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Presenting a Unified Voice to Your Global Customers
Monday, November 28, 2011 | By: Bernard Quancard
Let’s imagine a supplier that has a B2B product. Although the company sells globally, each geography sells a little differently. In this example, the European office sells value around the product, emphasizing specific features, and productivity benefits. However, the North American office, because it sells mainly to dealers, sells predominantly on price.
Now, add a strategic customer that is pushing towards globalizing its suppliers. Instead of finding a supplier that is coherent and seamless at the regional level, the customer is faced with discrepancies in price, support and sales strategy. The supplier has no unified voice, and this is not a sustainable business practice.
I see this problem far too often in many companies dealing with global customers.
The solution lies with the strategic account management home office and the global account manager for that customer. Together, they must introduce a coherent sales policy across the world.
In the case above, should the SAM home office and GAM working directly with the company decide to align around price, they must design a global pricing system that is easily explained to the customer.
If they choose to sell on value, they must implement the organizational enablers and infrastructure to allow value selling, transforming the company into a global service organization.
Beyond resources, internal collaborative processes such as global account planning, budget discussion and review, customer corporate governance boards and organizational structure. have to be implemented to ensure seamless global coherence.
All of this might seem like common sense, but in most companies, internal organizational issues prevent companies from effectively and seamlessly serving their most strategic global customers.
Tags: Best Practices , General
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