People in sales are especially prone to believe that the better they get, the more they know, the better quality they offer, the better services they provide, the better their sales and customer loyalty will be.
Many examples prove that this is simply not true.
A brilliant accountant may know all of the laws, help write textbook, teach other professionals, be quoted in journals and on radio talk shows, but if he or she can't demonstrate serious tax savings to you, then you will fire them.
An investment advisor may have his or her own television program, be quoted daily in the money magazines and have a tremendous portfolio of impressive clients, but if this advisor doesn't make money for you, you will fire the advisor.
The doctor may be a graduate of the finest school, interned at the best hospital, be on the board of a half dozen organizations and be your brother-in-law but if he can't cure your tennis elbow, he is fired.
A brilliant DSR may know all of his or her products, build profitable customer menus, help chefs develop new recipes, teach waitresses how to add items on to a ticket, demonstrate how to eliminate waste and cut theft, but if he or she can't document results, price will likely remain a principle buying issue.
Results count!
The most important criteria for choosing a professional are results! Beyond relationship, beyond "quality" and price concerns... RESULTS are the deciding criteria.
In the real hyper competitive world of food service, most customers don't care what or who you know, or how long they may have known you, nearly as much as they are interested in, how you can answer the age old question, "what you can do for me?"
Relationship, quality products, knowledge of the business and fair pricing will always be important, but the bottom-line is that your customers will want to see is "measurable results."
And if you are not demonstrating those "measurable results", someone else will be and you can soon be outside looking in, asking if you can be a backup supplier or drop by with a sample and a price occasionally.
That's no way to be treated by a customer but the fact is, unless you are doing more than giving a fair price on quality products, the customer reasonably calculates that you deserve nothing better. Besides the perception is everybody has "fair" prices and "quality" products.
The "Best" is a Myth.
The fact is, your customer is not searching for the best product or the best distributor or even the best price. All of these things are assumed to be just "sales claims."
Advertising legend David Ogilvy once asked, "How long will you search for the best when someone good is readily available?" (Not long.) "How often do you even know the best when you find it?" (Not often.) "How do you respond when someone claims to be the "best?" (Doubtful, we have heard this before.)
Providing "Measurable Results"
You will have to be in a position to prove you can provide measurable results or the prospect will assume you are making empty claims, just like all the rest of the "me too" suppliers on the street.
Those "measurable results" should focus in one of two areas, how dealing with you can increase customer sales or profits or how you can reduce expenses.
5 Steps to Measurable Results
First, understand the customer's business issues. How does the customer make money or loose money? Where are the profits and what margins are expected. How do they survive? How do they grow and succeed?
Second, know what issues are most important to the customer. Good probing skills will help the DSR discover where the customer's greatest concerns are and what he or she expects or wants most.
Third, benchmark the results you are getting for your present customers and know why your "produce program is decreasing labor cost by 9%." Identify the impact you are currently making on the customer's business. Are you increasing sales on the children's menu? If so, by how much? Are your portion control meats cutting labor costs? If so, by how much?
Fourth, measure customer results as you make improvements. Know what results they were getting when you started and then show them the improvement in black and white. That's the measurable part.
Fifth, document results and gain customer acknowledgment that the results are legitimate and correct. All of the results you provide are worth nothing if the customer does not recognize the value you are adding. We recommend a quarterly review to insure that you are communicating your measurable results on a regular basis.
The Profit Review
My old friend Dr. Joe, the dentist, told me about a patient who asked him if she should floss all of her teeth. His best medical advice was, "No. Just the ones you want to keep."
Should you do all of this work for all of your customers? No! Just the ones you want to keep. The sad fact is some customers are not worth the effort. (Some day I'll share with you my theory on firing customers.)
In the Profit Review, the DSR arranges a special meeting with the customer to "go over the numbers." The "numbers" may include purchases over the last quarter, changes and trends etc.
The key numbers will be "profitability numbers." Here the DSR goes over the profitability of each idea he or she has developed in the last quarter.
"Mr. Customer, based on our sales numbers the coffee & tea program we put in place last quarter is still netting you an increase of over $1,100 month so annually that will be an increase of $13,200."
"As you can see the chicken finger basket we added to the children's menu is still increasing sales over $425.00 per month without affecting the other sales so the net effect will be $5,100 this year.
During the Profit Review, the DSR would go through each line item, and at the conclusion, total up the annual measurable results, get agreement that the numbers are right and ask "What areas of the menu should we be working on next?"
Every time a competitor comes in with a buffet ham that is fifteen cents a pound cheaper than mine, I want the customer to think, "Lets see, Phillips brought me $34,000 worth of "results" year to date. Do I want to jeopardize that relationship for $20.00 worth of ham?"
When you can provide "Measurable Results," the customer will provide sales and loyalty.
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