Sales support tools you can bank on.

• Author: Albro, Walt

THE REALITY OF TODAY'S SMALL-BUSINESS MARKET: There are a lot more lenders energetically chasing fewer deals. So, how can a bank succeed under these circumstances?

Comerica Bank (assets: $65.7 billion), with its headquarters in Dallas, decided in 2010 to improve its small-business sales efforts by centralizing the line under national management. Concurrently, it adapted a new selling strategy, with consistent training and processes across all geographic areas. The bank's small-business relationship managers now use "high-performance selling" in which they position themselves as trusted advisers--not just lenders--to their customers. Also, managers are continually developing and updating a variety of new sales-support tools for use in the field.

The bank, for example, has collected a library of current articles and white papers on "hot topics"--the impact of health-care reform, tax law changes, to name a few--and makes this content available to its relationship manager network in multiple states. A manager might drop off one of these articles during a visit to a client or prospect--without setting up a follow-up appointment. The idea is to build a value-added relationship before even trying to sell.

Since initiating this new approach three years ago, the bank's small-business production has increased significantly, says Linda Chausse, executive vice president and executive director of small-business banking. And one of the keys to this success is the integration of sales tools into the process. "The support tools are a critical element," she says.

Comerica's 165-year history

The bank was founded in Detroit in 1849. In 1956, it was known as the Detroit Bank & Trust Co. In 1982, the holding company renamed itself Comerica Inc. In 1988, it entered the Texas market through acquisition. In 2007, it relocated its corporate headquarters to Dallas.

Comerica currently operates 482 offices in five states: Michigan, Florida, Texas, Arizona and California. It has select business operations in several other states, as well as in Canada and Mexico. The parent company is the 22nd largest U.S. financial holding company.

Comerica Bank is divided into three sections: business, retail and wealth management. Over the years, the responsibility for small-business banking was shifted between retail and commercial. In the past, small-business banking was managed regionally rather than nationally. Each region had slightly different training and operating procedures.

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