Sometimes it seems like the most simple interactions are the most valuable.   I sat at my desk this morning and sent over an opportunity that had been uncovered for a client.  Before I continue let me take a quick step back and explain part of the process I use:

In all of my client engagements I connect the teleprospector that uncovered the opportunity with the sales rep that is responsible for the corresponding account to have a brief discussion on the opportunity and help answer any questions the sales rep may have.

Back to my story, I included this step this morning while delivering the opportunity.  A few email replies followed and I watched the connection for a brief chat occur.  I always ask my team members to come and debrief with me after they have chatted with a client’s sales rep.  During these conversation there are a few comments made about the call itself, did they have any questions on the opportunity, were they happy about the opportunity, etc. (first piece of value – name and voice have been associated with the “magical” opportunity that appeared in the sales rep’s inbox).

Inevitably, and this is the second piece of value that comes from the interaction, the conversation between the two heads to a discussion about a number of things, such as other qualification information that may be of value or a recent call the sales rep had that would be an example of why they “won” the deal, etc.  From this portion of the conversation comes valuable anacdotal information that the teleprospector can use moving forward in there messaging.  After the debrief I ask the teleprospector to recap the anacdotal information in an email and send it out to other members of the team. 

I conclude my debrief with a simple question – “was the call valuable for you?” – the answer is always a strong – “definitely.”

So what happened next is what made me smile……..

45 minutes later a teleprospector walks into my office with a new opportunity they uncovered and they state – “I’m fired-up!  That email that was sent?  I read it and then jumped on this call, leveraged some of the information, and things just fell into place and the conversation took off!”………..and this is the third piece of value!

“My 2 Cents”

And something hit me that I wanted to share……….perhaps the most important part of any relationship – business or personal – is setting expectations up front.

What do I mean, well lets say that you and I enter into a business relationship, whether it is in my current position as a provider of a service with a deliverable or even if it is more of a business to consumer relationship.   If we are working together to achieve a common goal (e.g. generating sales opportunities that result in forecastable revenue with a high conversion to close) it is critical that we communicate our expectations with one another.  

For example one of the most productive and mutually beneficial client engagements I have had, is one where both the client and I sat down and not only outlined how success would be measured, but also how we like to communicate and the  types of things that are important to communicate about.  These parameters were all established in order for us to achieve the goals of our relationship (e.g. generating sales opportunities that result in forecastable revenue with a high conversion to close) – after all we are all in the business of being successful!

Here is another way to look at it, if I am selling you a bottle of wine in a store and you ask me for a recomendation – and I ask you what you are looking for -  you state “a red wine” –  and I proceed with “here is a red wine that will knock your socks off” – and the transaction is done.  What do you think the likelihood is that you are completely satisfied with the bottle I recomended?  Maybe I get lucky and it was a perfect match, but more than likely it served its purpose but you will not drive back out of your way to get another recommendation from me. 

This could have been much more of a win-win for both of us if we took a brief moment to expand on our goals and expectations for the purchase.  For example I could have recommended a bottle of wine by matching it specifically to what you were eating or the price range you were looking to spend…..a good match….and chances are you would drive back to see me the next time you needed a bottle of wine!

On side note – here is one of my favorite sets of wine  - both on the price front and taste!

“My 2 Cents”