A bullseye renewal strategy

It would be inappropriate to start pitching Contract #2 the day after scoring Contract #1; there’s activation work to be done. But you should start developing your renewal strategy soon after the celebration balloons hit the ground.

The honeymoon phase is the best time to learn intel you didn’t get during your initial courtship phase.

Start by discovering why the customer bought you. You might think you know, but you’ll hear more truth after the deal closes than before.

If you’ve recently closed a deal, call every KDM on the buy side of the account and ask them the same question…

"Hey…you know I’m excited to do the deal with you, but I’m curious… why’d you buy us?"

Follow it up with this, "Is there anything you’re concerned about on your end about execution or value that we should pay attention to?"

You’ll be surprised by what you hear.

Never assume you know the truth about why the buyer bought, or what they’re thinking after they bought.

In this epic Mad Men scene, Don must shift into hyper-aggressive seller mode because he’s conquesting. He has no choice but to go for the jugular if he wants to rip an account away from another vendor.

Renewing business dictates the opposite approach.

Take advantage of the excitement everyone feels right after you break a big piece of biz to learn what you need to know to sign ’em up again.