While this exact alignment may not work in every scenario, the principles behind it will. If you understand the makeup of your products and your client base you can create a plan that ensures that you have the right teams focused on the right parts of the business.

It sounds like the beginning of a bad allegory – or maybe a good one. The first two are terms we often use to describe the difference between new sales efforts (bringing in new logos), and client up-sell efforts. The third is a category that we often confuse with the second term (Farmer), but putting a Shepherd into a farmer role will kill your crops, while putting a Farmer into a Shepherd role will kill your cost of service (COS). Knowing what role you need for your Client Service team to fill and staffing that team with the appropriately skilled individuals is critical to your success in maximizing the value of your client base.
THE HUNTER
They study their prey. They research, observe, compare and investigate their target; all this before setting foot into the woods. They select the right type of ammunition, the best angle of approach (upwind, downwind?), the best time to hunt and even the right clothing to wear. All of this (and more) HAS to happen because they know that their target is agile. They may have only one shot at bringing home the trophy.
Your sales team goes through hours, days and sometimes even years of preparation to be ready for that first meeting. They know which of your products are most likely to bring success to the prospect and they go into that meeting fully prepared to deliver a winning business case that illustrates the value of signing a contract with you.
The Shepherd has a flock to maintain. They need to feed it, protect it and watch over it. They are not looking for new crops to try, they are not straying from initial purpose – tend the sheep and gather the wool.
THE FARMER
Occasionally mocked by the brash Hunter, the Farmer approaches each day with opportunities already in place. The crops are in the field, the sheep are in their pen and cattle are foraging in the field. All they have to do is sit back and wait for the crops to bear fruit, the sheep to offer up their wool, and the cattle to bring in the milk – right? Of course not… The crops must be tended to and protected; they must be harvested when ready.
The cows and sheep must be fed and watered; the sheep shorn; the cattle cared for. Without work and attention the farm dies out and the Farmer loses not only the new crop, they also lose the farm.
Your client service team needs to engage with their assigned client base on a regular basis. They should be aware of and involved in any escalation that their client requests.
They should know your products and systems as well as (if not better than) your lower tier support teams. They should know your complete product set better than your sales team. Your sales team can focus on a singular product that they find to be most successful in closing initial business. Your client service team needs to be able to spot any need that your client has that your products can address.
To succeed as a Farmer in business you must know both your crops (clients) and your tools (product). Client service sales focus on the client first and the product second. They start by understanding what the client’s objectives are, what their goals are, where they are succeeding and where they are failing. Then they develop a plan to deliver the products your company has that can help them succeed.
This is also why it is so important to capture the feedback and observations of your client services teams to inform product improvement, product development, and support processes.
THE SHEPHERD
The Shepherd has a flock to maintain. They need to feed it, protect it and watch over it. They are not looking for new crops to try, they are not straying from initial purpose – tend the sheep and gather the wool.
Is there any place for a Shepherd in client services? Yes – there are actually two scenarios where a Shepherd can provide value to a company:
1. If a company has only one product that they are delivering to their clients, then the Shepherd is extremely valuable in making sure that they are receiving what they signed up for. They are also an important point of information regarding client satisfaction and product needs.
2. If a company decides to have their sales department continue to focus on upsells to the client base, then the Shepherd can provide valuable support and an escalation point as needed.
The danger is if you are a company that needs a Farmer and you hire a Shepherd. If you have multiple products (or multiple levels of a service) and your client service teams are not bringing in sales, then one of two things is likely wrong: You have Shepherds instead of Farmers, or your product set does not align with the common client (perhaps you are selling Network Security and Knitting Classes).
A SUCCESS STORY
I was asked once to build an account development program for a company that had multiple technical services and hosted applications to offer. Up until that point they had been using their sales team to continue to sell into the client base. Client up-sells accounted for about 13% of total sales, and new sales had been slipping.
We built a team of Farmers to take over the accounts completely from the Hunters. The Hunter that brought in the account would still receive a cut from any add-on sales, but the account managers (Farmers) were now completely responsible for the care and development of the client and new sales.
What were the results? Both new sales and add on sales went through the roof. Total sales exploded to an approximate 300% increase year over year, and up-sells went from 13% to almost 50% of total sales. Why? The new sales team (Hunters) were able to focus completely on pursuing fresh game (new logos) while the Farmers (account management) were completely in tune with their client base and able to clearly articulate business value of new product because they knew the client and had a strong trust relationship with them.
Occasionally I would hire an account manager that seemed to handle escalations very well and their clients loved them, but they were not bringing in new sales. At that point I knew I had a Shepherd. In those cases we would look for an opportunity to move them into more of a pure support role.
SUMMARY
While this exact alignment may not work in every scenario, the principles behind it will. If you understand the makeup of your products and your client base you can create a plan that ensures that you have the right teams focused on the right parts of the business.
Knowing what role you need for your Client Service team to fill, and staffing that team with the appropriately skilled individuals is critical to your success in maximizing the value of your client base.
Don’t ask a Hunter to Farm or a Shepherd to Hunt. If you do, the village goes hungry.
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