I continue to hear from clients how difficult it is to get specified at the design stage by specifiers/engineers. We have seen many changes take place in the industrial marketplace during the past 6 years. Trust in the business to business marketplace seems to have diminished. Since 2001, global outsourcing to overseas markets, downsizing causing many to be out of work, the downfall of Anderson Consulting and Enron, among others. Many firms have reduced their sales force or been forced to change the way in which they go to market dramatically because of the lack of new business generated.
What method of communication do they prefer?
How do they source new suppliers of product or services?
How do they determine a supplier they can trust?
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The method of communication that a client prefers is based upon their own preferences. I, for one, like email. If a new product or service is not sourced through an industry specific, well respected, publication or website, it would make sense that it would be sourced through word of mouth, sphere of influence and/or a referral from an industry specific tradeshow. To determine a supplier that they can trust is sometimes more difficult. It can take many interractions with the same supplier before a level of trust is built to where a client feels willing and able to place their budget in their hands. So for the supplier I would think a quicker way to build that trust is to present testimonials, that can be verified, from current and past clients. These testimonials should first come from the individual trying to build trust. They should secondly come from the company with whom the individual works. People work with people they like and trust. The company they work for many times is secondary to the first level of trust.
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