In this podcast, CEO Mike Schilperoort dives in together with a trainer and franchisee. Chris Verhoef In the Commercial Mirror: a confronting yet powerful way to discover what is really happening in your organization.
What is the commercial mirror?
The Commercial Mirror is a practice-oriented analysis of how an organization operates commercially. Not just on paper, but specifically in practice. How do customer conversations proceed? Where do customers drop off? And where are you missing out on revenue without even realizing it?
The goal is simple: to make visible what seems normal internally, but can come across very differently externally.
Why dashboards are not enough
Many companies look at output: number of calls, conversion, revenue, margins. But that says little about the quality of the commercial contact.
You can make many calls and still achieve little. You can focus on upsell without the customer feeling helped. In that case, there is activity, but no real return.
The idea behind the commercial mirror
For Chris Verhoef, the idea originated from his own customer experience. After an order, he received a call with an upsell proposal. The intention was clear, but the conversation lacked something essential: genuine interest.
His situation, usage, or needs were not inquired about. Yet that was precisely where the opportunities lay. The result? No additional sales and no stronger customer relationship.
That is precisely what the commercial mirror is all about: not only looking at what an organization does, but especially at how that comes across and what effect it has.
It is precisely successful companies that miss out on profits here.
Interestingly enough, it is often precisely companies that “have it all together” that derive the greatest value from this approach. Why? Because success can also lead to routine. And routine often causes sharpness to disappear.
Sales conversations become second nature. Processes continue. Teams work on assumptions. And as a result, commercial opportunities are missed that you don't immediately see in a dashboard.
So the question is not just: is everything going well?
The better question is: can it get even better?
Growth requires vulnerability
The Commercial Mirror works best for organizations that are open to feedback. That are willing to take an honest look at their commercial process, customer experience, and internal alignment.
That takes courage. But it is precisely that open attitude that you often see in companies that want to grow, innovate, and lead the way.
Vulnerability is then not a weakness, but a prerequisite for development.
From insight to improvement
The power of the commercial mirror lies in the combination of observing, analyzing, and providing feedback. Think of shadowing in practice, observing sales processes, and testing customer contact from the outside.
That yields not a theoretical narrative, but concrete insights:
- where commercial opportunities are missed;
- how customer contact is actually experienced;
- where teams rely on assumptions;
- and where processes can be sharpened.
Do you dare to look in the mirror?
Organizations that want to grow must look not only at numbers, but also at behavior, experience, and commercial impact. That is precisely where the commercial mirror makes the difference.
So the real question is not whether there are areas for improvement. There almost always are. The main question is: do you dare to see them?
Listen to the full episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or YouTube.
