As salespeople, we focus on external customer opportunities, forgetting that we can expand our reach through using our internal team. Regardless of who your customer or product is, here are five key ways to jump-start your year into increased client retention and new business:

1. Develop an internal communications plan.

a. Identify who your internal customers are and what they need to know about your job. In essence, what are you doing that will benefit them and their department or service?
b. Build an annual calendar that defines when you will meet, educate or report to them and in what manner. Think in terms of standing meetings, reports you can share and ways your client/market intelligence can help improve their product or offerings.
c. Does your organization have a means to communicate success or case study stories? If so, write or insert these to keep the internal team up to date with your sales efforts.

2. Select an internal leadership champion.

a. Involve someone from the leadership team as your “sales” champion; have them represent you at leadership and budget sessions and occasionally relate a success story.

3. Seek out ways that others can “sell.”

a. Find ways to engage your key internal team members in sales or customer service. Get them involved directly with a customer tour or service management. Make sure they receive a customer’s compliment.
b. If a client asks technical, clinical or product development questions, this may provide an excellent opportunity to demonstrate the depth and breadth of your team—and give your other team members some visibility.
c. At a minimum, coordinate efforts focused on a shared customer base by documenting and sharing information internally
d. Build a customer retention strategy, using team members to focus on keeping the client’s business and exceeding their expectations.

4. Track, measure and report.

a. Share and demonstrate sales results with key customers. Make sure to identify outcomes that strategically benefit the organization and its key services. Use this sample to get you started.
b. Develop customer reports with your internal team and present them to key customers that you can’t afford to lose. Identify trends, issues and opportunities for ongoing partnerships and your plans for assisting them.

5. Acknowledge success.

a. Publish an internal newsletter or column about sales and service success
b. Implement a referral recognition program. Provide kudos, thank you’s or a small token/reward to acknowledge a new business referral.
c. Use client case studies to bring sales to life internally.
d. Engage Leadership with key clients; involve them in fieldwork and direct client interaction.
e. Share customer feedback.

Don’t underestimate the power of your internal team in terms of keeping customers happy and helping you to acquire new business for your organization. Think about three ways in 2005 that you can optimize them as a part of your sales and service efforts with your critical customers.

For more on internal sales and staff readiness, read Getting Your Team on Board: Using a Sales Strategy to Promote Internal Harmony.

Carolyn Merriman is president of Corporate Health Group, a national healthcare consulting firm, and is based in Rhode Island. For additional information, please call 1-888-334-2500 or contact us via the Web.

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