In today's fast-paced business environment, success often depends on collaboration between different teams within an organization. One of the key partnerships that can make a significant impact on a company's performance is the relationship between #Sales and Client Success Management (#CSM).
Sales is responsible for acquiring new customers and generating revenue, while CSM is responsible for retaining customers and ensuring their success with the company's products or services. Despite the different goals and responsibilities, both teams play a crucial role in driving the success of a business. This is why it is important for Sales and CSM to work together in 2023, where fiscal tightening is forcing organizations to make tough choices.
By combining the expertise of both teams, companies can achieve a more comprehensive view of the customer's journey and make informed decisions that benefit both the customer and the business. Sales can provide valuable insights into the customer's initial needs and preferences, while CSM can offer a deeper understanding of the customer's ongoing experience and provide feedback for continuous improvement.
In addition, Sales and CSM can collaborate to ensure a seamless handoff of the customer from Sales to CSM. This ensures that the customer's needs are met and that the customer has a positive experience with the company from start to finish. By working together, Sales and CSM can improve customer satisfaction and reduce churn, ultimately leading to increased revenue and growth for the business.
Moreover, by aligning the goals of both teams, companies can create a more efficient and effective sales process. Sales can focus on acquiring the right customers, while CSM can focus on ensuring their success and creating opportunities for upsell and cross-sell. This can lead to a more streamlined sales process and a higher return on investment.
As a #salesperson, it is important to have a thorough understanding of the client's metrics and their business problems in order to offer effective solutions. This understanding can be achieved by performing a diagnostic analysis of the client's business. Here is a breakdown of the key activities involved in this process:
- Learn the client's metrics: It is important for a salesperson to understand the metrics that the client uses to measure their business performance. This includes metrics such as revenue, profit, customer satisfaction, and more. By understanding these metrics, the salesperson can identify areas where the client may need improvement and offer solutions that align with their goals.
- Identify leading indicators: Leading indicators are metrics that provide early signals of future performance. In the context of the client's business, these indicators can help identify areas where problems are likely to arise in the future. By identifying these leading indicators, the salesperson can offer proactive solutions that prevent problems from occurring.
- Identify lagging indicators: Lagging indicators are metrics that reflect the outcomes of past actions. They provide a retrospective view of the client's business performance. By identifying these lagging indicators, the salesperson can help the client understand their strengths and weaknesses and offer solutions that address the root causes of any problems.
- Identify day-to-day problems (that are worth solving): It is important for the salesperson to understand the day-to-day problems that the client faces in their business. This includes issues such as low productivity, high employee turnover, and customer complaints. By identifying these problems, the salesperson can offer solutions that improve the client's overall business performance.
- Identify root causes: In order to effectively address problems, it is important to understand their root causes. This includes identifying problems that the client may not be aware of and showing them the impact of not addressing these root causes.
- Address current unknowns: The salesperson should also identify things that the client may not know about, but that currently impact their business. This includes changes in market trends, technological advancements, and regulatory changes. By addressing these unknowns, the salesperson can help the client stay ahead of the competition and maintain their competitive advantage.
- Address future unknowns: In addition to addressing current unknowns, the salesperson should also identify things that the client may not know about, but that will impact their business in the future. This includes changes in customer behavior, new competitors entering the market, and emerging technologies. By addressing these future unknowns, the salesperson can help the client prepare for the future and remain competitive.
- Identify current events: The salesperson should also be aware of current events that the client may not know about, but that do affect their business. This includes economic shifts, political changes, and natural disasters. By identifying these events, the salesperson can help the client prepare for the impact and make necessary adjustments to their business.
- Identify future events: Finally, the salesperson should also be aware of future events that will happen and will affect the client's business. This includes upcoming market changes, technological innovations, and changes in consumer behavior. By identifying these future events, the salesperson can help the client prepare and remain ahead of the curve.
On the other hand, a #ClientSuccessManager (CSM) takes a more proactive and ongoing approach to ensuring the success of the client's business. While the salesperson focuses on securing the initial sale, the CSM focuses on ensuring that the client continues to realize value from the solution over time. Here is how the role of a CSM differs from a salesperson:
- Focus on ongoing success: While the salesperson's role is to secure the initial sale, the CSM's role is to ensure the ongoing success of the client's business by regularly monitoring their metrics and helping them overcome any challenges they may face. The CSM works closely with the client to understand their goals and objectives and develops a plan to help them achieve them.
- Proactive problem solving: The CSM proactively identifies and addresses any potential issues that may arise and works with the client to find solutions to these problems. This proactive approach helps the client achieve their goals and prevents problems from escalating into bigger issues.
- Regular check-ins and communication: The CSM maintains regular communication with the client and performs regular check-ins to monitor the client's progress and identify areas for improvement. This ongoing communication and collaboration helps the client stay on track and achieve their goals.
- Continuous improvement: The CSM works with the client to continuously improve their business performance by identifying new opportunities and making recommendations for improvement. This continuous improvement approach helps the client stay ahead of the competition and remain successful over the long-term.
- Customized approach: The CSM takes a customized approach to each client, tailoring their approach based on the client's unique needs and challenges. This personalized approach helps the client receive the support and solutions they need to succeed.
In conclusion, the partnership between Sales and CSM is critical for the success of a business in 2023 and beyond. By working together, both teams can drive better customer outcomes, improve customer satisfaction, and drive revenue growth. It is time for companies to embrace this partnership and unlock the full potential of their sales and customer success efforts.
