Do - Structured account development

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Introduction DO

It is very important that you can explain your account plan, its goals and its value to your customer and to your account team. Everyone must understand the plan and have a clear understanding of their role as well as commit to assigned tasks and responsibilities.

"Trust comes on foot and goes on horseback" is a well-known Dutch proverb. The proverb warns that people should be careful in their actions and decisions because restoring trust can be much more difficult than building it.

So trust is one of the most determining factors in your success as an account manager. So it is important to understand how to develop and maintain trust during customer conversations.

The trust equation as a foundation

In the book "Trust-based Selling," Charles H. Green describes how to create trust between buyer and seller. The basis used is the Trust Equation or the trust formula. It consists of four variables: credibility, reliability, intimacy and self-centeredness. All these factors together form the trust formula. It looks like this:

C = Credibilty

You are credible when customers and other stakeholders feel they can believe what you say. In doing so, as an account manager, it is important not only to demonstrate your knowledge, but also your honesty. Don't know something? Then admit it instead of bluffing. In this way, you demonstrate that you always tell the truth and that you are willing to learn.

The trust equation as a foundation

R = Reliability

Your reliability shows in your actions. Anyone who cancels an appointment, doesn't show up or misses a deadline at the last minute is planting a seed of distrust. If you make it a habit, people will assume that is your normal behavior. Then they will eventually stop counting on you to fulfill your commitments.

I = Intimacy

Intimacy refers to how safe customers and stakeholders feel in your presence. Do you score high on intimacy? Then a business associate dares to entrust sensitive information to you, knowing that you are not going to share it with others just like that.

S = Self-orientation

Are you primarily concerned with yourself or are you more likely to be at the service of others? It shows in how you divide your attention. Does your conversation partner get your full attention, or do you look at your phone the whole time during a meeting? Do you do the talking or do you involve others?

Developing trust during customer conversations

Developing trust is a gradual process that requires time, consistency and careful communication. Below are the steps we can use to develop trust during client conversations:

Step 1: Engage

Engage the client in an open discussion about issues important to the client. This is where you demonstrate the challenger attitude as an account manager. Take the lead in the conversation by asking relevant questions and steering the conversation toward the issues that are most important to you and the client. By challenging, you increase your credibility from the trust formula. After all, you have prepared for the topic of discussion and the questions you want to ask.

There are two types of questions: closed and open-ended. Closed questions are questions that can usually be answered with "yes" or "no," or with a short answer. They are useful for obtaining specific information, confirming facts or directing a conversation toward a specific topic.

Examples of closed questions are:

"Do you have experience with product X?"

"Is your company located in city Y?"

"Are you satisfied with the current supplier?"

Open-ended questions are questions that cannot be answered with a simple "yes" or "no." Open-ended questions invite your interviewer to answer at length and offer more in-depth information. With open questions, you challenge you challenge the customer, prompt the customer to think. Examples of open-ended questions are:

"What are you proud of?"

"What do you lie awake about?"

"When does that happen?"

Step 2: Listen

By listening, you earn the right to offer solutions. Listen to what is important and real to the client. Give the client space to share thoughts, needs and viewpoints without interruption. Active listening lowers your self-centeredness. Your interlocutor and their story are the focus. Active listening is a skill where you not only hear what the other person is saying, but also really try to understand what your conversation partner means and show your commitment. Some aspects that can improve active listening are:

Nonverbal communication: observe facial expressions, gestures and tone of voice to understand what is behind the words.

Verbal communication: ask good questions and have your interlocutor answer them. Ask deeper questions if something is not quite clear or if you want to understand more about a situation

Paraphrasing: repeat in your own words what the customer has said to confirm that you understood it

Keep focus: Let the client express their thoughts without interruptions.

Step 3: Frame

Frame the true essence of the problem through problem statements or hypotheses. Take personal risks to further explore sensitive issues or express a point of view. By framing, you decrease self-centeredness and increase intimacy.

Step 4: Visualize

Together with the customer, create an image about the desired alternative reality. What (emotional) value does this reality have for the customer? Clarify the benefits - indicate what is at stake if no action is taken.

Step 5: Committ

Commit to a clear, actionable next step that will help achieve the new desired situation. This step requires commitment and movement from both parties.

An overview of the trust creation process

Engage: "I hear that X may be a problem for you; is that true?"

Listen: "Gee, that's interesting; tell me more; what's behind that?"

Frame: "It sounds like you have a case of Y here."

Visualize: "What will things look like in three years if we solve this?"

Commit: "What if we did Z?"

The order in which these steps appear in a conversation has as much impact as the steps themselves.

That is, you could do a great job of identifying the issue or taking action, but if you do it before you've listened, the trust process fails or stalls.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

"Sales is not about selling anymore, but about building trust and educating"

-Siva Devaki

Wrap Up

It is very important that you can explain your account plan, its goals and its value to your client and to your account team. Everyone must understand the plan and have a clear understanding of their role and commitment to assigned tasks and responsibilities.