Who Owns the Customer Part 1?

There are two issues here.

First is where and how is the data stored. Do you and other employees have access to the records?  The Second is if you rely on a salesperson to manage the relationship with the customer the customer may perceive the salesperson is the company.  Are the customers buying from the company or from the salesman?

In this article we will look how you store lead and prospect data.  

Do you control the prospect lists? Do you have records of sales contacts with those prospects; face to face meetings and phone calls?

These lists can be anything from index cards kept in a cardboard box to sophisticated computer programs that not only store the customer and lead info but also keep track of each contact, the status of the sale or the account and a wealth of other information.

The downside of the paper systems is if they are lost or damaged they can be impossible to replace. Computer programs can be backed up and even duplicated and shared. If your sales person keeps the paper files then how do you get access particularly for outside sales people? The downside of the more sophisticated programs is they can take a lot of time and energy to manage.

Look at how you keep track of the lists and contacts. Is it appropriate for you business now and can you grow it as the company grows.  Is the system uniform or do different sales people keep their own records their own way? A standardized system will help you fill in for an employee during vacation or illness. It will also help you recover from a resignation or termination.

In our home building business we allowed our sales people to keep track of their contacts.  One project was in a new area so we decided to employ a local real estate agent with “local knowledge.”  We built a model home and spend a good deal of money on local advertising.

Sales were below projection so we ask for a list of prospects from the real estate agent. The agent informed us that the prospects where his property even though we had provided the model and advertising. After terminating this agreement we were careful to negotiate an arrangement where we received weekly prospect list with all information including source of the lead.

Original Content copyright 2010 Thomas Robinson