Two very short videos today. One about doing something way better than the phrase “How I can help you?” and the other about the power of not always having the answer! Take the 3 minutes and apply right away. Business growth ahead!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1DzhDx3ktA
Till next time,
Grow The Business.
Mark
I have a ManCave. Yep, I do.
It has cool signage like “Eat Bacon”, “Hydrate with Beer” and has an awesome neon clock. It also has a classic table hockey game, a framed Jaws movie poster, a nice TV and of course, the DVD Tommy Boy (the Holy Schnieke edition).
But what I love most about the ManCave is the TV remote control. It’s so… simple.
I don’t have a sound system like surround sound or a sound bar in the man cave. I have just the TV/ Cable and as such, just the one remote.
What a joy to sit back thinking of bacon and barley and when I want to turn the volume up or down—I just use the remote. The one remote. The simple lonely silver remote that turns on the TV, the cable, changes the stations and controls the volume.
Remote controls are by their origin, the birthplace of simple 40 years ago but as you all know, they have become anything but that (don’t tell me about the “universal remotes” out there—I’ve tried those—they don’t do it all no matter what you say).
Upstairs it takes no less than 4 remotes (TV/Cable, Sound, DVD & the TV Standard (to change Input)) to manage wasting hours and hours of your life you will never get back (upstairs is where stuff like “Bridezillas” and “Sex in the City” reruns play).
Last night in the ManCave during the Red Sox game (Go Sox!) I turned to my wife (she is permitted into the Cave with advance notice) during a commercial break and said “Don’t you love that you only have to use one remote to do everything here?” She about jumped off the couch and said “Like you would not believe!” She continued with “It’s so simple..I love simple..”
And that’s the lesson today. In an effort to simplify we often create confusion, frustration and stress. It’s great to have social media sites simple to use to keep us connected but to have like 11 of them where you need a bloody presence to get through your work or personal life day is maddening. It’s great to have smart phones glued to your hands but the chargers, the connections, the storage, the email boxes and the updates are maddening. It’s great to have a quadrillion websites with information, education and tutorials, testimonials, ratings, opinions and pontifications but figuring out which of these quadrillion you can trust is maddening.
Every one of us I suspect longs for something simple that just plain “works” today. Something you can find, something you can trust, something that is simple to use and something that doesn’t make you feel like there are 7 more things just like you I have to go check out or “I’m not doing it right”.
If you can do for a business or consumer what my remote control in the ManCave does – you’ve got a winner.
Till next time,
Grow The Business.
Mark
4 Minutes With Little Miss Dangling Arms
I am not one of those people. I write about great service, not bad service. If I write about bad service it’s usually about how we the consumers aren’t as saintly as we like to believe we are.
But then Monday happened. 4 minutes of shock and awe(ful)
It was so bad it was almost funny. It was actually funny. Like out of a movie funny.
I’m not sure of the lesson here today. Maybe it’s to say that even in a highly competitive market with technology alternatives ( and really, isnt that true for all of us? ) that service like this still exists or maybe it’s just to prove the old adage that you will indeed tell 10 people ( or um..a bit more if you have blog :)) if really bad service happens to you. Not sure, but here goes.
Monday 11:41 am.
I had to go to this unnamed place. You’re familiar with it I suspect. It is a place where you can get a package to someone who needs it. And boy, was that ever true. My 16 year son who lives with his Mom during the week 80 miles away, left his Galaxy S4 Smartphone on my kitchen counter Sunday as we were leaving. For my son ( and for many of his ilk), that’s like leaving your severed limb in the wood chipper and knowing that in mere hours, certain death will ensue.
“Hi, I need to make sure I get this package to my son tomorrow, I’m not sure the best way to do it.”
“Where does it need to go?” she said.
I gave her the town name.
“Do you have the zip code?” she said.
“No, I’m sorry – I don’t remember it.” I replied.
She stared at me. Slight smile. Arms relaxed by her side. She stared at me some more.
Awkward. Really awkward I thought. I concentrated and gave her a zip code that came to mind. She typed it in. “Nope, that’s not it.”
She stared at me. Those arms dangling by her side. Dangling by her side.
Finally I said “Do you want me to look it up?” I asked, as I reached for my IPhone. I didn’t know what else to do.
She just smiled.
I googled it. It took 2 sites and 5 clicks to finally get the zip code and I gave it to her. And yes, as I googled it, the shocking irony occurred to me. I am standing in a place where the Zip Code must be King, where The Zip Code is probably an Ebook with a 5 part ethics pledge employees must swear to and where TV shows like 90210 run continuously in the break room. And I can’t get a bloody zip code from anyone but me.
And it wasn’t over.
“Just fill the out the To and From addresses right here on this and it will be $16 dollars. ” she said.
“And when you are done with that, Ann can help you.” she added.
Ann? Who’s Ann? I thought. I looked up from writing and then past Little Miss Dangling Arms and saw no one.
Before I could figure out who Ann was, Ms. Arms slid forward a big plastic sign under my nose that said “Next Window Please”.
I looked left and saw who must have been Ann at that next window with 2 customers in her line. I returned my gaze to my now staff-less service desk and realized my 4 minute transaction would be much more than that as I was about to be getting back in line to Ann.
Heading back to my car after finally getting my son’s smartphone shipped off in an ice packed cooler, I realized the effort Little Miss Dangling Arms took to overtly not help me and make darn sure no one and nothing was getting in the way of her 11:45 am break. Wow.
Now you know one of the all time lows in customer service. Not sure how that helps but I think now I know why I wrote it – I feel better having told um, let’s call it 10 people.
Till next time,
Grow The Business.
Mark
Tangibly Speaking
How timely.
The Cool factor for this ad? A 10. And psychologically smart too.
Kudos to the Blue Sun.
As it happens, later today I’m presenting six effective ways to teach and coach to selling products and services that are less tangible than others. The audience is a group of motivated sales leaders. One of those six ways was one I didn’t expect to see in seat 19B yesterday.
As my flight was descending into Minneapolis yesterday afternoon, I was forced to shut down (ok – hide) all electronics –so I picked up the Sky Magazine to read. I flipped through the ads for the best plastic surgeon(s?) in the world and the many lunch dating services (I would definitely need the former before I could take advantage of the latter – and um..of course, er.. not be married.), but then I fell upon on page 58. Oh Joy!
Here it was! An “in print” example of working around what many sales and service people face who try and create interest in, or sell, intangible products – It was a wonderful means to get people to actually just “try it”!
The TechnoMarine ad copy says “Lift here to experience Blue Sun on your wrist”. And there gloriously lay, a perforated cut out you could lift out and place on your wrist.
I know what the makers of Blue Sun are thinking- that it’s one thing to read about the watch and see nice pictures but to “see” the watch on your wrist? – now, that is something.
I know a “watch” is not intangible or abstract like my training focus later today but TechnoMarine knows that selling a watch in a magazine is for all intents and purposes an “abstract” timepiece trapped in a two dimensional pixilated prison. And what I know about selling abstract products and services also applies here in that you have to often “try it” or “experience it” before you make a decision or even move the sales process forward.
Pretend you are selling a financial management dashboard or a social media business portal – you have to get your clients hands on the keyboard and immersed in her screen and that dashboard a bit first –like the ubiquitous test drive. It’s akin to having that faux paper watch wrapped around your wrist to see how it fits.
What I love about the watch ad is how quickly you can experience it. Boom! Lift it and wrap it around your wrist. Easy Peasy. And there is a QR code on the back and you can learn more about it. The Blue Sun ad is like the steroid version of the “scratch and sniff” print ads.- one swipe and you’ve got the experience – but in this case you can really wear it.
The broader point is simple too. “Try it” opportunities that allow you to test drive products – even when those products aren’t super abstract or intangible like a watch or a new car, (pardon the pun) are key. They always were and they always are. In the crazy world today where we have less and less time to get our prospects attention – it’s important especially when your product or service is not crystal clear immediately, to create those opportunities when a client can “wear” it.
Keep creating those free trial apps, the Freemiums, the virtual realities and the test drives for abstract and intangible products and services. And if you ever get a chance to put a perforated cut out of your product in an airline magazine – do that too.
Till next time,
Grow The Business.
Mark
Got Smarter Customers? No Problem
If you’re in sales or marketing – over the last few years you’ve heard loud and clear some version of the phrase –
“Buyers now are now as much as 70% farther into the sales process by the time they contact a vendor because they can learn so much about your product and service online”
I don’t disagree.
But I also don’t give a hoot. Neither should you.
Instead of lamenting this truth – sales people need to adapt and do things differently. Complaining that every lead you get “just wants pricing” or “already knows exactly what they want” is a sure sign things need to change. Most important however is realizing that sales people getting involved early (and sometimes way early) in a sales process lessens the likelihood that your product or service is perceived as just another commodity. People influence. People persuade. People add value.
Here’s what you can do.
Till next time,
Grow The Business.
Mark
Stand Up! (or Fight)
Years ago I nearly got into it with a colleague. I was never a big one for fights but this one was close.
I was paired up with a guy from my company we’ll call “Steve”. We were at a Home Show and in our cool and very expensive company booth. And we were selling. And selling. That’s how we made the business hum. That’s also how I put food on the table.
“Steve” somehow corralled a tall chair and decided to sit down in the booth.
Heresy. Really it was. Any sales pro worth his salt knows it’s a sin to sit in a trade show booth. At least that is what I was taught. Call me old school but it’s a bad message to send all the customers and prospects walking through the show – that you’re lazy and maybe your company is too. Your job is to be engaged in booth visitors, be passionate and proud of your product or service. Sitting on your butt behind desk does none of that.
We got into it. I kind of freaked out. It didn’t come to blows and he eventually put the chair back where he got it. I did make sure we never worked another shift together again anywhere.
Fast forward 18 years or so to last week.
I was walking through the mall with my wife. It was packed. Kiosks lining the center of the mall.
I walked past 7 of them in a row. Every single one was staffed by an oblivious, lazy, selfish and disturbingly care free employee sitting in a chair with face buried in their smart phones; most with ear buds in as well. That’s the impression they gave. And these folks in the Kiosks were no teens either.
Not one was buried in their company email. Every one as I circled was buried in Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram or some other time suck away from driving revenue out of their booths.
If that was my Kiosk that I paid for on this Saturday in a packed mall and you worked for me and behaved like that –I’d fire you on the spot.
Chairs are for the customers who might need a seat when you are explaining your product or they are filling out an application. Chairs are for customers who need to break to rest their legs and their wallets as they consider investing in your service or product and putting money into your checking account to pay the rent. Smart phones are for your pocket or your purse or to take a payment or read an email from your boss or to look up product specs.
I’m not preaching trade show booths and Kiosks in mall owners or employees need to be carnival barkers and invade the paths of a passerby and scream “come on in and take a look!” I’m saying what we know is true; stand up. Smile. Be engaged in those who show interest. Be engaged and proud of what you represent in public.
Being engaged is attractive. And that’s true in any setting. At a trade show, in a retail store, in the field, on a phone, even in a meeting.
Sitting down and being physically selfish and mentally selfish by immersing in your time waster smart phones at work has the opposite effect on people who look at you. “If you don’t care about your product and your company, why should I?”
Till next time,
Grow The Business.
Mark
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
-10 Under Par!
I took great joy in beating the two 16 year olds Saturday. Crushed their souls I did.
But I took greater joy in beating up the golf course. 10 under par was my score – that had to be some kind of record!
At least for me it was. I am framing that pictured scorecard and it is going right downstairs in the Man Room on the wall where it belongs.
10 under! Some team of golf course architects sat in some design laboratory in Florida years ago when they designed this course figuring out that the hole called “Cliffhanger” was a par 3 and that so was “High Anxiety” and so was that monster hole “Bear Cave”. Heck, the Masters has names for their golf holes like “Magnolia” and “Golden Bell” and that is one tough course.
But these golf course gurus did not expect my 5 holes in one Saturday (including 4 in a row!) and nor did my son and his friend. “Go build your fragile self esteem and confidence somewhere else” I said, (like I literally did say that). I was on fire!
I knew my concentration and skill were better than the two teenagers and that I would win, but the best part was I was way better than the “standard” of good golf – by shooting a 34 on a par 44 mini-golf course. Expert mini golfer in the house! I’m a darn near pro! I will always have good feelings about Max’s Mini Golf.
Now when you think about it, par 44 is probably a bit liberal assessment of the course difficulty. And probably on purpose by said architects in my vision. But it made my day. Quenched my competitive spirit it did. It really did. Silly I know. But not really. There’s something about it that’s good. And smart.
I wonder if that “better than standard” thing has some value in the workplace and in business. – Actually, I know it does:
So fun is good. Winning is good. Earning stuff is good. But having the chance to walk around town as the perceived professional mini golfer, the professional traveler, or even the pro eater is well, good for business too.
Till next time,
Grow The Business.
Mark
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:
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
It’s Better Read than Said
How many of you like pulling VM from friends or colleagues on your smart phones, home phones or work phones these days?
That many.
I thought so.
So cumbersome, this voice thing: So much time wasted listening to the slog of a human voice blathering dozens of extra words around the likely simple intent of the message added to the process of accessing, listening and remembering what was said ( or worse –lunging for a post it note to scribble it on).
It’s getting harder and harder to find the time out there to listen to the human voice share information.
Why? Because it’s getting so much easier, faster and efficient to read it. And type it. And text it. And Like it. And Follow it. And also to Learn and Share and Refer and Recommend.
We are information hogs, all of us now. We can’t get enough. We want information in huge amounts, And we want it in a way we can save it, retrieve it and share it. We want so much so fast, that it becomes easier to accept the inefficiency of the human voice and not want to use it or as we more increasingly feel, hear it.
You need to understand the change here on a couple of levels.
You as a person and an employee should know:
You as a business owner should know:
Till next time,
Grow The Business.
Mark
Mark McCarthy's Blog 