Major Client Selling

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To succeed in selling to large customers, you need to understand the concept of “Your Customer’s Customer”, that is the business unit in your customer that receives the positive impact from using your product/service. Many times the customer’s customer is actually a separate company. For example, a manufacturer of aircraft electronics whose distinctive value was reduced weight had no success selling that distinctive value to the aircraft manufacturers (Boeing, Airbus, etc.).

Our client, a supplier of very expensive high technology solutions to industry and government customers was undergoing a dramatic sales slump. The rapid pace of change in their high technology market had allowed new competitors to provide much lower priced solutions.

Of course, identifying your actual customer is critical to your success. Many companies, particularly those who use resellers and OEM's, make the mistake of assuming that the next stage in the distribution chain is their only customer and miss the opportunity of expanding their sales campaign to their customers' customer. For example, a manufacturer of advanced aircraft components, whose major product differential is reduced component weight, met limited success in selling their products to aircraft manufacturers.

A critical requirement in today’s highly competitive markets is a clear understanding of your customer’s perception of value. Understanding in depth the value your product brings to your customer will increase your success rate in selling high value products.

Even in customer situations where your customer uses your product internally, many organizations fool themselves into thinking that their normal contact (in purchasing, information services, legal, etc.) is the real customer. In most situations, the real customer is actually another department—production, design, distribution, etc.—and you must understand the effect of your product on the welfare of that department.

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