Why Do You Need P&L’s On Your Customers

I know there’s one thing we all want. We all want high quality prospects that can turn into customers we love. I also know that tons of business owners like you are frustrated because your sales force seems to bring lots of business in, but it’s not the customers you dream about.

After years of being frustrated with this I found a system that stopped the wrong customers getting into our company. It’s really simple and that’s what this week’s video is all about. So, let’s jump right in and start with the five things you need to do.

Transcript

I know there’s one thing we all want. We all want high quality prospects that can turn into customers we love. I also know that tons of business owners like you, are frustrated because your sales force seems to bring lots of business in, but it’s not the customers you dream about.

You know, I understand that issue. In fact, it was a huge issue that I had in my food service company, until we started doing a very simple thing. Until we had a good definition of what a great customer was, and we developed a discipline to only call on those customers, my salespeople brought me customers I really didn’t want. Does this sound like something that happens to you?

You know, after years of being frustrated with this, I found a system that stopped the wrong customers from getting into our company. It’s really simple. And that’s what this week’s video is all about.

So let’s jump right in and start with the five things you need to do.

1. Number one, start with doing a profit and loss statement on all your customers. You need to know who makes the most money for your company. You know, here’s a secret that you might not be thinking about. We often think it’s our biggest customer, but it’s often not. It’s often someone that’s, you know, a good sales number, but not the one at the very top, because those big, big, big customers, we give huge discounts to, and that sometimes doesn’t work out so well.
2. Number two, look at the 10 customers who make you the most money. Then here’s what I want you to do. First, figure out what they all have in common. Now this night not be something that is obvious. It might be the way they think, it might be the way they buy. It might be who they are. It might be their ages, and it might be their religious affiliations. There’s all sorts of things that look there that you got your 10 best customers. Now, what do they all have in common? And you need to spend some time on this. Next, which of those customers are the most fun for you to work with? These are the ones that you like the most? Now, my experience, if I’m working with a customer that’s making me a lot of money, and there are a lot of fun to work with, it doesn’t feel like work to me. I don’t know about you.
3. Number three, ask yourself why you enjoy your favorite customers? What about them do you like? What are the demographics they have in all in common? And more importantly, what are the psychographics? That’s how they think, that’s their belief system. That’s what goes on in their head. What do they have in common? You know, those are really, really, really important things.
4. Number four, build a framework for what your best customer looks like. Are they a man, are they a woman? Does it matter, are they old? Are they young? What’s their thought process? Is there a political affiliation something that’s important for you? Does that make them better customer or not a better customer, especially in today’s environments? Those are all the things you need to do. And it always takes some time. And I know I’m repeating myself here, but it’s a really, really important step.
5. Number five, have your sales people only sell to the A customer. Now, this doesn’t mean you’re not gonna accept a B customer, and maybe every once in a while, a C customer, ’cause you have some capacity, which you have to be careful about doing that. Because if you accept too many B and C customers, what you’re doing is you’re crowding out those very, very best customers who you love to work with, and make you the most amount of money. So there you are, those are the five things.

Now that you know what you need to do, here’s a simple way to get there.

1. Number one, start with knowing who your most profitable and best customers are.
2. Number two, build a profile of the best customers who you also love to do business with.
3. And number three, only let your salespeople call on the customers that fit your profile.

You see, it’s simple and easy. It does take some discipline, and you might hear some grumbling from your salespeople. The difference between taking these simple steps and not, is you keep getting customers you’re really don’t want. Instead, don’t you want to have dream customers who you love and make you tons of profits? If so, start today.

Hey, while you’re at it, DOWNLOAD Our Free eBook on Strategic Marketing, where you’ll get step-by-step instructions on how to build the perfect customer. And please, scroll down and let me know what you think about building the perfect customer.

Hey, this is Josh Patrick. You’re at The Sustainable Business. Thanks a lot for stopping by. I hope to see you back here really soon.