Sales Team Uses Swim Lane Map to Confirm Implementation
| by Dan Davison | ||||
Recently, the Bizmanualz sales team used a “swim lane” map to agree on the use and timing of its new sales tools. Before that, though, we collected all of our sales presentations, product descriptions, proposals, and contracts and used them to update our sales implementation binder. We not only created this physical “home” for the information but we duplicated it on our network. This binder was designed to help us standardize how we talk about our services.
Even with the sales tools collected and standardized in this way, we were getting more variance than we were willing to accept in terms of the length of the sales process, final configuration of the service, and the customer’s expectations.
Looking for root causes, we determined that the sales tools we had created were being deployed at different stages in the sales process by different people. Though we had information on when was the best time to use each tool — for example, we knew it was counterproductive to send a written proposal before confirming a shared understanding with the prospective customer, and we’d developed one-page illustrations and short slide decks to help with that – the issue of correct timing had not been adequately communicated to everyone.
Bizmanualz’ sales team worked together on this swim lane map to arrive at a consensus on when to deploy proposals and other sales tools (click graphic to enlarge).
Timing is Everything
We had not clarified when to use each tool, so in practice our sales process had not been fully implemented. Getting the sales team in on creation of a swim lane map helped us hash out the best timing and implementation of each tool. We agreed that implementation would be based on customer behaviors that we could observe and document.
Our swim lane map shows us establishing a shared understanding with the customer using a visual presentation, and also gaining acceptance to configuration and price. Only then do we propose terms and conditions. Has a shared understanding been established? What have we observed that confirms our perception? Have we received a written correspondence? Yes: issue proposal.
By mapping it out, we could visualize the implications of using the wrong tool at the wrong time. We could see that offering a formal proposal too early could throw us into a loop of confusion, delays, and revisions. By confirming expectations one step at a time, we could literally see on the map that we would be driving up customer satisfaction, one of the key metrics we use to run the company.
Categories:
Business Communication • Customer Quality • Sales and Marketing
Tags:
communications • Process Maps • Swim Lane Map
Bizmanualz has been at the forefront of deploying business best practices since 1995 delivering Policies, Procedures and Forms; quality systems implementation; and strategic business process improvement to help business owners achieve the growth and expansion they envision.
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Originally published in 2009 by Bizmanualz, Inc. under the title Sales Team Uses Swim Lane Map to Confirm Implementation. All rights reserved. Reproduction permitted with attribution only. www.bizmanualz.com
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