On Entertaining Your Customers

How much time should I spend entertaining my customers? Good question. The world of the field salesperson is changing rapidly these days, and everything is in question. The practice of entertaining customers is one of those issues that need to be rethought.

First, let's consider whether or not you should entertain your customers. In these days of e-commerce and Internet communication, is there a place for this old-age practice?

Consider this experience of mine. I had a high-potential account that did not respond to my efforts. Months went by, and I could get nowhere in this huge account.

My company owned four season tickets to the Michigan Universityfootball games, and it was my turn to use them. I invited the head of the purchasing department from that account and her spouse to join my wife and me. We spent the afternoon together, first enjoying a traditional tail-gate meal, then a great college football game.

Immediately thereafter, however, I began to do business in that account. Business grew continually until it eventually became my largest account. The football game was the turning point in the relationship.

It wasn't that I gained "inside" information. We didn't even talk about business. But, my customer came to know me better, and, in so doing, became more comfortable with me as a person. And that made all the difference.

That was neither the first, nor the last time for that experience. I regularly treated two of my customers with their spouses to join my wife and me for a dinner at Greek town in Detroit, followed by a Tiger's game. We never talkedabout business, but afterward, business always grew. Again, it wasn't that we exchanged business information, cut deals, or anything of that nature. What did happen, every time, was that my customers came to know me better and differently. We became friends instead of just buyers and sellers.

There is an important truth illustrated by these examples. People like to do business with people they know. The better they know you, the more likely it is that they'll do business with you. When they spend time with you outside of the business setting, they come to know you better. It is really that simple.

Now, this doesn't mean that you can charge 20% more than your competitors, nor does it mean that you can sell an inferior product, or that your company can get away with second-class service. But, when the customer looks at what you and your competitor can offer, you more likely will get to the business if you are the one who has the greater relationship with the customer. The relationship doesn't stand in place of quality, price and service, but it can provide a competitive edge.

It is possible to sell without good relationships with your customers; it is just much harder. Building powerful personal relationships with your customers just makes everything move much smoother and easier.

In this time of high-tech communication, powerful personal relationships provide the high-touch that many people are subconsciously hungering for. Robert Putnam, in his landmark book, Bowling Alone, quoted a study by an MIT researcher that concludes:"Though some unimportant business relationships and casual social relationships will be established and maintained on a purely virtual basis, physical proximity will be needed to cement and reinforce the more important professional and social encounters."

Later, more directly to our point, the research concludes:"Widespread use of thecomputer-mediated communication will actually require more frequent face-to-face encounters,' and extensive deep, social infrastructure of relationships must exist so that those using the electronic media will truly understand what others are communicating to them."

In other words, even in this high-tech world characterized by voice mail, e-commerce and instant messaging, face-to-face relationships are necessary.

Is there, then, a place for entertaining your customers in this high tech sales environment? Absolutely! The question becomes whether or not you ought to, but how to do it in such a way as to gain the greatest benefit. Here are some thoughts on how to entertain effectively.

Having lunch every Tuesday with your friend who happens to work for one of your customers is not entertaining strategically. That's a waste of time. Instead, do this. Make a list of all the people who could be instrumental in buying your products and services. Rank them in order of importance using criteria like how important they are to the sale, and how much business they control.

Then, start at the top and methodically work down through the list. Try to spend social time - not business time - with each. I have found evening or Saturday afternoon events work best. Sports events, concerts, and plays are excellent because they are attractive to a lot of people. To sit at the 40-yard line of theMichigan Universityfootball game, for example, is probably the once-in-a-lifetime experience for most people.

Remember, the purpose is to get to know one another better as people - not as abuyer and aseller. So, don't talkabout business unless your customer brings it up. And no statistics or hidden advertisment, please. When you do that, you harden the buyer/seller roles that each of you play. That's exactly the opposite of what you want to happen. Instead, search for personal common ground - things that you have in common with your customer. You are trying to get to know each other as people, not as role-players.

I've found it to be always more effective to invite the customer and his/her spouse or boyfriend /girlfriend to join my wife and me. Having the other two people makes the customer feel more comfortable, and increases the likelihood that it will be a pleasant social evening.

When you are entertaining, remember that you are thehost and that you should attend to all the details. That means that you make the dinner reservations, you see to the parking and transportation. If you are at a sport event, you have cash to pay for beer and hot dogs, etc. Think the evening through in details, and be ready to act freely if something goes wrong.

While a beer or two is OK, be careful with your use, and provision, of alcohol. Too much alcohol can leave a literal as well as afigurative bad taste in your customer's mouth. Finally, don't allow the evening to go to extremes in any way. Don't be the loudest fan, not the last to leave. Don't order the most, not the least expensive item on the menu. Be moderate and calm in everything you do. Strategic entertaining can be one of your most powerful strategies. It is a way to build relationships which provides you with a competitive edge, while, at the same time, meets the customer's preference to do business with people he/she knows.

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