Section 05 · Grow · Where and how should we grow?
Customers & Sales
6 modules · Winning, keeping and pricing customers well.
Part of the GROW curriculum. Access all GROW modules: USD 71.28. See GROW access →
The business sells to everyone the same way. Marketing is generic, and the best customers get no special attention.
Why it mattersSegmentation is the means by which a business decides whom to serve, what to offer each group and where to invest in growth. It converts a list of customers into a set of choices, and it is therefore the foundation on which pricing, sales architecture and growth strategy are later built.
You leave withThree to five customer segments with distinct needs and value.
Related: M46 Customer Profitability · M01 What Is the Business Really Selling? · M47 Sales Architecture · M51 Competitive Strategy
Open M45 →The biggest customer is treated as the most valuable. Nobody has checked what it costs to keep them.
Why it mattersKnowing profitability by customer allows the business to set terms, allocate service and manage concentration risk on the basis of evidence rather than fear. Without it, the largest customer is treated as the most valuable by default, and decisions about that customer are made defensively.
You leave withA profitability ranking of your top customers.
Related: M05 Customer Economics · M50 Pricing · M04 Unit Economics · M55 Business Risk
Illustrative teaching case: The Big Customer
Open M46 →Sales depend on the founder and one or two stars. Nobody else knows how deals are won.
Why it mattersA designed sales architecture, covering roles, process, targets, tools and review, makes revenue more predictable and makes it possible to add salespeople who succeed. It is the commercial equivalent of the process design discussed in the Operations area: the knowledge that sits in a few heads is made visible, so that others can use it.
You leave withA documented sales model: roles, stages, targets and rhythm.
Related: M48 Pipeline Management · M27 CRM · M45 Customer Segmentation · M03 Where Revenue Comes From
Open M47 →Nobody knows how many enquiries are open, how many were lost, or why.
Why it mattersA managed pipeline shows where deals are won and where they are lost, makes follow-up reliable rather than dependent on memory and gives a realistic view of future revenue, which in turn informs cash planning and capacity decisions.
You leave withA defined pipeline with stages, exit criteria and weekly review.
Related: M27 CRM · M47 Sales Architecture · M14 Workflow Design · M49 Customer Retention
Illustrative teaching case: WhatsApp Is the CRM
Open M48 →The business works hard to win customers and loses them quietly. Nobody notices until revenue dips.
Why it mattersRetention compounds. A small improvement in the share of customers who return has a large effect on revenue and profit over time, because each retained customer continues to buy without incurring the cost of being won again, and often buys more as trust develops.
You leave withA retention measure and a plan for your most valuable customers.
Related: M05 Customer Economics · M17 Quality Control · M48 Pipeline Management · M45 Customer Segmentation
Open M49 →Prices are set by copying competitors and adding a margin. Discounts are given whenever a customer asks.
Why it mattersA small improvement in price realisation often adds more to profit than a much larger increase in volume, because the additional price falls directly to profit while additional volume brings its own costs. The arithmetic is straightforward, yet it is rarely done, and businesses continue to pursue volume while margin drains away.
You leave withA pricing policy with discount limits and a review of your worst-priced lines.
Related: M04 Unit Economics · M46 Customer Profitability · M01 What Is the Business Really Selling? · M51 Competitive Strategy
Illustrative teaching case: The Profitable Product That Should Be Killed
Open M50 →
Also in Grow: Strategy & Growth