. And this is what was happening again: When the economy is facing headwinds, many board members step on the brakes and focus solely on costs. They stop thinking about the consequences of choosing lower-cost options. It is a natural reaction. However, choosing the lowest cost option often harms your business.

I told Stuart to go back to his contact and ask to speak to their customer service head. I bet that complaints about late deliveries have increased since the change. I also recommended that Stuart speak to the Commercial head.

Stuart did both, and it was no surprise that because Stuart was challenging the change, the company discovered (too late) that the Engineers’ complaint rates were up and Sales were down. Engineers fall into the category of “I need it tomorrow or don’t bother”.

Their CEO and board members were too focused on tactical cost-benefit and not on the strategic outcome of their decision. With lower services, customers simply went somewhere else. Now they found themselves in a worse strategic position.

I asked Stuart the following question: How can you win this customer back? Stuart got it: “By showing the declining numbers of sales and the increasing numbers of complaints. I will also share with them an article I found via ChatGPT that highlights how the engineering industry is becoming increasingly demanding. They need real-time visibility of their orders, the ability to cancel options at any time, and the option to redirect shipments to a different address. This customer offers none of these. With this, I will create a new, aspiring strategic outcome that will generate more sales and fewer complaints. I think my next meeting will go well, thanks!

Stuart was back on track, using his Selling with the Buyer’s Perspective skills.

——————————————————————————————————-

SalesEnablement #TrustedAdvisor #SalesLeadership #B2BSales #SalesInsights #CustomerFirst #BuyersPerspective #ModernSalesMethodology

✨ Enjoyed this post? Let me know in the comments & follow Ton Verleg for more.