What if I told you that there are resources at your disposal that can give you an enormous competitive advantage? What if I told you these resources won’t cost you any money – in fact, they will pay you. Sure, you might already know about them, but I suspect you underutilize them. I have been thinking about this topic recently, and thought I’d encourage you to re-energize your outreach to these precious resources. I call them “Friendlies”.
All friendlies are customers, but not all customers are friendlies. Friendlies are a very small group of customers with whom you have a “partnership” relationship, not a “vendor” relationship.
Although regular customers might tell you what they’re thinking, that feedback can be vague since many of them don’t want to surrender the power they think comes from withholding knowledge from a vendor. Some of them want to keep you guessing in hopes you’ll work extra hard for their business, or drop your price. Others won’t tell the truth because they don’t want to hurt your feelings. Most of them simply won’t give you great feedback because they’re just too busy thinking about their own issues.
But that’s not how friendlies think. What are friendlies? Friendlies….
….have experience working with your product in the market.
…share similar characteristics with many other people you wish to sell to (“persona”).
…feel empowered enough within their own organization to speak frankly.
…have lots of experience with other participants in your market and partner ecosystem.
…are articulate and passionate.
…operate with an abundance mentality, not a scarcity mentality.
…like your company. They want you to succeed.
So friendlies are people you can call and know that they’ll be there for you.
But companies frequently undevelop their friendlies because talking to them, while important, is seldom urgent. Note that I say companies “underdevelop” their friendlies. This must mean there is a way to “develop” them.
Here are some recommendations for how to develop these resources:
- In person visits, preferably followed by a nice dinner.
- Find out the metrics that they’re evaluated upon in their jobs, and make those your metrics as well.
- Occasional phone calls that begin with “I’d like your advice on something” (Important: follow up afterwards to demonstrate that their input is making an impact).
- Form a Customer Advisory Board and invite them to join.
- Invite them to speak to your company (FYI – this can be powerful for the friendly, who feels honored by the invitation, and your employees, many of whom thirst for direct contact with a real customer).
Remember: Friendlies want to be asked to help. The mere action of asking them for their input solidifies them as friendlies.
My challenge to you: Resolve to reach out to two friendlies within three days of reading this post.
Good luck!
Postscript: After I wrote this, I realized it has a heavy B:B orientation since that is the world I’m most familiar with. However, this can be applied just as well to B:C entities, but you will need to adjust. Creating a small tribe of super users from the consumer world can accomplish the same objectives I outline above.
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