Customers have high expectations of inside salespeople. Here are seven valuable principles to help distributors achieve long-lasting customer relationships.

by Peg Fisher

What do customers expect of inside sales? Knowing the answer to this question is important to meeting customer expectations and building lasting relationships.

Research among buyers finds they have the following expectations of inside sales personnel:

1) Product and applications knowledge. They want inside sellers to answer questions without transferring them to another person or calling back later with an answer.

2) Know the customer. Customers expect inside salespeople to ask questions to learn the customer's needs and interests, problems they've experienced, and types of customers they serve, so inside sales can help customers reach good buying decisions.

3) Provide accurate pricing, inventory and delivery information the customer can depend on.

4) Keep customers informed about new products, special promotions, and company policies that affect the business relationship.

5) Provide timely follow-up to customer questions, timely solutions to problems, and timely complaint-handling to ensure customer satisfaction.

6) Demonstrate a service attitude that proves inside sellers value the customer's business.

7) Possess a sales mentality to help match the right products and the right services to customer needs.

Why are there so many customer expectations of inside sales? Because inside sales is the primary day-to-day customer interface with the company. By far, the majority of customer contacts are with the inside sales organization. From the customer's perspective, inside sales is the firing line where job performance proves the company's commitment to service excellence.

The actual tasks performed by an inside salesperson vary widely from one company to the next. Job responsibilities depend upon industry experience, product knowledge, and company size. The smaller the firm, the greater the tendency for inside sales to wear several hats. The larger the company, the greater the potential for specialization where inside sales handle inbound calls and follow-up, and other personnel handle purchasing, mailings, quotes, or provide technical support.

With that in mind, here are seven principles that every distributor inside salesperson should keep in mind

Principle No. 1: Sweat the small stuff.

The problem with customers is they are just like us! They like dealing with people who sound like they are smiling, who enjoy their jobs, and who make customers want to deal with them.

The perfectly processed and delivered order experience can be marred by a less-than-enthusiastic attitude. Though inside sales handles many calls each day, every call should demonstrate an energetic and positive attitude.

Often, customers say, "They do a good job handling orders, but they make me feel like I've just interrupted something important or that I'm asking for the impossible whenever I call."

Don't underestimate the power of your tone of voice on the telephone. Like it or not, we judge others and customers judge us by how we sound. Do you sound harried, bored, bothered or too busy to care? Or does your voice project an attitude that makes customers want to talk with you?

Principle No. 2: Quality products and service begin with quality thinking.

Customer service consists of a series of moments of truth. Every person in the organization (even those you may not think of as customer service personnel) has the ability to make a positive impact on customer relations. From the way the telephone is answered, your use of voice mail, error-free orders, accurate billings, realistic promises made and kept, to the integrity of the information you provide, all are moments of truth that affect sales relationships.

As the customer's primary contact, inside salespeople help customers do business with your company, solve problems and coordinate with other people and departments.

"What's the reason for the price difference between this order and my last one?"

"Who should I talk with about a billing problem?"

"How should I handle this return?"

"Do you have a catalog you can mail me?"

"Can you send me a sample of that?"

"Can I get freight paid on that order?"

Many distributors today have voice-mail systems. Some inside salespeople find it easy to off-load a customer's request to someone else's voice mailbox, never to learn if the request was handled. Though you might not personally handle every request, make a note to check if someone received and followed through on the customer's message. The next time the customer calls, ask, "Did you get that catalog you asked for? Has your return been processed to your satisfaction?" Better yet, schedule a follow-up call to prove you care about and deserve the customer's business. Quality thinking means focusing on the customer's needs and making sure those needs are met.

Principle No. 3: When we take care of customers, we take care of ourselves.

You have probably heard of the KISS principle: keep it simple, stupid. As funny as it may sound, it is good business practice. When customers find it easy to do business with you, they keep coming back for more.

Consider why you select your suppliers. Why do you go to one bank vs. another? Why do you have your car serviced by one dealer instead of at another closer to you? Why do you prefer a certain restaurant? Why do you select a particular dentist or doctor, or have a favorite retailer? Chances are, your selection criteria parallel that of your customers.

You probably like the people, or know you can depend on their thorough service. Or, they recognize you and remember your name and make you feel important. Maybe it's because you consider them to be professionals who know their business, understand your needs, and take care of you.

There is no secret to what keeps customers coming back for more.

Consider what it takes to gain a new customer. Prospecting for new accounts is the most costly of all selling tasks, yet new business is the lifeblood of companies. Distributors must invest time in finding new customers, getting acquainted with their needs, selling them on the benefits of doing business with your company vs. a competitor, and eventually getting that first order. By the time the first order arrives, a company's investment of time and related costs typically means there is no profit in the sale. It can take several orders just to break even. 

(P.S. there's a converse to principle No. 3 that goes like this: If we don't take care of the customer, someone else will.)

Principle No. 4: Do it right the first time.

What does an order-taking error cost your company? How about the cost of a returned-goods authorization because the customer got the wrong product? What does an order-pricing error cost? What is the real opportunity cost of a lost customer due to poor customer service?

Each time distributors handle an order more than once, handling costs increase through what is called cost redundancy (doing the same task over again, only this time doing it right). An error means someone must correct and re-enter the order, issue a credit, make another delivery, return the wrong product, etc. It inconviences you and your customer.

Quality errors such as these can result in the ultimate loss to the company: a lost account. The real loss is not just the value of the order in question. It is the life-long value the customer represents to the company.

Often, quality errors that cause accounts to become inactive go unnoticed for some time. No one realizes the customer is gone and no one works to get the customer back. About five percent of dissatisfied customers actually complain. You hear nothing from the silent majority, but others do. On average, the dissatisfied customer tells up to 20 others about a negative experience with your firm. In fact, negative word-of-mouth is more influential than advertising.

Principle No. 5: Always give customers more
than they expect.

What is the difference between your company and your competition? When asked that question, some inside salespeople answer, "We're about the same. We all have about the same products. Sometimes we have something in stock the competition doesn't, so that's one difference I can think of."

Every distributor needs an UMP!  An UMP is a unique marketing proposition that sets your company apart from the competition.

Giving the customer more than expected is an UMP.

Customers buy expectations when they do business with you, not products they can purchase from any number of sources. They buy the expectation of getting the right products, shipped to the right place, at the right time, as ordered.

They buy the expectation of dealing with someone who understands their needs and can match products and services to meet them. They buy the expectation that your products and product knowledge will help them make good buying decisions. They buy the expectation that doing business with you will somehow benefit them and help them achieve their purchasing objectives. They buy the expectation that doing business with you will make their jobs easier.

Inside salespeople are in a position to demonstrate your company's UMP of exceeding customer expectations.

Giving customers more than they expect does not mean giving away the store. Techniques inside sales can use include:

1) View every call as a sales opportunity and use suggestive selling techniques.

For example, by recommending common "go with" items when taking orders, you help customers recall, or at least consider, other items they may need. This also eliminates the need for the customer to call back to place another order, and reduces additional paperwork for the customer and for you.

By explaining appropriate product substitutes available when a customer requests a product that is out of stock (or a brand you don't carry), you save customers the time it would take to shop around for another supplier. And, you save the company a potential lost order.

By using up-selling techniques and explaining the features and benefits of higher-priced products that do a better job of meeting customer needs, you help customers consider new ways to handle their jobs or meet the needs of their customers.

2) Make follow-up calls that prove you care about the customer and value the customer's business.

Remember, when you make follow-up calls, the customer may not place an order with you just because you called. But, when you plan your calls and they're appropriate to the customer being called, they prove you're keeping track of the customer's business, you are looking out for products or services that address the customer's needs, and that you value the business relationship.

Reasons for making calls to customers rather than waiting for them to call you include:

To analyze prior orders to suggest add-on items; to recommend better ways of buying product to achieve purchasing efficiencies, (such as increased order quantities to achieve lower per-unit costs).

To follow-up on literature to ensure it was received, or to review the content and answer questions about products or services offered.

To inform customers about the status of a back-order. Such calls keep customers informed of when to expect receipt of a shipment.

To follow up on verbal and written quotes. Use follow-up calls to  answer any questions about the quote, explain the features and benefits of products specified, handle objections, and request the order.

To introduce existing or new services available from your company, or to explain new policies or procedures that impact the business relationship

To explain to a customer when your truck will be in the customer's area in case they want to add items to an order already scheduled for delivery.

To check on the customer's satisfaction, to ensure problems were solved, and complaints handled to the customer's satisfaction, to prove you value the customer's business.

Principle No. 6: Every job is a self-portrait of who did it.

Whether taking an order, preparing a quote, sending a sample, handling a complaint, or coordinating with other internal customers (did you know others inside your company are your internal customers?), respecting the other person's time creates a professional self-portrait.

There is no question that customers rely on inside sales. The inside sales role is critical to meeting customer expectations, achieving service excellence, and building lasting relationships with customers.

When you focus on the customer and treat every task as the self-portrait it represents, you prove your commitment to Principle No. 7: Perfection is the goal. Excellence is only tolerated.

Peg Fisher is president of Peg Fisher & Associates Inc.
(PF & A), a sales, marketing, and customer service consulting firm and trainer to supply channel companies. Reach her at
, or via e-mail at . Visit her Web site at www.pegfisher.com.

back to top                                          back to online exclusives