Making a sale is difficult. The first sale in a new market is always the hardest. It takes a long time. The steps are uncertain, circuitous, and complicated. In the U.S., your lack of brand recognition, customer knowledge, and market-relevant success stories will challenge the trust needed to convert sales. Additionally, customer density plays a crucial role—unless your second sale is in close proximity to the first, both geographically and industry-type, the process won’t get any easier.
Prospect Proximity is Paramount
Proximity means that the second customer has a strong connection or relationship to the first. Ideally, they are in the same industry and the same geography. This proximity leverages all of the knowledge gained in the first sale—customer pain points, relevant use cases, and implementation challenges—to improve the speed and value of the second sale.
Besides improving sales efficiency, having a focus on customer density also streamlines customer onboarding, service, and maintenance. The faster and more likely route to scaling your company is to build a repeatable sales process. The fastest route to discovering your repeatable sales process is to build customer density. Not only should the second sale be easier than the first, but the third sale should be easier than the second, the fourth sale easier than the third, and so on.
The Network Effect of Customer Density
Customer density isn’t just about geographical proximity; it’s about creating a network of interconnected relationships and shared success stories. This network becomes a powerful tool in building trust and credibility in the market. As these relationships grow, they form a supportive ecosystem where potential customers feel more secure in their purchasing decisions due to the proven success of their peers.
Once a dense customer base is established in one region and one industry vertical it is much easier to higher the first sales representative and have them build the same dense customer base in another region or industry. The path to scaling must start with customer density.
How to Get US Sales Traction Resources
For more on this topic, we suggest reading The 3 Truths of Gaining U.S. Sales Traction
About
MEET helps international B2B & B2G companies gain traction and scale in the U.S. through trade shows, events, and strategic connections. Contact Bill Kenney for a no-obligation conversation: bill@meetroi.com or +1 (860) 573-4821.
