I was reading a conversation on one of the online CRP forums around the frustrations of getting time with the sales force to find out about their customers and it got me thinking. Within the Customer Reference Program we generally think of Sales when it comes to getting an introduction to the customer, however in most organisations there are multiple touch points – many of whom have a closer relationship than the account owner themselves.
The most likely are the technical support teams (pre-sales, consultancy teams) who often spend days, if not weeks, at the customer site. These guys can give you details on the engagement, where the issues were and how they were solved, who the key players and influencers are within the organisation – a great source of information who are often more willing to give you a little of their time.
Product Marketing is another team who may have a close relationship with the customer – particularly with early adopters of a new product. Another good source can be the Technical Support Organisation, a customer who has had an issue that has been resolved smoothly and attentively can be one of the best reference customers you’ll have.
This also brings you to realise that it’s not only Sales who use our references – our bids and proposals team are always looking for reference content to include within their responses to RFPs. Executives want to refer to customer successes during conversations or within presentations, then if we add the Marketing and PR needs we are pretty much covering the whole company.
The role of the Customer Reference Program Manager is a pivotal one within the organisation – not only do we have to service all of these internal customers, but we also have to gather information from them… whilst keeping the external customer community happy and continue to come up with new stories.
Who do you consider to be your number one internal stakeholder? How do you interact with these various communities?
Sarah Burrows is a seasoned marketing professional who over the last 7 years has specialised in Customer Reference Programs. Her experience spans from starting them from scratch through to managing regional and global programs. She now uses her expertise to help organisations set up new reference programs or optimise existing ones.