The Leading Edge - Winter 2008 - 7

cover identified. Determine whether the priorities should be systemic or tactical, short- or longterm. Get buy-in from the company’s employees. Finally, don’t forget to revisit the analysis and data collection on a consistent basis to measure what has happened since the last analysis or as priorities have changed within the company. harvest the weB While identifying clients’ needs remains an art, science is playing a bigger role with the advance of technology. inSegment Inc. is one business that focuses on the science of measuring what clients do. An exclusive sales and marketing agency for Quechee Lakes, a Vermont-based luxury second home community, inSegment involves a team of Web engineers with Ph.D.s using the Web to drive and target sales—identifying prospects, enticing them to the Web site and following up properly for site visits and ultimately sales of the homes. Oleg A. Vyadro, inSegment managing director and Harvard Law School grad, says clients can get a better understanding of how effective their sales and marketing dollars are spent. “There’s finally a tangible, mainstream way to target segments that is very measureable,” he says. “We’re accountable for what we do.” What inSegment does is focus on how to promote Web site traffic that ultimately converts into sales of the luxury homes. The keys are identifying the targeted segments and communicating their needs. “We speak their language,” Vyadro says. “It’s a system that learns from itself—which words work when.” well-researched, relevant questions. Hoovers, Stratoscope, yahoo! Finance and Google all offer a wonderful opportunity to learn more about the companies with minimal effort, he says. Analyze the company from a holistic approach—its culture, strategies, etc. Identify its financials and key metrics. Explore external effects on the company. For example, if your company wanted to work with Linens n’ Things, the research would reveal: The household goods store does not refer to customers. It talks about “guests.” Financial research would reveal their gross margins and how they view those margins (i.e., what do they place importance on?). Finally, current external factors for Linens n’ Things may include import controls as well as the quality of products made in China. Once the research has been culled, create a series of seven to 10 relevant questions for a meeting. “If you come prepared,” Scher says, “you can take a 20-minute meeting and have it last 45 minutes to an hour.” He explains that most executives now rely on their vendors to serve as resources and help them identify possible opportunities for their companies. “you need to create vision lock,” Scher says. “Get all the dots connected. Lightbulbs go off. Get in early and often to establish the notion that you can solve problems … and link value to what the key players want.” e Lesson in Listening to customers’ cries now are you hearing what your clients are saying? abhay Padgaonkar, president of innovative solutions consulting, says some companies are not listening and the results can have a bad impact on business. he once interviewed a well-known pharmaceutical client of the company that hired him to identify clients’ wants and interests. the interviewee told him that the company was wasting its money in hiring him. “no matter what you go back and tell them, nothing is really going to change,” she told Padgaonkar. “then she went on to read me the riot act on all the misdeeds over the years,” he says. “of course, i relayed the information to my client the moment i stepped out of the office. unfortunately, it was a case of too little, too late. the pharmaceutical client left a few months later. “it made me wonder how long and how many times the client’s cry for help was ignored.” Padgaonkar says an independent review based on individual interviews with clients can offer excellent results—often a 90-percent response rate, which is far greater than any survey can generate. “we’re not Coke or PePsi.” Michael Scher, CEO of Frontline Selling, works with clients who sell proactively in the marketplace. They may not have the brand recognition of a famous beverage and may not sell a product or service that people wake up saying they need. Scher talks of creating an “attack plan” strategy to identify clients’ wants before they even realize what they are. He says the script starts with THE LEAdING EdGE 7

The Leading Edge - Winter 2008

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