Client Desk
Designing how a cloud company sells, learns from and grows its services
CX Strategy
Selling services with tools made for products
Deda Cloud was created as Dedagroup's managed cloud service provider, to move the group's offer from IT projects to managed services. A project is sold once and judged at handover. A service is paid for every month, so it is judged every month. The company now sold services, but its sales process was still built for projects.
I led the research with the people who sell: a survey of 42 colleagues across sales, presales, go-to-market and account management, co-design sessions and journey mapping. The gap was clear. 82% said other clients' success stories convince best; only 35% used case studies to tell what they sell. Six frictions came out of co-design, all caming froma the same place: a service sold like a product.
Selling services with tools made for products
Deda Cloud was created as Dedagroup's managed cloud service provider, to move the group's offer from IT projects to managed services. A project is sold once and judged at handover. A service is paid for every month, so it is judged every month. The company now sold services, but its sales process was still built for projects.
I led the research with the people who sell: a survey of 42 colleagues across sales, presales, go-to-market and account management, co-design sessions and journey mapping. The gap was clear. 82% said other clients' success stories convince best; only 35% used case studies to tell what they sell. Six frictions came out of co-design, all caming froma the same place: a service sold like a product.
The process was a loop that never closed
The service factory described how an idea becomes a service: selected, industrialised, launched, sold and run. On paper it was a line. In practice it depended on what came back from clients, and that is where it broke. Feedback lived in notebooks, inboxes and people's memory, so what was learned in a sale never reached the next service.
I designed the service layer around three loops, each with an owner, a format and a cadence: the conversation between client and seller, the feedback from seller to service owner, and the portfolio updated from real deals. The service blueprint shows where each loop runs, from preparing a meeting to renewing a contract. Before any tool, we agreed three shared formats: the service sheet, the success story and the client profile.
The process was a loop that never closed
The service factory described how an idea becomes a service: selected, industrialised, launched, sold and run. On paper it was a line. In practice it depended on what came back from clients, and that is where it broke. Feedback lived in notebooks, inboxes and people's memory, so what was learned in a sale never reached the next service.
I designed the service layer around three loops, each with an owner, a format and a cadence: the conversation between client and seller, the feedback from seller to service owner, and the portfolio updated from real deals. The service blueprint shows where each loop runs, from preparing a meeting to renewing a contract. Before any tool, we agreed three shared formats: the service sheet, the success story and the client profile.
Client Desk: one place to prepare every conversation
Client Desk turns the loops into daily work. Each meeting starts from a client profile that shows open needs, services in use and who knows the client. A story finder brings up proof from clients with the same sector and need, with the person to ask. Notes logged after a meeting reach the service owner, and the seller can see what happened to them.
On mobile, nudges replace another login: a brief an hour before the meeting, a reminder when a profile goes stale, a reply when a note lands. Client Desk was an internal concept, validated with sales. Names, clients and figures in the screens are illustrative.
Client Desk: one place to prepare every conversation
Client Desk turns the loops into daily work. Each meeting starts from a client profile that shows open needs, services in use and who knows the client. A story finder brings up proof from clients with the same sector and need, with the person to ask. Notes logged after a meeting reach the service owner, and the seller can see what happened to them.
On mobile, nudges replace another login: a brief an hour before the meeting, a reminder when a profile goes stale, a reply when a note lands. Client Desk was an internal concept, validated with sales. Names, clients and figures in the screens are illustrative.
What we would measure, and why
Every design choice came with something we could count, to see if it was working:
Shared formats: how many proposals actually start from them. If nobody uses them, nothing has changed.
One view of the client: how many profiles were updated in the last 30 days.
Closing the loop: how many notes a service owner reads, and how many end up on the roadmap. This is where things used to get lost.
Proof for a service: how many proposals come with a success story that fits. Sellers said stories convince best, but they’re the hardest thing to find. We’d also track how many meetings it takes to close a deal, since 74% of sellers needed four or more.
What we would measure, and why
Every design choice came with something we could count, to see if it was working:
Shared formats: how many proposals actually start from them. If nobody uses them, nothing has changed.
One view of the client: how many profiles were updated in the last 30 days.
Closing the loop: how many notes a service owner reads, and how many end up on the roadmap. This is where things used to get lost.
Proof for a service: how many proposals come with a success story that fits. Sellers said stories convince best, but they’re the hardest thing to find. We’d also track how many meetings it takes to close a deal, since 74% of sellers needed four or more.
