Posts Tagged ‘credibility’
Trust Your Wince-tincts
Trust Your Wince-tincts
We Wince. And wincing is a big deal.
Think about the Wince: our eyes squint up, we squeeze our shoulders together and we wish just for that moment, that we weren’t there to see or hear whatever it is that is making us wince.
Wincing is not good. Not good at all. But it can help you figure out stuff for the better.
Sometimes bad acting will make you wince (Hugh Grant comes to mind). Some movies are 2 hours of a Wince fest (I’m still scarred by that kid movie Chicken Run a decade ago). Nick Jonas as Marius in Les Miserable 25th anniversary show is probably this century’s greatest wince to date. But many times you wince in the marketplace or at work. That’s something we can fix.
In the marketplace you often sense in advance the wince is coming like when the store clerk says to the customer in front of you “ Do you have a rewards card?” then you wince and immediately drop your eyes to the ground. Why? Because you know what’s coming – the horrible cross sell -“Would you like to sign up for one..?” And the wincing isn’t over because its your turn now –you’re about to get the same WinceDom from the clerk. Ugh.
I wince when the waiter gets too familiar too soon and leans down and just about cuddles up next to me to share the day’s specials (just as he was trained to do I am sure). I Wince at the airport when I hear the gate agent say “And now we welcome our Delta Super Flyers, Northwest Perks Puppies, Frequent Flyer Super Dupers and Platinum Star Cadets” or whatever it is they say. It’s so rote and boring and there are just so many titles that it is meaningless and downright embarrassing. I also wince when I hear at the end of a phone call; “Have we met all of your needs and are you satisfied with your experience with me today?” This is a Wince slap no matter how I feel. Ugh. What do you think I’m gonna do if I’m not happy? Pick a fight? Just tell me “Thank you for your business” and let me go.
I’ve come to think that Wince is a very good word and tell for uncomfortable sales and service. It’s a great descriptor and is great for identifying those moments that need real help and that need to be fixed because wincing is very truthful. You have a hard time faking or making up a wince on the fly – It’s just the way it is. Those moments you wince in any experience are called Wince Points.
Wince Points are no fun. We should make them go away.
What about you? What are the Wince Points for you? When you listen to your colleagues over the wall or listen to client interactions remotely, or along side a sales rep in the field; what makes you wince?
I wince with my eyes squeezed shut when I hear stuff like “I’m calling just to check in…” or “We have 1/2 off anything new if want something”. I wince when I see vendor slides that begin with their credentials and not what they’ve learned about me first. I wince when I see 10 bullets on a WebEx, hear a dog barking in the background in a virtual meeting, see an unchanged automated invitation to me to connect on Linked in, read emails with suggested times to meet but no indication of time zone and I wince when someone tells me to consider then earth when deciding whether to print this document just to name a few more.
Wince Points are everywhere.
Focus on the winces. And trust your “Wince-tincts”. They are truthful and honest moments. Make a plan, create a process, get a training or get some coaching to help get rid of the winces.
If it makes you wince, there is something wrong with that moment. Don’t fight it, just go and fix it.
Till next time,
Grow The Business.
Mark
Stumped
Stumped
Nobel Prize winning Psychologist Daniel Kahneman said “The remarkable thing about your mental life is that you are rarely ever stumped.”
How interesting. This little quote has roiled around in my head for a month. Can’t shake it.
Think about how true it is. Heck, I’m gonna do this or I’m gonna do that. Or goshdarnit, I’m going to do nothing! Bottom line is most of the time, I know what I’m gonna do. And most of the time we make judgements and decisions in a flash and rarely are stumped or stuck in a quandary.
I read Kahneman’s quote in the Heath Brothers latest book called “Decisive” ( big thumbs up from me). The book has some compelling methods to help us all make better decisions of course ( if we ever allow ourselves to be stumped) but that’s for a later blog or two.
Lets just chat a bit about the stumped thing. Stumped is what I think we should be more of. Here’s why:
- When was the last time you talked to a prospect, did some great discovery, built credibility and commonality, talked pain points and said, ” You know, you’ve given me some things to think about and I’m not sure exactly what the best thing to do is, let me get back to you in a couple of days.” Answer? Never. You’re in sales, you’re never stumped and you and I both know it.
- When was the last time you launched a project to tackle a problem and didn’t pretty much have the answer already embalzoned in your brain about what you think is the right solution? Way less than you think. You’re not stumped. No Never. Not you. You can, like nobody else, see the future clearly.
- When was the last time you didn’t judge, label or categorize someone you just met because you were so comfortable with “waiting and seeing” what this person was really about? Not often enough. You’re never stumped when it comes to giving an opinion on the new person even if you just give that opinion to yourself.
The you here is me ( and yes, likely you too).
I’ve pitched an idea or a solution well before I knew what I should really do – I should have been stumped. I’ve launched a project ( just this week as a matter of fact) tackling a problem that I am brazen enough to think I already know the answer to, until my LEAN mentor smacked me upside the head and said “You need to be stumped in the beginning for this thing to work.” I’ve judged someone in just 20 minutes of conversation and another in probably 30 seconds – and did it not long ago either – both are awful things to do. Not fair and frankly, stupid. Stumped is what I needed to be there and always.
Not being stumped can get us into trouble; that’s the message here. Conversely, being stumped can do some great things like impress the hell out of a customer and get them the best help possible. Being stumped can get your problem solved better because you didn’t presume you knew the damn answer. And being stumped is certainly the best way to treat people you meet all the time and to get the most and the best out of that relationship.
Stumped ain’t bad. Stumped is good. So all you people out there with the answers ( and that means you too McCarthy) quit talking to me, I gotta work these things out like I don’t have any idea.
Till next time,
Grow The Business.
Mark
If You’re Confused, What The Heck Do You Think Your Prospect Is?
If You’re Confused, What The Heck Do You Think Your Prospect Is?
I spend a lot of time looking at, and experiencing training these days. And sometimes it’s clear that the things we train our own employees, like some of the products and services we sell, can be …well …..confusing. Not every service or product as everyone well knows, is tangible or simple. Some, like financial products or online marketing products can feel particularly abstract and complex.
And if it’s confusing to my Trainers when they first start to learn the products and then later for the Sales and Service people who then have to present in front of customers, do ya think it might be that much more confusing for prospects and clients when they are first are approached or exposed to these things?
And if you’ve ever read anything in this blog before, you already know that confusion kills sales.
Here are 3 ways to alleviate that confusion when you represent a complex product or service:
- Teach your Sales people to teach. Get past the idea that sales of complex or non tangible products / services begins with the pitch. It doesn’t. It begins with the teach. It’s OK to build teaching into your sales cycle despite the fear of lengthening the sales cycles. You aren’t lengthening the sales cycle – you are starting earlier – you have to. It’s OK to get all your sales people to a level where they become experts with online webinars under their belts, with killer LinkedIn pages and Twitter followers who look to them for as much insight as they do for what’s on sale.
- 3′s: Everything in 3′s: The mind is not wired to remember more than 5 numbers, let alone 5 points. If you have a service for example that manages your online marketing spend then even if it has 12 steps to get started, it should sound like “…Only 3 key steps to getting you started. In the first step we’ll interview you around 3 important areas like……. Then after that, we get to tackling 3 areas of your current website like…..” You get it. “3″ sounds simple. Simple eases tension and sales can keep on moving.
- Analogies: Nothing simplifies better. Are you a marketing consultant? Nope, you’re a marketing GPS that gets the business to the destination of 25% more customers. Are you a website developer? Nope; you are building an automated employee that works 24 hours a day taking orders and that never sleeps. Think hard about what you sell or service and find that perfect analogy that makes it click and stick.
This blog is not complex but I kept it to 3 points. More than that and it gets confusing who the heck wants to read that?
Till next time,
Grow The Business.
Mark
7 Things Your Prospect Won’t Tell You
7 Things Your Prospect Won’t Tell You
Whether I, your prized business prospect, is calling you or picking up your phone call, there are things I just won’t tell you.
1) I used to be in sales too. You’d be surprised how many of us decision makers started out, or are still in, sales. And I can still smell a trial close, a rotating yes and min/max close from 50 feet away. Don’t use tricky closes on me.
2) Don’t make me feel stupid even for a second. I know my world very well – not your world and if you make me feel like I’m an idiot presuming I know or like your acronyms, buzzwords and fast talking pitches- I’m gone; I’ll just go to your competitors website and read and email- – that way no one has to talk to me.
3) Tell me what everyone else is doing. I hate to admit this sometimes even to myself but I do want to know what my competitors or even my industry is doing lately and haven’t had any time to dig in. But I’m not about to go ask you — yet I wouldn’t mind hearing it if you wanted to just shout it out. Am I missing out on something or some trend?
4) I know more way more about you than you think. I’ve been to your website; I’ve Googled your reviews. Heck I’ve Googled you and saw you on LinkedIn and Twitter (or didn’t- and what does that mean?) I may have seen a few opinions about your company on Twitter already. So don’t waste my time with the basics about yourself – I got it. I called you because I want something more than the internet can give me.
5) I don’t expect much from you. I just never know if you really work for this company I am calling or am getting called from. Are you a contractor, an outsourced support, brand new employee, who knows? I don’t have high hopes but if you can assure me quickly you know what the heck you are doing then maybe I’ll listen.
6) I’d rather do nothing. Seriously, I hate change. I wish everything I do today would just work better. Change is costly, risky, takes forever it seems and I am busy enough already. I won’t tell you that of course. I’d rather just flat our say no or compare you to someone else or put you off but honestly; doing what I do today is just easier. If you can’t make me do something “different” and get me to get off the dime and essentially hate what I am doing today- then don’t bother.
7) You’re 7th on the list. I respect you dear supplier but my family, my boss, my colleagues, my customers, my pastor and my pets all come before you my trusted partner. Nothing personal- you can be very valuable to me but everyone else here is getting something for Christmas next year just so’s ya know.
Till next time,
Grow The Business.
Mark
No Fear in 2013
No Fear in 2013
This is the year to quit being afraid. Let’s start with these 7.
- Don’t fear having to memorize all your product specs and prices. What matters is you remember how the darn thing helps them do what they really want to do.
- Don’t fear social media. Embrace it. More people, customers and employees talking to each other is way better than silence.
- Don’t fear the so called demise of the offline marketing world. I don’t know any business that is moving totally away from it. Blend is always the key. In fact, that integrated offline/online mix might get a little more attention than it used to these days.
- Don’t fear the board game. It’s OK to make eye contact with your kids now and then.
- Don’t Fear the Reaper. Classic tune. Have a Listen. I heard they played at my High School way back in the early 70’s. Yup they did.
- Don’t fear going back to school. In fact, everybody should be in school. If you are not dedicating to learning something new at least an hour a day at least (and I don’t mean watching or reading “news”, timelines or posts) you are behind your competitors tomorrow.
- Don’t fear Neuroscience and Neuromarketing. Get into it. How you think, why you think the way you do. Why your clients and team react to things the way they do is important to know . As someone once said… “Just because it is your brain, doesn’t mean you know what it is doing”.
Till next time,
Grow The Business.
Mark
Scroll-Worthy
Scroll-Worthy
I have a friend I won’t name (but his first name rhymes with “Sperry”), who said something to me recently that I just can’t shake. He has a disturbing and ominous opinion about reading things like blogs, articles or pretty much anything online.
“If I have to even scroll down a tiny bit to get to the end, I usually won’t do it. I have other things to do.”
Is this what we’ve come to? Is this Scroll thing (or lack thereof) the new thumbs up or down about the value of content? Is scrolling just too cumbersome and hard now? How awful is that?
“How did everyone like your email?” you are asked, “Um gee, nobody scrolled so I guess not well.”
It takes almost no effort “scroll” but now it must be earned? Is being “Scroll-Worthy” now a badge of honor?
What else does this mean?
- That being on the first page of Google results is great – but you better be above the “scroll”???
- That you’d better be more thoughtful about how large the picture at the top of your blog post is because you may not get a single swipe??
- That you need to march out there and protest the smaller IPAD mini and the death of PC’s and large monitors because your content needs more time to be seen and deemed Scroll Worthy?
- That Eye tracking glasses are next for all and forget the scroll issue – just looking down and left to right will need be earned?
Hey “Sperry”, your view on what you’ll read online scares me man, but with this post at just 299 words, I’m praying it stays above that scroll line so you can get to the end without having to judge me Scroll – Worthy or not.
Till next time,
Grow The Business.
Mark
Up With Update, Updated, Updating
Up With Update. Updated, Updating
I heard about a company the other day that instructs its employees never to say that their computers are running slow. Instead the representatives say “Our systems are updating….” or “We’re in the midst of updating our systems, it will just taking a moment longer…”
Nice touch. Smart too.
We all have system issues at times. And usually yes, there’s some updating going on be it a new release or upgrades or what have you that slows things down.
The point is the caller on the other end of the line is feels less tension, more confidence and more patience when they hear systems or computers are being “updated” rather than being “slow”.
The use the word “update” even in the On Hold process:
“Let me put you on hold to get the most updated information.”
Way better than “Let me put you on hold to find out” or “to figure it out” or some other underwhelming phrase. “Updated” shows how bleeding edge you are keeping up with things and striving for that up-to-the-minute accuracy.
I suspect “update” has other uses in your world. It sounds fresh, smart and on top of things. Heck we live by the word with our smart phones and tablets as an incredibly necessary thing to be on top of those “updates”.
Have a look around. Update your language a bit. Don’t underestimate the value of your customers feeling a bit more comfortable and confident when working with you.
Till next time,
Grow The Business.
Mark
Angela’s Assist
Angela’s Assist
“What are you buying it for?”
“Oh, that’s wonderful…”
“Let me do that for you…..”
“I think you should grab a couple more…”
“That looks beautiful on you…..”
“Oh, I don’t like that one on you so much, not conservative enough…”
“You know what would really make that look sharp…. is a belt..”
“A necklace will really tie it together and show your personality…”
“You may want to grab another blouse with the 50% off promotion and mix and match this.”
“Good luck, I know you’ll get the job”.
Yep. That’s pretty much verbatim what sales associate Angela said to my 23 year daughter 2 weeks ago as we shopped for her first real business suit as she was about to interview for a customer service role in one of the largest investment firms in the world.
It was a memorable almost “wow” service experience as her mother and I watched Angela guide her through the buying process. She wasn’t pushy; she wasn’t hovering as in fact, Angela was helping two other customers at the same time.
It was however, so smart. It started with the right question. Not just “What are you buying?” But, “What are you buying it for?”
The rest of her comments and questions make smart sense. They are honest. They are helpful. They are overtly credible and said with the tone and content that she has “totally been here before”. And it was in the end, not about the suit at all – but about the goal our daughter had in mind – landing that job.
She did land that job. [Today, in fact 
]
And while the business suit Angela helped pick out for our daughter probably wasn’t the reason she got the job, it sure didn’t hurt and better, what a great lesson in customer service Angela gave her to steal from for the interview. It works on a lot of levels.
You can steal shamelessly from Angela too. Read the comments she made and the questions she asked. Think about them. Apply accordingly.
Till next time,
Grow The Business.
Mark
PS: If you’d like to see Angela in action, head to the clothing store Ann Taylor at Pheasant Lane Mall in Nashua, NH. I’m sure she won’t mind that I sent you there.
3 Keys To Giving Great Advice Fast
3 Keys To Giving Great Advice Fast
Smart sells. Smart and Fast sells even better.
If you are in the B2B space there is little more valuable today than insight. Insight is attractive. Insight gets attention and sets you apart from competitors. Insight leads to influencing client behavior which leads to sales.
Good advice giving is important today especially in the abstract service spaces like online digital marketing or insurance or payroll services or social media services etc- you get the picture. And Business owners (especially SBs) are pressed for time and even more pressed for advice and counsel.
So when they talk with you Mr. or Mrs. Salesperson or Consultant; they expect you have something smart to say or something to share that they did not know before and the reality is, they have very little time to stand around ( or hang on the phone) to answer your 20 questions and wait for you to absorb, analyze and provide that insight.
So if you are charged with having to provide important tips or advice in very little time to a prospect or client, how do you do it? And how do you do it fast?
3 Keys
- Set the Table Correctly Before Asking Any Questions At All: It’s a rare day when you can amble up to a business owner or chat with them while they are calling in to place and order, and start to pontificate smart advice. At a minimum, a question or two usually needs to be asked. But it’s how you preface asking those questions that makes a difference. Tee up the questions with a statement that respects the appeal from the customer/ prospect’s perspective. “I know your time is short so let me ask just three quick questions about your business so I can then give you something interesting to think about” Business owners love the words “quick” and “three” ( they know when it is over!). And you have totally respected the time issue. Do this and you have just improved your chances of your questions being answered honestly and completely enough as he/she wants what you want –to give/get good insight, fast.
- Be an Industry Informant. There’s nothing wrong with taking a tact that starts with “You know what I’m hearing from a lot of the accountants I’m talking to these days…” Or “I gotta say the contractors I talk to today are hammering social media and print marketing pretty equally..” This approach doesn’t respect the client’s individual business needs (yet) but makes you sound very smart (you must talk to people just like me every day!) and therefore the advice has credibility. And of course, nothing is more influential to a business owner than what other businesses (who are just like them) are doing. Key here is you have to leverage Lines of Business or even some deeper segmentation (gulf coast contractors for example) that appeals to clients’ sense of your industry intelligence.
- “Think” / “Consider” vs. “Do”: The worst kind of advice to give to someone you don’t know that well just yet is to tell them to “do” something. Particularly in those more complex, abstract services and especially when those people you are talking about are business owners who have a pretty large sized ego, pride and sense of entrepreneurialism. Know your audience. Telling someone to “do” something can get backs to arch so to speak. Try “Consider some payroll options, a few things to think about are how much time you spend per month…” Or “One thing to think about is investing in some kind of trackable answering service…”. Semantics? Nope. Insert the word “do” in the last 2 examples and pretend you’re a business owner talking with someone you just met. Yeah- fun uh? Encouraging business owners to “think” and “consider” is smart. Not when you are suggesting buying a pen or upgrading to larger quantity – that’s fine use a form of “do”. But when you are in those more complex products or services, it shows you get how these folks work and that you are advising not closing at this stage.
Be Smart and Sell More!
Till next time,
Grow The Business.
Mark
Sudden Death
Sudden Death
I don’t like going to the Doctor much but he’s a smart and funny guy, so it’s kind of bearable.
Bantering with him last week (cuz’ the longer I can keep him talking, the less prodding he ends up doing – which is fine with me), I joked about how I read that recent studies suggested a daily aspirin regimen could cause some nasty side effects like stomach issues. (I don’t have a problem with daily aspirin he recommended but like I said, the more I keep him talking….. )
Anyway, being funny but mostly smart he said, “Well then don’t take the aspirin then Einstein, it’s no big deal to me, the side effect though could be Sudden Death for you, so have fun with that.”
Hilarious.
But it hit me as a bit more poignant as I walked out of his office thinking about how we do some horn blowing at work about the perceived awful side effects of doing this or that, but sometimes we forget the side effects of making a change to something we know works could be a lot worse.
You can give up walking over to talk to someone or using the phone: Heck, a stroll down the hall wastes time because you don’t know if someone is there. A phone call or Skype doesn’t get recorded so you don’t have a record of what you talked about like email does. But truth is, face to face and/or voice to voice carries a gazillion other intangibles that are still valuable. And the “Sudden Death” impact of giving that up? Sudden Forgetfulness of YOU. Do people only know you by your emails? If so, you matter little to them no matter how many you write.
You can give up making quality cold calls: Cold Calling has awful side effects at times that can be painful, depressing and darn near ruin your day or week. So you can hire someone else to do it for you or fire off a gazillion emails and skip it altogether, hoping the darn phone rings. Or you can suffer the Sudden Death side effects of not cold calling and not make any sales at all. Good luck feeding the kids with that.
You can give up saying fervently “Thank you” or “I’m sorry” or “I appreciate you” or “Mr.” or “Ms.” to customers: After all, everyone has no time, everyone is busy and heck, there are a lot more important things I should be saying to customers. But no, your getting in the words “today’s special promotion is…” or the “the confirmation number is…” or the “best number to reach you if we get disconnected is…” doesn’t trump the power of the smaller phrases or titles. The Sudden Death impact of losing those little ones is the erasing the difference between you and someone that can be replaced by a computer.
Till next time,
Grow The Business.
Mark
