Boeing: Selling a Dream(liner)
Think about the biggest purchase that you’ve ever made. Was it a car? A computer? A piece of furniture or an appliance? Think about the time you put in to researching that decision, all the factors that you considered in making your choice, and how much the purchase ultimately cost.
Now imagine that you are part of a buying team for a major airline considering the purchase of multiple commercial jets, each costing over $100 million. A slightly different situation? Such are the customers that Boeing deals with every day. Selling commercial and military aircraft involves some of the most complicated transactions in the world. At those prices, a single sale can add up to billions of dollars. And beyond initial prices, Boeing’s clients must consider numerous factors that affect longer-term operating and maintenance costs. As a result, the airplane purchase process is nerve-rackingly slow, often taking years from the first sales presentation to the day Boeing actually delivers an airplane.
For such purchases, Boeing knows that it takes more than fast talk and a firm handshake to sell expensive aircraft—it takes a lot of relationship building. So Boeing invests heavily in managing customer relationships. Individual salespeople head up an extensive team of company specialists—sales and service technicians, financial analysts, planners, engineers—all dedicated to finding ways to understand and satisfy airline customer needs. These teams work closely with clients through the lengthy buying process. Even after receiving an order, salespeople stay in almost constant contact to keep make certain the customer stays satisfied.
The success of customer relationships depends on performance and trust. “When you buy an airplane, it is like getting married,” quips Alan Mallaly, the head of Boeing’s commercial
airplane