Key Account Acquisiton: Moving from One Herd to Another
If you want to be a Big Game Hunter, you need to know where key accounts live, what they eat and who their predators are.
If your client roster is limited to one industry and you wish to win business in another sector, how do you make the business problems you have solved relevant to that industry you want to enter?
Often an industry perceives its challenges as unique to their particular circumstances. You may see your relevance more broadly. However, relevance, like beauty, may be in the eye of the beholder.
For example, if you have helped with customer retention in consumer finance, you would be able to demonstrate credibility in other industries where equipment leasing, retail lay-away plans or insurance are offered.
I helped migrate the experience a client had in consumer finance to 2 other industries: capital finance and automotive. By connecting the dots about buyer behaviour in credit cards and financial planning, I was able to help win new buiness in 2 adjacent sectors.
Knowing the landscape you are tracking means knowing your prey’s challenges. Read their industry journals. Follow their thought and opinion leaders. Know which conferences they meet and speak at.
A cursory survey of the topics at important conferences and journals can give you clues to the challenges they are facing and how to position your offering in front of those challenges.
