[zhaowu share].
There are customers you have to say no, and the service they want is not what you are prepared to provide. It's not that you can't provide this kind of service, it's that you don't want to. This has nothing to do with the practice of heroism that we suggest you oppose in the second principle. Whether it can be a question of ability, but whether you want to or not is a question of strategy.
Most of the time, it's easier to say no to a prospect than to say goodbye to a current customer, because at some point, the current customer is the right customer. Current customers are often like a matador's waving red cloth flying up and down in front of your eyes, unable to turn a blind eye. You'll also encounter inexplicable prospects who make ridiculous requests that show they don't understand your value proposition, and they do. "Sometimes people are dumber than what they see in the rearview mirror. One CEO told us, "You can tell at a glance that they're hard to deal with." ”
One of the companies we interviewed had the matador's red cloth – a potential customer's bullying of its employeesAnother company meets a potential client who also wants to be the company's service provider, so his role blurs the line between the customer and the sales team.
It is very powerful, because if this business goes well, the company's business prospects will be better, and in the long run, it seems to be very profitable. "But it creates confusion, confuses other employees, and sends a confusing signal to external stakeholders." Is this a one-time act?Are we changing the way we deal with our customers?The final answer is that this practice is 'not for us'. ”
Deciding to part ways with your current client is acknowledging that something has changed: either their needs, or your strategy, or the relationships between the teams involved. The more personal the nature of the service, the more direct the interaction between you and the customer, and the more difficult it is to separate from the customer, because the practice feels very personal, and it is.
When you're about to turn down a current client, think about why: Start planning my 2024
Is it because you haven't done it or don't want to do it that you want to refuse?
If you haven't already, why not do it?Are you rejecting change, or is it really a matter of strategy?
Are you not doing this well enough?Wouldn't it be better if it could have been done through training, practice, improving capabilities or adding employees?