Here's how you can balance innovation and customer relationships in technical sales.

Balancing innovation and customer relationships in technical sales involves listening to client needs while educating them on new solutions. Foster trust by demonstrating value and reliability. Align product development with customer feedback and market demand. Communicate clearly and regularly, ensuring customers feel heard and valued.

Inovar gera desconforto, é importante estar preparado par gerenciar estes conflitos. Uma parte muito importante da inova??o é o ensino, ensinar nosso cliente ou futuro cliente, exibir pontos que est?o escondidos entre suas perspectivas trazem credibilidade e fazem parte da descoberta, entrevistar e apenas descobrir o que ele quer n?o nos torna relevantes, este processo gera uma constru??o de rela??o de confian?a, nem todos tem coragem de contrariar, propor novas formas e ensinar alguém que está comprando algo e tem poder de decis?o.

To understand your customer needs, is crucial and fundamental for balancing innovation and keeping strong relationship with your customers. To achieve that, the simplest way is to communicate, listen to their needs, propose solutions and most important make them TRUST you!

Curate your demo flow as per clients needs, so you need to spend lot of time in Discovery phase. The best demo flow that works for me through experience is this: A. Discovery: Ask open ended questions to know more about client's problems and requirements. This allows you to quickly plan the solutions which should be focused upon. (Spend a lot of time here) B. Introduction: Take a couple of minutes to showcase the company profile, past clientele and work to build credibility. C. Demonstration: Showcase your solutions and offerings that could add value and solve client's problems. D. Queries: Clarify all the doubts which clients will have. E. Closing: Take a call to action for the next steps.

Na minha experiência com mais de 17 anos na área, vejo o quanto tudo isso faz total sentido e é o caminho para uma boa execu??o inicial da venda. Ter uma escuta ativa, entender as dores do cliente é o ponto que vai trazer estratégia na condu??o comercial. Alinhar o entendimento com esse cliente e sua expectativa demonstra a conex?o de ambos os lados e favorecendo em toda jornada e decis?o de compra.

Once you understand the needs, put across your value proposition. 1. Most of the time you lose the deal because what you show in the demo doesn't meet the client's requirements, even though you exactly have what they need. 2. Once you understand client requirements after the discovery stage, customize and show the content which will add value to the needs of the situation. 3. Focus on the relevant and valuable solutions, offerings and benefits rather than vague demos. 4. Prove your value offerings by showing examples from past work case studies from similar clientele profiles. 5. Make sure your demo content is engaging, curated to this particular client's needs. 6. Use the tonality, language and terminologies from related industries.

Make it real. Take your proposition from the abstract and turn it into an incremental metric that your prospects really care about - revenue, conversion rate or increased productivity. Incremental is the important part of this. Purchasing psychology and operational budgeting make it much more likely to secure budget based on an increase of something. e.g. If I'm a business unit leader at your prospect I'm more inclined and likely to get business case signed off for a revenue increase, as opposed to something that saves time.

- Keep a checklist of all the needs / pain points / potential interactions of your solution and identify those who seemed more painful or more important because your customer talked several times about them. You want to make sure you will address them. - Describe how the life of your customer will be directly improved. - Back your benefits with number as much as possible. - Work with technical experts who know your competitors, or solution integrators who will help you articulate how your solution is more adapted to your customer's need on the day to day.

Fostering collaboration between your team and customers is key to balancing innovation and strong relationships in technical sales. Engage clients by seeking their feedback and involving them in the development process. For instance, co-creating beta test groups for new products can provide invaluable insights and make customers feel valued. This partnership approach not only drives innovation but also builds trust and loyalty. Lessons learned from collaborative efforts, such as adjusting features based on user input, ensure that your innovations meet real customer needs. By making customers feel integral to the journey, you create a receptive environment for new ideas and technologies.

Collaborating with your customers can be key to a successful innovative product launch. You can involve your customers in developing FAQs, case studies, and even product pricing & packaging. Making sure it’s what they want & need, it ‘works’, and is affordable can help you hit the ground running in year 1. Doing all of this also creates a buzz in the market if you work with customers who have influence in their field, and give your product credibility before it’s even available for purchase.

Two suggestions for this : workshops and engage customer stakeholders to generate consensus. Consider having workshops with your customer to discuss their needs and how your solutions would fit them. For this, prepare and review the main themes they would like to discuss. After each workshop, suggest your main contact to discuss how the meeting went and write down their remarks, then use it for the next one to co-create the final solution. Think and ask about all the people having an impact. Is the Chief Data Officer impacted by your solution? Is there a contractor who is a valued technical expert? Are there key users of the solution? Embark them in the process for the co-creation to take everyone into account.

Every new innovative product launch should include training, not just for the sales team but also for your technical support and customer service teams. If working with distributors, train your distributors too! Include basic product info, FAQs, pricing strategy, technical data sheets/case studies and product positioning in the market. If your entire team approaches the launch with full confidence you’re more likely to succeed

-Embrace Technology: Use the latest sales tools and platforms. -Stay Curious: Continuously seek out new strategies and techniques. -Adapt Quickly: Be ready to pivot and adapt to changes.

Thorough training on new innovations is crucial for balancing technical advancements with strong customer relationships. Ensure your sales team comprehends both the technical details and customer benefits of new products. For example, role-playing scenarios can help them practice addressing common concerns and showcasing advantages. Regular workshops and hands-on sessions ensure they stay updated. A well-trained team can confidently demonstrate products, answer questions, and alleviate customer fears, fostering trust and loyalty. This commitment to training shows dedication to quality and service, enhancing customer confidence and ensuring successful adoption of new innovations.

Actively monitoring customer feedback after introducing innovations is essential for balancing technological progress with strong customer relationships. Implement channels like surveys, feedback forms, and social media monitoring to gather insights. For instance, if feedback highlights issues with a new feature, prompt adjustments can be made to enhance user experience. This responsiveness not only improves your products but also shows customers that their opinions matter, fostering trust and loyalty. Encouraging ongoing dialogue through regular check-ins and updates ensures customers feel heard and valued, reinforcing a positive relationship while driving continual improvement and innovation.

During the feedback, try to probe for numbers that could back up the value presentation for other customers, what they feel valuable, might prove valuable for others !

1. You need to create a strategy of your own, who are your prospects, what are their problems, how will you add value while solving those problems. 2. Research your prospects on all the possible channels, start connecting with people from respective organizations on LinkedIn, industry events, groups. 3. Look for problems and challenges they are facing and what kind of value added solutions you may provide and create a hook based on that. 4. If possible find common interests among these people, use them along with a hook which becomes the ice breaker to start a conversation on a good note with strangers. 5. Be empathetic and as humanly as possible than being a mechanical robot.

A couple of related reads/listens on innovation and how to apply this way of thinking in the context of sales: "The Innovator’s Dilemma" by Clayton M. Christensen Podcast: "The Sales Hacker Podcast"