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Some you love, some you tolerate, others
you’d just as soon dump (or at least
recycle). When you and your management team
are sitting around the conference table,
however, chances are you talk extensively
about how to keep clients away from your
competition. What does it take to earn – and
retain – the loyalty of your customers? At
the bare minimum, a quality product, coupled
with good customer service. Special offers,
affinity programs and other demonstrations
of appreciation can also weigh in your
favor. But in your quest to corral clients
be sure you don’t lavish attention
unnecessarily; success often stems from a
few basic principles deployed during the
day-to-day course of a business
relationship. Clients’ Time is
Money, Too
Ron Kanatzar rarely lays eyes on his
clients.
It isn’t that he’s too busy running
Phoenix Orthodontics, his Blue Springs,
MO-based orthodontic supply company. Or that
he doesn’t enjoy the face time with his
250-plus clients. What he’s discovered,
though, after 20 years in the field, is that
the best way to demonstrate his
understanding of his clients’ needs – which
has resulted in their loyalty – is to keep
his distance.
“Before I changed our model of selling
and servicing clients by calling on, showing
product to and writing up orders in person,
I spoke to my biggest accounts to make sure
they would be comfortable with my new
vision,” explains Kanatzar. “They said, ‘We
love you, we’ll see you if you want to see
us, but we’re busy trying to put braces on
kids so it’s fine if you don’t visit us on a
regular basis.’ Our goal has always been to
provide orthodontists with the tools they
need to increase their practice. But a few
years ago I realized we weren’t going about
it in the best way.”
Today orthodontists can communicate and
conduct business easily with Phoenix
Orthodontics through the Internet. They can
view the company’s 44-page catalog; study
product specification sheets; submit
inquiries; request samples; place orders;
take advantage of specials; and subscribe to
the company’s e-sales bulletins. (An
e-newsletter was just introduced.) The
supplier also offers an automated
fulfillment program designed to improve
clients’ cash flow, save time and money and
maintain inventory of critical supplies. In
addition, clients can even order T-shirts
for their patients.
“The industry has gotten very
competitive,” says Kanatzar. “Orthodontists
need to promote their practice and kids wear
shirts. We sell them by the gross.”
Knowing its position in the marketplace
has also proven to be critical in Phoenix
Orthodontics’ ability to keep clients.
According to Kanatzar, there are 127
suppliers competing for the business of more
than 14,000 orthodontists in the country.
The four industry leaders own 80 percent of
the market and everyone else – Phoenix
notwithstanding – focuses on price.
“It’s our approach that has brought us
where we are today. We’re less invasive,
talk when it’s convenient to the client and
the quality of our products – all of which
are made domestically – is a given,”
Kanatzar reports. “We aren’t about offering
the hottest, newest products. We’re about
providing our clients with ways of
increasing their productivity and
profitability.”
Do Unto Others
Alan Dworkin developed a loyal following
of customers long before he even thought
about establishing a business.
In the 1980s, while earning his living as
a trader at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange,
Dworkin purchased an Apple II computer to
ensure accurate recordkeeping of his losses
and gains. Once he mastered that task,
curiosity kicked in and he began to play
with the system, intentionally creating
havoc which he would then figure out how to
fix.
It didn’t take long for word to spread
around the trading floor that Dworkin was
computer-savvy. Soon the trader’s associates
started bringing their software and
technical problems to him. Dworkin would
outline the series of steps to take to use
an application or get a system up and
running and instruct the person to let him
know the next day if it worked. Time and
time again, he was on the mark. Eventually,
he started charging for his assistance.
Coincidentally, the Chicago Apple office
for sales and education staff was located in
the same complex as the Exchange. When
Dworkin wasn’t trading (conservative by
nature, he wanted to hold on to the nest egg
he had built) he hung out at Apple, eager to
learn more about the personal computer. Over
the next several years the computer
enthusiast upgraded his computer several
times. Meanwhile, his network of coworkers,
peers and friends in need of technical
support and advice continued to expand.
In 1995, Dworkin’s wife, Lisa, became
ill. He took a year off to help care for her
and their two young sons. The experience was
so jarring the couple concluded it was time
to reduce the stress in their lives,
beginning a change in Dworkin’s career.
But when Dworkin started exploring other
opportunities, he couldn’t shake the idea of
whether he could earn a decent living
working with what he has come to know and
love: the computer. He had the know-how, the
interest, a network of prospective customers
and his buddies at the Chicago Apple office
were willing to set him up as a reseller. So
he decided to give it a try.
That was seven years ago. Today Dworkin
is an Apple Authorized Reseller Affiliate;
an Authorized Xerox Peak Reseller; an
Authorized LaCie Reseller; a member of
various Apple networks; and a reseller for
Hewlett-Packard. From the comfort and
convenience of his north suburban home,
Dworkin provides training, software and
hardware to Chicago area businesses. He has
over 100 clients who call every four to 12
weeks in need of technical help or new
equipment. They range from a downtown
financial institution’s graphic design
department and a small chain of beauty
salons to home-based small business owners.
Since he first set up shop, Dworkin has
retained every client but one. (This is
through no fault of his own. The client is
faced with financial challenges and refuses
to take Dworkin up on his repeated offer of
a slow payment plan.) What makes this
statistic particularly notable is that the
majority of his revenue – typically between
60% and 75% – stems from the sale of
equipment which is available from a variety
of sources.
Even more impressive? Virtually every
client refers Dworkin to his or her friends
and associates.
“When someone goes to a retail store to
buy software or hardware, the people behind
the counter can only sell the products they
have – and in three months those salespeople
might work somewhere else. I only sell
products I know will work with a client’s
system, and I only sell products I know are
backed by companies that offer reliable
service and support,” explains Dworkin.
Selling the right equipment is only part
of the reason Dworkin has been so
successful. Usually he wins clients over
with his service. For starters, he doesn’t
charge for minor problem solving. If he
spends four minutes troubleshooting he won’t
bill the client. Each occurrence, he says,
is akin to running an ad in the paper – but
it doesn’t cost him $500. When the minor
fix-its add up to an hour, that’s when he’ll
send the client an invoice.
The most telling display of Dworkin’s
dedication to his clients is his guiding
principle: crises come first. If Client A is
scheduled for a demonstration of a scanner
on Tuesday morning at 10:00, but Client B
calls Monday afternoon in a panic because
her system is down, Dworkin will be off to
see Client B first thing Tuesday morning and
Client A’s demo will be rescheduled. Before
companies sign on with Dworkin he explains
his policy and they must be willing to abide
by it. How strongly does he feel about this
clause? When a graphic design department
offered him a 50-hour contract but said he
had to be on site by the next business
morning if they needed even non-emergency
assistance, he turned them down.
“The only thing I have to sell is my
reputation,” says Dworkin. “I treat my
clients like friends.” (Only when pressed
does Dworkin own up to the degree of good
will his approach has generated among
clients. Once, after giving a prospect a
client’s phone number to call for a
reference, the prospect called him back. “Do
you know what she said about you? She said,
‘He walks on water.’ You’re hired.”)
Become a One-Stop Shop
As the Director of Marketing and Business
Development for a 200-employee healthcare
company operating six diagnostic testing
centers in Florida, Dana Schroeder has
plenty of promotional opportunities to
consider.
Her number one priority is ensuring that
physicians are aware of the organization’s
25-member team of specialized radiologists
and state-of-the-art testing equipment. In
addition, she is responsible for enticing
the general public to take advantage of the
opportunity to ward off potentially fatal
illnesses (e.g., heart disease or lung
cancer) by using the organization’s advanced
screening equipment.
You might think that Schroeder would
welcome the almost-weekly unsolicited phone
calls and visits from promotional products
distributors and agencies hungry for her
promotional dollars. Surely they try to woo
her with ideas and programs designed to
generate more business for the growing
enterprise?
“Absolutely,” says Schroeder. “But I tell
them all that I’m very satisfied with
someone else and have been for several
years.”
Hearing those words makes promotional
consultant and integrated marketing
solutions specialist Jon Clark – Schroeder’s
“someone else”– smile. He is grateful for
her loyalty, especially since she’s been
employed by three different companies since
he began working with her, but knows it is
hard earned.
After Clark moved from California to
Florida in 1999 and set up shop as a
distributor (his second venture; he sold the
first as part of his relocation plan), he
joined the local Chamber of Commerce. At the
first function he spotted Schroeder, whose
nametag indicated she worked in marketing
for a hospital. He pegged her,
understandably, as a person he’d like to
know, even though standing by her side was
another distributor. She introduced him to
several people at the event and wished him
well – as did almost everyone he met that
night.
“Many of the prospects I met early on in
Florida were braced for me to be a
fly-by-night operation, to take their money
and run,” recalls Clark. “That first year I
was told more than once, ‘Talk to me when
you’ve been here a couple of summers.’ I’m
in a small community. It became clear
quickly that it would take time to build
relationships.”
The first year was tough – lots of
networking, not a lot of sales. But Clark
continued to work his prospect base,
including Schroeder, calling or dropping off
catalogs periodically and reminding them he
was available if needed. One day, out of the
blue, Schroeder called. “You’re it,” she
said, “I’m tired of missed deadlines,
backwards logos and wrong colors.” Clark was
in the car the next day driving the 70 miles
to her office. He left with a project, which
he completed on time. From that point
forward he did whatever he could to keep
Schroeder satisfied, including, within a few
months, announcing that he was now equipped
to handle her commercial printing needs.
Schroeder was thrilled. “Jon had all of
our artwork. It was easier to call him than
a second vendor,” she says. “He made certain
our message and look was consistent with all
of our printed literature and promotional
products.”
Through his dealings with Schroeder,
Clark came to know Schroeder’s assistant and
the heads of several departments. He was so
at ease with the organization as a whole
that when Schroeder announced she was
leaving the hospital for her current
position he wasn’t surprised to discover
that her replacement planned to continue
working with him – and still does.
Schroeder’s relationship with Clark has
deepened since she joined the diagnostic
company at the start of this year. “When I
left the hospital and joined this company,
neither Jon nor I knew anything about
diagnostic facilities,” she admits. “Jon
researched web sites and read a lot of
literature to help educate me about my new
field.”
The ultimate testament of Schroeder’s
loyalty? Recently when Clark announced that
he would be able to offer full-service
marketing, including advertising, media
buying, public relations and sales
strategies, Schroeder took another chance on
Clark and signed a 12-month consulting
contract. Now, in addition to handling her
promotional product and printing needs, he
acts as an account executive, helping map
out radio and newspaper ad campaigns, Power
Point presentations, sales collateral – the
works.
“ He may not have 52 awards on the wall but
I still chose him as our agency of record,”
says Schroeder. “I know and trust Jon, he
makes me look good, and the partnership is
comforting.”
For Clark, the decision to expand his
company’s services was critical to
strengthening ties with Schroeder – and
other – clients. “Now I’m not just someone
who sells products. I’m a marketing partner.
I now have the tools needed to help clients
become more successful,” he says.
Speed & Agility Count
Ron Kanatzar likes to describe his
orthodontic supply company as a Porsche
going down the interstate. Some of his
competitors he likens to 18-wheelers. “We
can switch direction quickly,” he explains.
Don’t ever let a large competitor psych
you into thinking that they can inherently
do a better job of retaining clients because
they are mightier in size and boast a bigger
bank account. As Kanatzar points out, a
small business can react much faster than a
large one and that’s often how a service
provider wins – and keeps – a client: by
delivering what they need, the way they want
it, when they need it, time and time again. |
