I recently came across an article by Tom Searcy,
Break down a Sales Presentation like an ESPN Analyst, where he suggests that you prepare for a sales meeting the same way ESPN’s analysts prepare for their pre-game shows: do the match-up analysis, know the stats, identify the 1-2 things to win, calculate the risks; and, understand the game-changers. Dare I say this is relevant to a Customer Advisory Council meeting, as well?
Now we all know, or at least we should, that Customer Advisory Council meetings are
not intended to include sales presentations and that anything that even hints at selling is a recipe for disaster. Don’t do it…. ever. Resist the temptation at all costs as you will lose the trust of your board members and could cause irreparable damage to your existing relationships.
That said,
members of your executive team should indeed, do these five things to prepare for a Customer Advisory Council meeting:
- Do the match-up analysis. Take time prior to the meeting, perhaps en-route to the meeting destination so it’s good and fresh, to review the profile and photo of each member. Knowing each member's responsibilities, background, and interests will help you connect with them on a more personal basis and help you introduce them to their fellow Council members. Additionally, during the Prep Session, assign an executive to serve as “host” to 1-2 Advisory Council members, especially if they are new to the group.
- Know the stats. Review company profiles, financials, recent news and press releases, and have an understanding of the volume and types of business they do with you. This information will help you better understand their perspectives on key issues discussed during the meeting.
- Identify the 1-2 things to win. Since these are your top customers, chances of good that you have deals pending. Know what they are, what it will take to win them, and any other opportunities that may be coming your way.
- Calculate the risks. Likewise, know if there are any unresolved customer-service issues that may come up in conversation. You don’t want to be caught off-guard and ill-prepared to address them if they do.
- Understand the game-changers. Know who the other key leaders are and how your Advisory Board Members may influence them.
In other words, prepare for the meeting like ESPN’s analysts prepare for their pre-game show. Know the elements of the game… the strengths and weaknesses of the players, and their team’s strategies and statistics. The “pre-game” analysis will be worth your time. It will provide more direct focus for your interactions with members, will lead to a better understanding of their perspectives, and will ultimately lead to a win! Go Team!
Every year at this time, you hear all of the hoopla around one of Pennsylvania's most recognized residents - Punxsutawney Phil. I always end up laughing as my mind then shifts to Bill Murray's classic performance in the movie Ground hog's Day. We all know the premise: a guy gets to "re-do" the same day over and over and over again, but discovering little nuances and trying new things along the way, in order to get to the outcome he really desires (to get the girl).
In business, wouldn't it be great if we had that ability? Not to 'get the girl', but to be able to see every possible angle before we execute. Every strategy, every sales call, every marketing campaign, all fully vetted through numerous attempts of trial and error. Well, of course we can't really do that. Not exactly anyway. But, we do have some terrific 'guidance' tools at our disposal: personal experience and the collective experience of our customers.
When setting strategy, designing a marketing program or campaign, or virtually anything else, our own personal experience can be a directional guide - allowing us to move generally in the right direction. By leveraging the collective experience of others - our peers and most importantly, our customers, we can fine-tune our direction, exacting a path to success. The experience of the collective is akin to the trial and error in Ground hog's Day, only we didn't have to experience it ourselves. Customers will (in one form or another) tell us everything we need to know. We just need to provide a forum to enable us to listen.
Sometimes in business it feels like many companies are caught in the same loop - making similar mistakes over and over again. Progress and growth have slowed, and there can be a sense of frustration. Organizations that actively engage and listen to their customers (or collective) are breaking out of these never-ending loops and are thriving. What path is your company on? Start your journey by answering this question: "Are you actively listening or are you living in your own Ground hog's Day???"
I recently sat down with a well respected former CMO (now President), and had a great conversation about the important role Marketing plays in a B2B company. He made a very bold statement,
“Marketing is the Center of Universe.” Someone might argue that, I am biased because I hold a role in marketing, but I believe this statement to be very true. If you don’t, you should and here’s why:
Marketing is the common thread that weaves throughout all other business units in every B2B company. Marketing holds the potential to unleash predictable, profitable growth for your company. When Marketing is utilized to its fullest potential, it can be the driver for customer retention and increased sales, while at the same time creating executive alignment and focused strategic innovation.
How can Marketing do all this? Because Marketing is the
“Center of the Universe”! Author Sean Geehan discusses all of the marketing programs and initiatives driven by Marketing to achieve sustainable, predictable, profitable growth in his
national best seller,
The B2B Executive Playbook. Once you read this book, I would wager a bet, that you will believe that Marketing is the "Center of the Universe" too!
Gary Vastola, Vice President of Field Marketing & Service Support from Xerox and I participated in a Whale Hunters Expert Series call last week. The call and discussion was focused around the common challenges companies faced as they closed out 2011; flat sales, retention, and customer satisfaction issues. 
As we kick off the New Year companies want to turn the tide towards exponential growth. The quickest way to achieve exponential growth is by focusing on your most important customers at a decision maker level. That sounds so simple but so many companies become distracted trying to do that with all their existing customers. The truth is that all customers are all not worthy of that type of attention and resources. As we all know, if you don’t prioritize your efforts than the efforts get diluted and so do the results.
Once you have focused on your most important customers at a decision maker level, the next question is what do you do with them? The days of “howdy calls” are over. You remember those days, an executive comes in to visit one of your important customers and basically the executive takes them to breakfast, lunch or dinner or meets in their office to introduce themselves and talk about sports and something else that is meaningless. The executive leaves and the customer executive is thinking nice guy, but I don’t have time to waste doing that again. One way to engage your decision makers in a meaningful valuable way is through an Executive Sponsor Program (ESP). An ESP is that one on one relationship (executive to executive) that is outside of any sales transaction. When launched well, the results are undeniable.
I recently ran a poll on the LinkedIn group for CAB.org. Many Customer Advisory Board (CAB) Program Managers belong to this group, so I thought they would be a great source for posing the question,
"What is your most challenging obstacle in planning your CAB programs for 2012?"
From the three options provided, here are how the votes came in:
14% - Executive team buy-in
50% - Recruiting the right members
35% - Drafting an engaging agenda
I was not surprised by the results. After working with customer programs for over 7 years, this continues to be an area where we provide a great deal of assistance to our clients in building Recruiting Plans to help them successfully recruit their top customer executives.
If you're having difficulty recruiting the right members for your Customer Advisory Board, ask yourself these questions:
1. Have I developed the right profile for a CAB member? Be sure you're aligned with your executive sponsor and stakeholders on the criteria for the ideal CAB member. Develop a profile outlining the characteristics they have identified as "must haves" and circulate among the team.
2. Do I have a defined process for recruiting? A consistent message and approach are important when reaching out to customer executives. Be sure your recruiters have the necessary tools to be successful (talking points, a clear Charter to help communicate the benefits of membership, etc.)
3. Are the right people recruiting? Who in your organization owns the highest level relationship? This is who should be recruiting. If your target member is a senior executive, the owner of that relationship should extend the invitation; if no one owns that relationship, then a senior executive should extend the invitation.
4. Have I allowed enough time to recruit the right members? If you're trying to get C-level executives to join, their time is limited, and chances are they're already serving on several boards/councils. All the more reason to start the recruiting process early - at least 6 months prior to the meeting. If you get turned down, you'll have time to move on to the next candidate.
Watch for my next blog on Drafting an engaging agenda - the #2 challenge for CAB Program Managers.
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