The “Winning Clients, Delivering Value” blog series is based on Vertical IQ’s latest free eBook, The Ultimate Guide for Winning Clients and Delivering Value. In these posts, we will break down 15 of the simplest ways to use financial data and Industry Intelligence from Vertical IQ to improve your prospecting skills, increase your sales closure rate, and build strong, long-lasting relationships to enhance client retention.
What are your top assets?
It’s a broad question with lots of possible answers. Maybe you think of your home or your 401(k). Perhaps you think of your wry sense of humor and winning personality or even your killer smile. But if you ask a business owner this question, you might hear about things like their buildings and equipment, inventory, an outstanding employee, or their “secret sauce.”
Do you know what, or rather who, the business owner likely won’t mention? Their accountant, banker, financial advisor, insurance agent, or others who provide essential products and services to their business. So, what does it take to get your name added to that owner’s list of key assets to their business?
How do you become a top business asset?
Many of today’s business owners have lofty expectations of the companies — and people — they choose to give their business to. In addition to credibility and proven expertise, they are searching for value. But we’re not just talking about quality or competitive pricing.
Bringing value to business relationships
For many business owners, “value” means bringing more to the relationship than your product or service alone. It’s about being someone they turn to when they are looking for trustworthy advice on how to make their business more prosperous, guidance on how to navigate challenges, or suggestions on ways to make their life simpler and save them time.
For those of you in sales or client relationship management, it might sound like a lofty expectation — particularly if you work with businesses in many different verticals. How could you ever know what’s going on in so many different businesses’ industries? How can you possibly be expected to know things about an industry that even a business owner within that niche doesn’t know?
Well, as we share in our newest eBook, The Ultimate Guide for Winning Clients and Delivering Value, this “lofty expectation” can be quite simple to meet when you incorporate the actionable economic financial data and Industry Intelligence found on Vertical IQ into your sales and account management processes.
With Vertical IQ, you can quickly and easily access, review, and deliver valuable industry research, financial data, and insights about your prospect’s or client’s industry, which can put you well on your way to “trusted advisor” and “irreplaceable asset” status with that business owner.
Here are just a few of the simple steps you can take to make Industry Intelligence a part of your sales and client relationship management processes, underscoring the value that you bring to a business owner and their company.
3 tips to become a valuable asset to business owners
1. Initiate trusted advisor conversations
Those in sales may have learned this the hard way: Leading with a product often leads to failure. A better approach is to kick off a conversation that gets the business owner talking. One surefire way to start that dialogue is by asking questions about the business owner’s industry. This opens the door for a solutions-oriented conversation while also demonstrating your unique expertise in their field.
The value of industry-specific knowledge
Research from LinkedIn supports this approach, revealing that 96% of decision-makers say they are more inclined to consider a product or service if the sales professional has a solid grasp of the target business’s needs.
Positioning yourself as an industry insider
Industry Intelligence makes it easy to position yourself as an industry insider, whether it is your first or 50th conversation with a business owner. For instance, Vertical IQ’s popular Call Prep Questions not only showcase your industry research and knowledge. Asking questions focused on the business owner’s niche also prompts them to share details that, in turn, allow you to provide targeted solutions to their needs. Further, boost your trusted advisor status when you share and discuss valuable industry insights on industry trends, potential pitfalls, and salient industry news topics.
2. Show them how they stack up financially
It’s common for business owners to want to know how they compare to their competition. Research shows that 38% of owners say that their business strategy over the next three years will be influenced by their competitors’ actions.
Tracking competition can be tough
The challenge faced by business owners who want to keep tabs on the competition is how. How can they know if their business is leading the pack or falling behind? This is another great opportunity to step in and use financial data and Industry Intelligence to prove what an asset you can be to their business.
Turn industry insights into goals for growth
Within each Industry Profile, Vertical IQ provides the latest benchmark data. Sharing this content with a business owner gives them crucial insight into their industry peers’ annual financial statements, showing them exactly how they stack up to their industry’s averages.
Offering a business owner this industry data also opens the door for conversations about setting attainable goals and taking advantage of business opportunities for improvement around efficiency and strategic cost reduction.
3. Stay in touch and top of mind
If you’re in sales, you may have heard of the “Rule of Seven.” It’s an often-cited B2B sales and marketing concept that posits that “a prospect needs to see a message a minimum of seven times within an 18-month period” to commit it to their conscious memory. It sounds like a good idea in theory, but no business owner wants to be bothered seven times with a “just checking in” email or “how’s business?” conversation starter.
Adding value with every touchpoint
Here again, the key is to add value to each of your touchpoints. Show the business owner that you have the latest details on how their industry is evolving and provide them with something that is actually useful to them. This communication strategy will not only ensure they think of you if and when they need your product or service, but it will also boost your status as an asset to their business.
Leveraging Vertical IQ for meaningful, long-lasting connections
Vertical IQ’s actionable, convenient, focused Industry Intelligence makes it easy to share value-added information at every prospect/customer touchpoint. Our content is designed to be email-friendly, so you can easily forward it along to a business owner. You can also print out our content, including the latest industry news articles, to use as a leave-behind. And, of course, you can incorporate the industry research and knowledge you gain from Vertical IQ into each communication or conversation you have with a business owner.
Your customers’ top asset? You!
In business owners’ search for value, they are bound to be sensitive to price, but few will make a buying decision based on price alone. Owners also are looking for quality, and that means working with sales professionals and relationship managers who have the credibility and expertise to offer solutions tailored to the business owner’s challenges and pain points.
Become a value-added business partner or financial advisor with Vertical IQ!
It is surprisingly simple to become a value-added advisor to a business owner — as well as a valuable asset to their business — by incorporating Vertical IQ’s Industry Intelligence into your sales and relationship management processes. From industry-focused conversations to eye-opening benchmark financial data to touchpoints tailored to their business niche, Vertical IQ provides you with the industry research and economic insights that business owners are clamoring for. Armed with valuable financial data and Industry Intelligence, your sales outlook is looking bright!
Ready to get started? Check out Vertical IQ pricing here. Want a demo first? Request a Vertical IQ demo here.
Want to learn more about 15 actionable strategies to use industry research to win new relationships and continuously engage your existing clients? Download Vertical IQ’s free eBook, The Ultimate Guide for Winning Clients and Delivering Value!