Without a process to segment your accounts, whether they're prospects or customers, sales teams often spend equal time with each and every one of those potential buyers. They also tend to use the same tactics and strategies regardless of whether they are suitable for the intended buyer or not.
In an effort to avoid arbitrary categorization, we use a concept called KARE to segment our buyers into useful categories.
K - Keep
What type of accounts do we currently have that we want to keep? These are fully engaged accounts with a strong relationship because the client perceives value and the pricing model is profitable for us. Everybody's happy.
A - Attain
What are the ideal accounts that are on the top of our target list? These are ideal accounts that are doing business with our competitor or have a known gap that we can help fill. This is a list of accounts that we are hunting and intend to take proactive steps to get them on our buyer list.
R - Recapture
What are the accounts that we've done business with in the past but they've moved on? These are the accounts that we are looking to get back. Former clients are often a large list that we want to get back but there's often not a concerted effort to do so. Designating people in this category means that there is an intention to reach out to that client to find if there's a renewed or new business reason for them to become a client again.
E - Expand
What are the accounts that you currently do business with but know or suspect there is additional work being left on the table? It's not uncommon for an account to use a few of our products or services but use a competitor or home grown process for other services we offer. It's also possible that they use some of our products or services in one part of their company but other departments could use a similar offering. These are the accounts that we intend to increase offerings or the quantity of our product or service.
With these four categories defined, all our accounts should be defined as keep, attain recapture, or expand. The sales leaders role is to actionably segment territories for the sales team.
The first step should already be completed. Your KARE list serves as a who's who in your territory.
The second step is designating how much time and energy the sales team should be spending in each of these categories. Leadership needs to take an active role in designating account importance because leaving it to the sales team to decide often results in a sales person spending all their time where they make the most money or where they feel the most comfortable. When a sales person hits their quota because they are solely driven by a desire to achieve a bonus, it's not uncommon for a sales leader to review the portfolio of business and discover that the sales person missed out on significant opportunities in their territory or particular account. Leadership's guidance on segmenting accounts into categories helps focus people's attention on the full potential in their territory rather than the quickest or easiest way of meeting a certain target.
The final step is defining the tactics and strategies for each person on your team. Focusing on job role or account list helps define the skills most important for each team member. A sales person focused on hunting needs coaching on the skills to attain and recapture. An account manager role will need training for tactics that apply to keeping and expanding.
This model is so powerful because it defines opportunities by actionability rather than demographics. Lead the team in creating strategies that match your targets so that you can systematically go to market.
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At its best, a dynamic learning culture can create a more satisfied sales team and more productive office. Providing your team with the tools and skills they need to succeed is the key to empowering and ensuring they can thrive in your organization. |
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