Sales Situation Analysis The Network System for a Bank Assignment : - Develop an “Information Gathering Matrix” - Draw an influence circle diagram with the decision maker - Develop our strategy for this opportunity B2B 31/03 2009 Loris Rio Christophe Aronowicz Léo Boukou-Poba Eric Chollet Mathieu Defarge
Tasks: - Develop an “Information Gathering Matrix” - Draw an influence circle diagram with the decision maker - Develop our strategy for this opportunity
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Sales Situation Analysis The Network System for a Bank
Assignment: - Develop an “Information Gathering Matrix” - Draw an influence circle diagram with the decision maker - Develop our strategy for this opportunity
B2B
31/03
2009
Loris Rio Christophe Aronowicz Léo Boukou-Poba Eric Chollet Mathieu Defarge
2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
INFORMATION GATHERING MATRIX 3
INFLUENCE CIRCLE 5
STRATEGY 7
PHASE 1 - MARKET INTELLIGENCE: 7
PHASE 2 - MARKET OPPORTUNITY: 7
PHASE 3 - RELATIONSHIP PLANNING 8
PHASE 4 - DIALOG PROGRAM AND INTEGRATION 9
HOW WE ARE GOING TO PROCEED 10
BIBLIOGRAPHY 13
3
INFORMATION GATHERING MATRIX
Who is the buying center and what is the base of
their power?
Who are the powerful buyers and what are their priorities?
What specific benefits does
each important buyer want?
How do the
important buyers view us?
Selling strategy
INITIATOR
Director of telecommunications and networks: He is at the
origin of the project, he wants to replace the company’s
telecommunication system and call companies like us to find
the solution. He is specialized in this field of activity so he is
qualified to evaluate the needs of the company and also
what we can bring to them.
- Account managers from those
branches. Priorities are to answer
customer’s needs as quick as
possible without making them wait
and risk losing them. Information is
power and quick information access
would increase satisfaction with
clients, keep a good image, get more
clients and make more money. They
are also very important as they are
the final users of the computers and
are working daily on the networks.
Their expert status might be
important in the final purchase
decision, as they know better than
anyone else if the system is
successful or not. Their priorities are
to work on a powerful and reliable
computer systems and networks.
- Director of Telecommunications
and Networks: He is part of the
powerful buyers as he has an
attraction power. He could easily
- Account Managers:
their benefit is to
have an efficient
network that will
provide them better
tools to deal with the
consumers. Their aim
is to make the
difference in the
direct relation they
have with the client
thanks to an easier
access to customer
information.
- Director of
Telecommunications
and Networks: as he
is in charge of the all
network
infrastructure he
wants the system to
Account Managers:
In case of an upgrade
of the equipment
which they are
working on, these
customer services
representatives
would benefit from
better working
conditions but also
from higher rewards
as they would be
more effective. They
see only benefits
from us to provide
them the best tools.
Director of
Telecommunications
and Networks: He
perceives us as the
great opportunity for
him to take more
power and increase
Our strategy would be to show the company how our new system can help them in a long term relationship with their customers. Our goal is to make them realize how important the system can be an asset for the company at every level starting as the permanent user, the account manager, until the CEO to whom we have to emphasize the perfect and unique use of our system; to show how much our company is serious
INFLUENCERS
Director of customer services: He is always focused on the
customer so he knows how a better network system could
improve the satisfaction of the client.
Director of facilities: He knows everything about the
equipment of the company and about the possible
infrastructure that could be set up in the company.
Branch managers: As they are responsible of the employees
in the branches that will be using the product, they might
have an influence in the decision as they represent the end
users of the product. They also aware that it could facilitate
the Account Managers into the information access, so gain
time.
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DECIDERS
Chief financial officer and treasurers: He is in charge of the
finance part of the company so he knows the financial state
of the company and how much it could spend on such a
project. He can actually evaluate if that new system could be
a good investment in a long term and so be an strong asset
for the company.
CEO: He is in charge of the company so the final decision
remains his. Being the boss, he does have opinion on this
even if he is not directly related to it. As long as this new
system could increase future profitability, such an
investment can be made to develop his company. Not
accepting this new system could be a wrong move for the
future of the company. Avoid weaknesses is his goal and
keep the best image possible for the company.
convince the CEO that the Bank’s
good activity relies on the quality of
the Network, as computers and
systems got a capital role in those
kinds of companies. His priorities are
to select the best computer system
among those which are proposed.
- Director of customer services: As
he is in charge of the relationship
with the customers, whose
satisfaction is the most important
factor for a business to succeed. He
has a status power that makes his
opinion about any strategic decision
very important, as he knows what
the customers want. His priorities
are the development of services for
the customers in order to increase
satisfaction.
be the most reliable
it could. This new
computer network
system needs to
work and to seem
reliable to everybody
involved in the
company: the
customers but also
the members of the
company who will
work with it every
day.
- Director of
customer services:
His benefit is the
satisfaction of the
client. He deals
everyday with
customers so he
wants that the
service provided by
the company to be
the best.
his reputation in the
company by
improving the
performance of the
department he is in
charge of. He will
attentively consider
our offer but will
make a selection in a
few months, so the
aim of our strategy is
the convince him.
Director of customer
services: He sees the
company as a
solution to the
technical problems
his department has
been dealing with in
the past with the slow
access to the
customer
information. The
technical
improvement
provided by our
services would
certainly help him to
increase customer
satisfaction.
about making business with them. We will show the director of T&N this system through a test with the people that will actually use it. That way, the real users will get to know it and appreciate the real quality and advantage of that service. Clients’ satisfaction will evaluate concretely our system and users will gain time, clients and money for the company. We will prove them our professionalism being ready for the delivery of the new system respecting their three months deadline.
PURCHASER
Director of purchasing: He is in charge of the purchasing
aspect of the company so the process of buying new system
or anything related to the company’s business is actually his.
GATEKEEPER
Both corporate purchasing and corporate
telecommunication departments analyze the company’s
needs and recommend likely matches with potential
vendors.
5
INFLUENCE CIRCLE
Decider: CEO
As a regional medium sized company, the CEO, who is at the heart of the company, is certainly the
one that will make the final decision.
He is at the center of the selling strategy and the final step of the decision process.
First circle
Director of Telecommunications and Network:
He’s directly concerned since he is responsible for everything related to Telecommunications and
Networking activities. Obviously he has to be considered as a strong recommender for the CEO.
When it will come to choose one solution among others, the Director of Telecommunications and
Network advice will be one of the most important within the company.
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Director of Information Services:
He is also closely concerned by the new network since he is in charge of information’s circulation
within the company. Obviously, he is a strong recommender for the CEO since the network has
features directly linked with his job. He has to be convinced that the solution we will provide to them
is the best.
Director of Purchasing:
As this director is responsible on all purchases made by the company, his opinion on the price of the
system is really important. He appears as a recommender to the decider by strongly recommending a
solution's price and its cost for the company.
Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer:
As this director is responsible of the flow of money of the company, his opinion on the price of the
system is also really important. He can be a strong influencer to the CEO and in a first time, he might
be reluctant to spend money on the network.
Director of Customer Services:
He is more of an influencer and has his opinion to give about the solution to buy as the network will
permit to share customers' information between the agencies.
He can recommend or not the use of a program concerning an "easier access to customer
information".
Directors of Facilities:
The system that will be bought must run on the existing equipment, so this director can influence the
choice on the program he thinks will work best.
Second Circle
Branch manager:
Branch managers are directly concerned by the new system because they will be using it very day
and so will their teams, so they are very important in the selling process and need to be the first
convinced.
Director of Human Resources:
He is also an influencer as he is responsible of the communication within the company and by that he
and his team will be big users of the program.
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STRATEGY
In this case study we are working to sell a new computer network system to a medium size regional
bank for electronic mail and shared data.
We were contacted by the Director of Telecommunications and Networks. He has explained to us
that he would like to put into the branches a new network system which will provide for electronic
mail, data communications, and easier access to customer information by the account managers.
To proceed, we will need to plan our contact strategy in order to get in touch with the right guys at
the right places and in order to convince directly and indirectly the final decision maker within the
decision making unit.
Our planning strategy can be divided in 4 major steps, each one divided in small tasks and objectives.
In this first part, we are going to explain our contact methodology.
Phase 1 - Market intelligence: In this phase we analyze the market in order to determine its specifications and characteristics. This
would allow us to better understand the buying processes within the bank’s (and its branches)
organization and to highlight the important actors and interlocutors within the decision making unit.
Identifying the decision making unit and its components is decisive in this phase, if it is well executed
this would make the other steps a lot easier. In this phase we can use various analytical tools from
the information gathering matrix or the influence circle to the management levels tool or the
User/Specifier/Economic/Sponsor analysis.
In this phase it can also be relevant to analyze the market in order to determine what the potential
opportunities are.
In our case study, thanks to the Director of Telecommunications and Networks, we assume that we
could be able to get in touch with other members of the decision making unit since he is the one who
has contacted us. He acts as a gatekeeper, the potential long term relationship we plan to establish
mostly rely on him at the beginning of the process.
Phase 2 - Market opportunity: In phase 1, we took time to understand the market, the organization and the way it is functioning. In
phase 2, we assume that we have understood the way the organization is functioning, we have to
determine who the key interlocutors are and their influence within the decision making unit thanks
to the analytical tools used before. It is now time for actions. In this phase we can use various action
tools, among those ones, we can talk a little of the GROWs tool (Goal Role Objectives and Work
plan). The main purpose of this tool is to determine how to approach the different interests, and in
what order. Indeed, this tool allow us to determine the level of implication of each member of the
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identified decision making unit and to determine how we are going to contact the most relevant
ones in order to achieve our goal, to sell our networking solution and to build long-term relationship.
Used with the circle of influence, this tool can be very useful and relevant. By understanding the level
of implication of every actor, we can select the best way to contact the right guys at the right places
in order try to convince them that we can provide is the best in terms of quality, reliability and
security for example…
Phase 3 - Relationship Planning
At this stage, we try to determine the optimum relationship strategy with the different actors and
how to be the most efficient to convince them.
Segmentation
We perform a primary segmentation, dividing the different people of the influence circle through
their sector and function, in order to be able to establish priorities among them.
It directly refers to the influence circle: we establish a list by putting who is of first importance (the
recommenders), who can have an impact on the decision (the influencers) and who is the final
decider.
As we saw, the director of information, the director of telecom and networks, the director of
purchasing are recommenders and are of first priority for us. It appears to us that the two most
important persons to convince are the director of telecom and networks and the director of
purchasing (the first one will be directly responsible of the network installed and the second one is
responsible of the act of buying).
The director of customer services, the director of facilities, the Chief Financial officer and treasurer,
the branch managers and director of HR appear as the influencers- at the end they should have a
little bit less impact but shouldn't be neglected at all.
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Here is a diagram showing the segmentation we performed and showing the importance of each
actor in the information chain:
Then we should apply a behavioral segmentation in order to understand each person's purchase
behavior; this will help us knowing how to approaching them and what strategy to adopt.
Phase 4 - Dialog program and integration
Contact Model
The contact model establishes the frequency or volume of contact prioritization between the
different persons in the company. We should establish a dialog planning between them; it would
help us to know where we are in the negotiation process, to see achievements when a person is
"convinced" and to see how well the process is advancing forward.
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Dialog Combinations
Relationship building demands dialogue not monologue. These are based on differing criteria
dependent on job functions and segments. All the data gathered through the dialogues should help
us to build a strong argumentation.
This is how we plan to build a profitable long term solution and how we plan to reach the final
decider. By influencing the right guys at the right places and in the appropriate order, we want to
manage the risk from our client point of view and to secure the in-progress relationship we are
building with the client.
How we are going to proceed
Now it time to see how we are going to proceed:
In the case study, the director of Telecommunication and Network acts as an initiator and
gatekeeper, we have to rely a lot on him. The first important step is to listen to him. By doing this, we
will be able to highlight his needs and wants. Obviously, he wants the system to be changed, that
surely means that the current system they have been using since then is not up to date any more or
does not fit the company’s expectations. In this phase it will be relevant to determine on what extent
potential users of the new network are not satisfied with the current product. By doing this, we can
determine if our solutions fit to their expectations. Once that is done, we have to gather as much
information possible to understand the way the company is functioning. To do so we can ask the
director of Telecommunications and Network to explain who the potential users will be. The
potential users in that case have a key role since they will act as recommenders for the final decider
in the decision making unit. In that case study, we have identified several major interlocutors that
could act as recommenders and influencers:
The recommenders
Director of customer services. He is always focused on the customer so he knows how a
better network system could improve the satisfaction of the client
Director of facilities. He knows everything about the equipment of the company and about
the possible infrastructure that could be set up in the company.
The branch managers : As they are responsible of the account managers in the branches that
will be using the product, they might have an influence in the decision as they represent the
end users of the product
Chief financial officer and treasurers. He is in charge of the finance part of the company so
he knows the financial state of the company and how much it could spend on such a project.
Director of telecom and network. He is at the origin of the project, he wants to replace the
company’s telecom system and call companies like us. He is specialized in this field of activity
so he is qualified to evaluate the needs of the company and also what we can bring to them.
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Influencers
Branch manage and account managers are directly concerned by the new program because they will
be using it every day, so they are very important in the process and need to be convinced.
Once we have listed all the interlocutors, we have to classify them, since they do not have the same
involvement in the decision making unit. For example, the involvement of the director of telecom
and network is more important than the involvement of the director of human services in the
decision making unit. By doing this, we can determine how we are going to communicate with the
interlocutors of the company in a way to convince the final decider. In this phase, we use analytical
tools and action tools such as the ones we referred before in the methodology (information
gathering matrix, circle of influence, GROWs tool…). Thanks to this tool we can determine
information circulation patterns and determined who is involved and why. This is what will be
conditioning our selling strategy for each member of the decision unit.
Other important thing is that they do not seek the same benefits, and at the moment to convince
each actor we will have to consider that. For example, while the director of telecom and network is
seeking a network that could provide email services and shared data, we can imagine that what the
director of human resources is seeking is a way to improve the information circulation within the
organization by using faster equipments.
The trick in this phase is to make the members of the decision making unit acting as strong
influencers and recommenders in order to convince the final decider. If we are able to propose
solutions that can solve every expressed problem by each member, there is a strong probability that
they act as advocates of our solution.
If we take a look at the circle of influence we draw, we notice that there are several interlocutors
that it is strategic to convince:
First of all, the director of telecommunication that acts as an expert, he is the initiator of the project
and the one who expressed to us the need to change the current network system in the first place.
To convince him is very important, in that case study he also acts as a hub since he can put us in
touch with other important members of the decision making unit.
The director of information and services can act as a recommender, we have to listen to what he
have to said since he is closely concerned by the new network system in order to determine what his
needs and wants are and what benefits he is seeking. In that case he may be willing to have a faster
equipment that would allow a better information circulation within the company and that would
improve its profitability.
The director of facilities is responsible for all the equipment in the company and obviously his role is
very important. By questioning him, we may highlight his concerns about the current situation and
we may discover what he does not want our system to be.
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It would also be relevant to question the director of customer services for several reasons: he is in
charge of everything related to customer relationship management and he could be relevant to ask
him what he thinks of the current situation in order to highlight possible problems and to convince
him that our solution could be what he expects for.
The chief financial officer & treasurer is also someone that needs to be convinced. He may be very
reluctant to the purchase of a new network system since it implies quite a big money investment.
The director of human resources and the branch managers are less involved in the decision making
unit as shown in our circle of influence but that does not mean that their role is not important. Their
influence has to be taken in consideration. In the case study, we think that they could have an
influence on the director of telecommunication and network and on the director of information
services since they are daily user of the actual system and they may have very interesting
recommendations for the new network. Since in B2B, every product or service have to be adapted to
each client in order to fit its needs and wants and to build a long-term relationship, it may be
important to include the recommendations of those daily users in our strategy.
As we said earlier, during this whole process, we used dialogs with every member of the decision
making unit and the daily user of the current network to gather information and to build a strong
argumentation in order to convince each member of the decision unit and the final decider in the
end.
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Bibliography
Articles
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