A few days ago I read an article in one of the CRM blogs on customer service – The author has explained what role Restaurant waiters play in customer service and what can CRM consultants, solution seekers and marketing folks in general can learn from him.

Imagine you going to a restaurant, after settling in a table asking the waiter to get you some water without ice – The waiter takes the instruction and gets back to you with what you had exactly asked for, after sipping some water you place an order for main course – Simple!

Most marketers in waiter’s shoe would blindly thrive on up-sell and cross-sell without really understanding her needs, and delightfully present peripheral stuff around her request and push them down her throat untill she chokes. After recovering from this, she either is dejected or totally confused and does not know what happened to her request for a glass of water without ice.

I am sure all of us have either at the receiving or giving end in the aforesaid story at some part in our lives. Question is, do we acknowledge it as an issue or not? To me, it is!

In my business area, no prospect has ever come to me and said get me some water without ice – This state virtually is impossible. It is in my interest to aid her to articulate the requirement before letting my peripheral offers travel towards her at a speed of a jet plane. If I do not engage myself in the aiding act, I will probably end up turning her blind owing to over-value-brightness.

Before initiating any dialogues on products or services or solutions, Marketing Solution seekers and Sellers should partner in a thorough assessment study on

• What is missing
• How are the missing elements impacting the business
• What is available
• What should be available
• What are the handicapping gaps
• Possible sealants to fill the gaps
• Mapping of solution with identified sealants

Once done, all the stakeholders should be brought to the same platform on the NEED and ensured in sync.

Now, its time for you to talk and hear about the products, solutions and associated values. If it does not happen in a fashion similar to the one above, potential value of any solution will just remain as a distant mirage.