How to be pre-eminent when managing your Key Clients

I'm fascinated by the art and science of strategy and customer relationship success in business and particular sales and key account management.

A year ago I came across a book called ‘Getting Everything You Can out of Everything You’ve Got’ by a world renowned business strategist named Jay Abraham. I noticed huge synergy between my own customer growth and key account philosophy and what Abraham teaches. One of his most powerful approaches is what he calls the ‘Strategy of Pre-eminence’.

His ideas have added value to the key account managers and sales leaders I’ve worked with. I want to share four big ideas from Abraham’s strategy of pre-eminence that you can use immediately in forming your client conversations, thinking about your client engagement and ultimately growing profitable and trusted client relationships.

What is the Strategy of Pre-eminence?

Most people when thinking about strategy in key account management begin with the question, “What do we want?” At the heart of pre-eminence is a different question: “How do we serve our customer at the highest level possible?”

Abraham's strategy of Pre-eminence can be defined in two forms.

First – the strategy of pre-eminence is most commonly recognised as a business strategy that is designed to optimise your business so you operate at distinct and differentiated level that is known, appreciated and valued by your clients, industry giving you superior competitive advantage.

Second definition is my own which is derived from what I saw within the principles Abraham shared. This is the mind-set that you have a moral and trusted obligation to proactively explore all available value in and outside of your knowledge, your companies knowledge to bring unique, distinct results and insight to your clients to help them achieve the most effective and profitable outcome.

The second definition is where I’ll focus these four big ideas.

Idea number 1: Become the lens of clarity for your customers

“When you truly care about your customers and clients well-being, you cannot allow that person to make a mistake, because your success depends on their success.”– Jay Abraham

Most people are unaware of what is out of focus until someone illuminates that to them. It’s only when you have clarity can you possibly take action. You have to be the lens to help your customers get to clarity. Help them focus on how they might achieve the results important to them and what they should avoid. It’s important that your client defines their biggest challenge, frustration and opportunity as something you can illuminate together.

We’ve all experienced those moments where we’ve asked our customers, “What would success look like?” You hear vague ideas of what they really want.

As much as I like that question the skill of helping your customers get to clarity requires a greater level of asking questions.

An alternative to that question could be “What would your business look like if it were operating the way you really wanted it to?” The more specific you can be the better the answers you get that help you to help your clients better.

Your customers will buy more from those who help them create the solutions to what they need rather than present them with a solution.

In all circumstances when clarity is used intentionally as a strategy it:

Creates understanding - You must nurture the ability to put into words what your clients most desire. Knowing how to build on that is a necessary component to driving change that is customer centred.

Raises Certainty – Your ability and willingness to educate your customers and clients and show them the path as to what their real options are is critical. Once understanding is gained the path to certainty can only take place once they are fully convinced that what they now understand can be achieved.

Deepens Trust – Never put your interests ahead of your customers. Refuse to sell more or less of what they need. Always provide what is in the best interests of your customers. Why? Without trust, people will not take action. People will take action with people they believe. Buyers will buy on value, authoritative leadership and trust.

Your customers want someone who they believe can lead them to great results, outcomes, joy, less pain, more profitability and more productivity. A true customer leader knows what’s possible and often times the customer doesn’t.

Idea number 2: Uncover the unspoken voice of the customer

It’s the unseen internal voice of risk that needs to be addressed before any real committed action can take place.

We tend to resist change and systems where we don’t have control. Great leaders and key account managers provide their customers with a viable alternative and perspective that gives the customer control and power.

Your clients can and will carry bad experiences of other suppliers into your relationship. This can and will be reinforced through bad service, below par deliver, good, but not great, products or poor business practice.

When you’re faced with your customers Abraham has a great statement you can use to tap into the unseen silent voice, concerns and desires of your customer. An example of this is given by Abraham below:

“I understand your frustration, and I think I can help. Here’s what I perceive you really want, and I’d like you to tell me first if that’s right or wrong. Once you and I agree that we both clearly and fully agree on your ultimate goals and dreams and wishes, then we can move forward with a plan to make them come true. And I think I can do that for you”

It all starts with taking the customers point of view.

Idea number 3: Master the power of authentic and influential communication

Behind every tangible outcome is a strong emotional reward that you have to recognise and acknowledge from your clients.

Telling people what to do without the why is a lazy way to communicate. It's also the least persuasive and rarely gets internal commitment or loyalty to act.

Abraham offers some helpful questions to enable us to think about influential communication. Always ask; “Who are we communicating with?”, “What problems are we going to help them deal with?”, “How can we have the most positive impact on this person we are communicating with?”

Behind every tangible outcome is a strong emotional reward that you have to recognise and acknowledge from your clients. Your clients have to recognise your advice as a solution to a problem they feel emotionally as well as rationally. Neuroscience supports the process of how we make decisions and why we’re more likely to take action.

There has to be a stronger emotional pull before the rational push takes place.

You know this and you’ve seen it in your career. People will avoid making decisions because they don’t want to feel foolish. You don’t want your customers to feel foolish for what they’re currently doing or what you’re asking them to do. You want to show how your product, your service, your partnership, doing business with you will make people feel good about themselves.

Abraham gives us six questions to ask:

1.     If I were on the receiving end, why would I want this?

2.     Why would I want to take advantage of this offer at this particular time?

3.     What’s in it for me?

4.     How will this product/service make me feel better about myself, my family, my business, my future, my role, my life?

5.     Why is this better than doing what I’m doing or doing nothing at all?

6.     So what? Your promotion, your selling posture, your proposition has to answer a question that’s already on a customer’s mind. It has to provide a solution or result that is big enough, tangible enough and desirable enough that it will compel them to want to take action.

Idea number 4: Love your customers more than your product

“Most people fall in love with their product instead of their prospect” – Jay Abraham

Most people think “what do I have to say to get people to buy?” Instead a helpful and resourceful alternative could be “What do I have to give?” “What benefit do I have to offer?” The message you want to communicate with every customer is ‘you matter’ and your well-being is important to me.

To accomplish this, you have to believe your purpose is to contribute great value, not to take their money. In order to give your clients a greater outcome or result requires you to restrict yourself and your interests and focus on your customer.

What next and how to start with pre-eminence?

Your clients are searching for ways to make better decisions. They want ways to solve their problems today. Most people don’t want to be average or have an average result. People will relate to you when you respect them, empathise with them and genuinely tell them they don’t have to be average. A master at pre-eminence always wants to have ideas to leave their customers better off than when they started.

In all your efforts it’s still critical that your clients come to their own conclusions. Not only do you get them to buy into your product and service, but they will also buy into the end result they believe is achievable. When they draw the conclusion that “this really will make their life easier, or richer, or I’ll be more influential in my community or more powerful in my business” then they have begun to embrace the end result. They’ll have a much higher likelihood of actually reaching it.

Tips to implement these pre-eminent ideas:

• Reduce the height of the hurdles. Lower the hurdles they have to jump over, e.g. be incremental. Take the big goals or commitments needed and break them into smaller weekly commitments that are easier to implement and offer few barriers practically, relationally and emotionally for your clients.
• Talk about frustrations or desires they really feel
• People worry about whether they stand out, whether they’re unique, whether people will care. Let them know you care.
• Genuinely help them out – give your customers a chance to buy more often. Don’t make them buy less than they want or need if you know it will really help them achieve what they want.
• Most concepts are too difficult to take in on the first communication no matter how clear you believe your message is. Instead, give them an example of how things work that relates directly to their business.
• If in the past your business has been “subject” focused, how can you make it “individual” focused?
• Write, think and talk with a “them” focus rather than a “me” focus:

-start each sentence with the word “you” rather than the word “I” or “me”

-talk about the end result in feelings, and emotional terms; what your product will bring, not how it will work.

• Ask your customers what they want
• Listen to them!

Strategy of pre-eminence really taps into the cycle of key account management communication which I’ll be writing on shortly. If you’re a key account manager, account manager, sales leader or consultant get connected to my mailing list for more key account growth insights at www.jermaineedwards.com

Jermaine Edwards

Key Client Growth and Customer Relationship Specialist