Using eBusiness to Build Relationships

A supplier of commodity building products had developed an online information system to make it easy for their customers to place orders and monitor progress of deliveries. It took the opportunity of introducing the new system to build relationships between the sales team and decision makers throughout the customer organisation.

The launch of their new system provided several opportunities:

• Differentiation from competitors by providing a superior service
• Building relationships beyond the buyer in customer organisations
• Develop the relationship selling skills of the sales team

Competitive Advantage was appointed to develop a suitable one day training course for the sales team. The sales team were told that the training was show them how to demonstrate the new system to customers, but the hidden agenda was to encourage them to use the system to meet people in their customer organisations who they would not normally meet – managing directors, finance directors, project managers, estimators. The training programme comprised a mixture of teaching, role play and exercises.

Having developed the training programme, training courses were held around the country at 9 different locations for over 100 members of the external sales team and internal sales staff.

Benefits

• The client was able to rapidly introduce their new eBusiness system without diverting their own staff to deliver training.
• Using an external trainer demonstrated commitment to the new system and gave credibility to the training.
• Relationship sales training was delivered as part of a technical sales training course.
• The sales team were able to introduce new benefits to customers and build relationships with decision makers throughout customers organisations, reducing dependence on price.