1Berling Associates – Assisting Clients To Redefine How The Game Is Played

An HVAC distributor carries a number of primary product lines and has a strong market position. But, the distributor is only marginally profitable. Management is attempting to determine what to do. They gathered the internal and outside sales teams and asked what their customers want from them and their product offering.

Sales Force Said

1. Best product quality

2. Broadest product line offering

3. Next day delivery

4. Lowest price

What Do The Customers’ Say

Customer Survey Case Study

Missing from the internal inquiries was a look outside to the customer.

2Berling Associates – Assisting Clients To Redefine How The Game Is Played

On-tim

e delivery

High product quality

Parts availability

Quick response to inquiry

Quick delivery

Spare parts packaging

Tech. assistance

Product innovation

Low price

Sales rep attention

Brand recognition

Product line breadth

Customer specialty item

s

Tech. training

3.0

3.5

4.0

4.5Importance Ranking

With web technology today, a distributor can frequently ask customers what elements of his product/service package are most important.

Our example asks the customer to rank the importance of fourteen different service elements based on a scale of 1 to 5. The data is collected via a web survey instrument, at any time or place convenient to the customer.

Identifying What Is Important

3Berling Associates – Assisting Clients To Redefine How The Game Is Played

On-tim

e delivery

High product quality

Parts availability

Quick response to inquiry

Quick delivery

Spare parts packaging

Tech. assistance

Product innovation

Low price

Sales rep attention

Brand recognition

Product line breadth

Customer specialty item

s

Tech. training

3.0

3.5

4.0

4.5Importance Ranking Performance Ranking

In another part of the survey instrument the distributor asked the customer to rank how he is performing on the fourteen service attributes. The response is overlaid onto the importance ranking chart. The distributor is over- and under-performing in different areas. The action should not be only to focus on bringing performance up in the most important areas where he is underperforming, but should critically evaluate those activities, which are not highly valued and can be scaled back.

Under-Performing

Over-Performing

Identifying How You Are Doing With What Is Important