The Immeasurable Things That Make a Measurable Difference

Fragmented Accountability

John Gies — 2010-07-16T01:21:00Z

I am reading from the book the Three Laws of Performance by Steve Zaffron and Dave Logan. They point out that one of the flaws of some management systems is the fragmentation of accountability. That struck a chord.

I have often seen managers and departments work only for their silos.

-   “We don’t need to know how they will deliver”.
-   “We don’t know if they can implement timely “.
-   “Who cares if operations, has the capacity”.
-    “Our job is to sell then they need to deliver”.

Does anybody else see anything wrong with those comments?

A big part of my success over the years is my desire and my insistence on making sure that all of the pieces of what I sold were in alignment and we were pursuing the same ends. If as a salesman if I make a bad deal that operations has to live with and they end up cutting corners to make ends meet, who loses; the customer. When the customer loses who else loses…

When I can’t refer buyers to satisfied clients my selling becomes more difficult. As it becomes more difficult my commissions decline and well, need I say more. But it is not really about the commissions. It’s about doing the right thing.

As workers, Daniel Pink and others, have demonstrated that we are about more than the money we are also about Mastery and about being part of something bigger. For me that something bigger is the idea that my customers have received good value from our transaction and that they feel good about the decision. (In other words they feel good about me ).

If I fail to get the various parts of my offering into integrity the customer loses, I lose, the company loses, and everybody loses. Why bother? Anna Bernasek in her book the Economics of Integrity points out that when the market loses trust in the integrity of a system, it becomes harder to produce. less money and business flows through the system it withers and dies.

-   So are your departments silos or are they working together for the integrated whole?
-   What one thing can you do today to break down a silo?

Take Good Care

Are You Playing For Your Star, Or As A Team

John Gies — 2010-07-09T19:57:00Z

I just finished the book, How the Mighty Fall by Jim Collins. In this book, he explores how once great companies fall from their pinnacle of success. One of the things that I noticed was that companies were more successful when they grew their own talent. Often times when the mighty companies were in decline, they would look to outside leaders to “save” them.

This in turn made me think of an article I read recently by Jeffrey Pfeffer on www.BNET.com He explored a study by Professor Boris Groysberg, of the Harvard Business School. This study explored the impact of the talent war in the financial services sector. The findings revealed that rarely did a star live up to the price that was paid to bring them on board. In fact, often the stars performance declined as did the team that they joined.

I remember a friend that left Citicorp (before it was Citibank). He was a star performer in their collection unit and he landed a plumb job in government. His mission was to ramp up the States Revenue Collections Department. I ran into him a few years ago. He told me of his long-term regret. The state bureaucracy had overwhelmed him and he could not get change made. Now he had 5 – 6 more years to get to retirement and he was miserable.

In a recent Fast Company article Chip and Dan Heath point out that, “Organizations make this mistake constantly; we prize individual brilliance over the ability to work together as a team.” I watched Denver over the last few years since John Elway retired seeking the next super star. There is only John Elway. But, if you compare the Broncos to Coach Wooden’s basketball team, I think you see the difference. Several times the Broncos’ went to Super Bowl only to lose. Wooden has the longest championship streak in the game. One played to a Star and one team played as a Team.

You see high performance teams are…Teams. They are not a star and his/her support staff. Teams learn how to play to each others strengths and cover each others backs. They do this by having a culture and agreement on the goals. They share the same vision and they want the team (not the individual) to win.

As a Business Leaders are you driving your company with a team or a Star?

Goodwill to Work

John Gies — 2010-07-02T13:08:00Z

I just returned from conducting Mock Interviews with Good Will to Work . It is a program to help High School kids prepare for the work force. What a great experience on so many levels.

First there were at least a dozen volunteers to conduct the interviews. These are people that gave up “money time” to help a bunch of kids. These were small business owners, Entrepreneurs, HR professionals and young professionals. I am encouraged by their willingness to plant seeds for tomorrow.

Second, I met a young entrepreneur with the coolest product. They teach Work Ethic and Certify an embrace of Work Ethic through an online course. As a more experienced business leader I cannot count the number of times I have heard someone say, “These kids have no work ethic”. The A Game www.TheAGame.com teaches people, skills that lead to work ethic. Things I am not sure we can measure like:

Attitude                         Attendance                                 Appearance
Ambition      Accountability                             Acceptance
Appreciation

And yet they have results from clients that demonstrate a marked improvement in satisfaction in workers after they go through this course.

Finally the kids; they were between 14 and 21 years old. They had been in the Goodwill to Work program for just four days. For many this was their first attempt at anything like an interview. They had been coached well though.

Friends there is hope I found these kids and young adults to be articulate (some more than others), ambitious, eager, enthusiastic and willing to work. That was a common theme from them all; they were eager and willing to work.

I share this with you because I have been involved in several conversations and discussions about how can business leaders find workers willing to work, that can communicate and that are willing to solve problems?

Let me suggest a place, Goodwill to Work

Life Isn’t Fair, so Why Should I Be?

John Gies — 2010-07-01T12:13:00Z

Earlier this week in an exercise the question, “Why do you always have to play fair, life isn’t…” was asked.

The readers of this blog know that I have a firm belief that the things that are hard to measure make a measurable difference in our success and quality of life. I am talking about things like, Truth, Generosity, Attitude and so on. When the question of fairness hit the radar my reaction was, “Hell yes, we have to play fair.” However, do we?

The exercise had us look at a trait we were particularly proud of, at the moment. For me it was the reputation I have built, with colleagues and friends for being straightforward and fair. The authors’ premise is that, we developed that attribute as a response against a behavior that we observed. In this case, it might be against something or an experience of unfairness.

She then asks us to consider, “What could be good about that "not fair" side?” That got me thinking of how I could perhaps win more sales, beat the competition a little handier, win more contests and more.

How often do we hear, “Life Isn’t fair?” We all just accept that as a fact. In addition, we often experience life as unfair. There is a school of thought, which would argue that “unfairness” is a natural law. Therefore, friends how do we as leaders answer the question, “Why do you always have to play fair?” Do we? Are we rewarded by not playing fair? Really?

I argue that yes, we have to play fair, even when we might lose. The reality is that when we win by not playing fair, people notice and more importantly, they remember (not that that should be our motive). In today’s wired world, they also share. It no longer sharing with a friend or two it can be they are sharing with thousands of people.

Perhaps more to the point there is the question of what does it do to us and our organizations when we do or do not play fair.

Life isn’t fair should you be?

The Attitude of Value

John Gies — 2010-06-25T23:41:00Z

I have been reading recently Bob Burgs new book, Go-Givers Sell More. In it he points out that our job in business is to create value. (I like this guy already). It is through value creation that people will willingly pay us. The more value we create the better we are paid. Pretty simple equation isn’t it.

Here is where it gets interesting. He demonstrates the value of an attitude with the experience of staying at a Ritz Carlton Hotel. We all know this is one of the more expensive chains in the world. And yet people cheerfully pay two or even three times the price of a Marriott room; why? In part because of the attitude,

When you check in they are formal and professional. When you ask for something as Burg and others have noted, they reply, “My pleasure.” When was the last time you had a service person tell you it was a pleasure to serve you?

How much did that attitude cost? How much value did it deliver? Why is the Ritz so consistently good?

Answer these questions for your business and I’ll wager you deliver more value and hence…

Take Good Care

Intentions in Business

John Gies — 2010-06-22T12:45:00Z

I have been giving a lot of thought recently to the role of intentions in business. I believe they are one of the keys to our long-term success. Most companies are started with an intention to deliver something better or to solve a problem that has not been solved. As they deliver value, they get more customers. As value goes up, so typically does their revenue.

Over time, the intentions of individuals and organizations may change, sometimes consciously and sometimes not. I worked for a company many years ago that actually was a game changer in the industry. They found ways to apply technology and reach to become a nationwide force in what was and remains a very fragmented industry. Then they made the front page of the Wall Street Journal as one of the best performing stocks on the NASDAQ over the previous decade.

The intentions changed at that point and it became more important to be a high performing stock than a high performing company. Six years later the company was sold at a fraction of its previous value.

A confluence of recent conversations gave me some insight into this.

I have been following a writer for some time now by the name of Charles Green. He is author of the blog Trust Matters and co-Author of the book Trusted Advisor. One of the key points I gleaned from the book was that, with Trust business moves more effectively, and delivers greater value. Remember, more value typically means more revenue. A key element in the Trust equation is the degree of self-orientation the advisor has. The more that the advisor is motivated by their own interests the more trust is impacted negatively.

I have also recently have read Daniel Pinks book, Drive. It speaks about what really motivates us. We often, mistakenly it turns out, think it is incentives like more cash, more rewards. In fact, studies over the last 40 years point out that incentives can have a negative effect on our performance particularly when the task involves higher cognitive effort. It turns out that one of the three biggest motivators for us is work in service to a higher purpose.

Then while working out the other day I listened to a TED presenter Nancy Etcoff talking about the science of Happiness. She makes an interesting observation. She says,

“We are social beings from the beginning. In addition, even studies of cooperation show that cooperation between individuals lights up reward centers of the brain. One problem that psychology has had is…, is that they focus instead on the self, and self-esteem, and not self-other; it's sort of "me," not "we." And, I think this has been a really tremendous problem. It goes against our biology and nature. It hasn't made us any happier at all.”

As I heard that, the various pieces of the puzzle in my own mind fell into place. We are most successful in business when our focus is on delivering value. And, this is subtle; it has to be about delivering value in service. (Yes, we have to earn a profit but if that is the intention then value delivery can be diluted).

Daniel Pink presents us with good research that demonstrates we are more motivated about our work when, among other things, we are serving a higher purpose.

Nancy Etcoff shares with us that at a biological level we are wired to be social; that is to say, we are happiest when we are serving others versus serving ourselves.

Charles Green presents us with the Trust Equation and the way that our orientation towards self vs. other (intentions) affects the Trust in the relationship.

So what does this all mean to you?

For me it is a reminder to keep focused on the bigger picture and how can I be in service to my organization and my customers. It's more fun and at the end of the day I am convinced it delivers better results to all concerned.

Take Good Care,

Is it a Mission or a Job?

John Gies — 2010-06-12T16:35:00Z

I recently read a post by Sandy Styer From Trusted Advisor Associates. It dealt with Apollo 13 and the model of collaboration that the Ground Control crew demonstrated for us. It is a great article and you really should go read it here.

What lept out at me was her Statement, “First, it’s no coincidence that the space missions were called missions. They weren’t projects or details or jobs, but missions. It took over 400,000 people to get a spacecraft launched, and all of them had a clear and common goal.”

I have this conversation often with my colleagues. In fact, Kelly and I were discussing this on a recent Saturday as we were talking about how to engage members in our service organizations. How do we get people to engage and remain engaged in the mission? (I think we can apply these lessons to our companies as well).

I can remember back in 1988, someone in the company came out and did an experiment with our sales team. They locked us in a room, for half days, for a week, while we developed a mission statement for the company. By the time we were done we were excited, revved up and felt like we were important. The next week they said it was just an exercise…This is not the way to build team engagement by the way!

Rather, when new members join (or as we recruit them) we want to examine their congruence with our mission. For example, my Toastmaster club reads the Mission of a Toastmaster Club at the start of every meeting so we keep it at the front of our minds. How many of your team mates can tell you what your organization’s mission is?

Because I am excited about Toastmasters , I am the unofficial sales person at our club. I try to ask each guest:

-   What brings you here? – Fear of speaking, my boss sent me, I want to improve impromptu speaking, etc.
-   What do you know about us? – Speaking Club
-   What would you like to get out of this? – Be able to present in March at the conference, be able to respond better in meetings, etc.

Once we know why they are here, we can demonstrate how our organization can help them to help themselves to achieve their goals. Part of this is to get them involved by giving them a role and asking them to lead.

It also requires that we “Bang The Drum”, often to remind them individually and collectively why we are here, what mission we are out to accomplish and how it takes all of us to reach that mission.

-   Do your teams know the mission?
-   Are you confident they remember the mission?
-   Is it a mission or a job?

Take good care,

PS :The Mission of a Toastmaster Club is…

The mission of a Toastmasters club is to provide a mutually supportive and positive learning environment in which every individual member has the opportunity to develop oral communication and leadership skills, which in turn foster self-confidence and personal growth.

Are Your Employees Under Attack?...From Whom?

John Gies — 2010-06-08T14:06:00Z

In order to be successful organizations need to have goals and destinations. The paradox is that when we manage so tightly to the interim steps – when we get attached to the interim goals we often lose sight of the bigger picture and our team can come under attack …FROM US!

If you think about a sea voyage or plane trip, the vessel is off course most of the time. (Missing the interim goals) The Navigator makes adjustments and pulls us back on course. If they are capable and paying attention, they know when they are off course and what they need to do to get back on course.

Don’t you think your team knows where they stand against the goals, where they are off and where they want to go to reach the goals?

What happens when the ship’s Captain stands over the navigators shoulder and commands, “go this way and now that way, can’t you see you are off course”? How effective do you think that is? Is the captain sharing anything the Navigator did not know? Do you think it is any more effective when we stand over our people and micro- manage them?

I once worked for a company of 30,000 employees in 10 countries. As Vice President of Business Development,personally responsible for millions of dollars in sales. Yet I had to get every airline trip approved by the CEO or President of the company.

Is that the best use of the CEO’s time? Do you think he was really examining the trip and the components to make a real decision? What happened is that they have made this a rule, so that everyone down the line has to be prepared to “defend” their position or decision.

How well do you focus on moving towards your goals when you are defending them?
How do you think your team does when they are on the defense?
Is your team under attack? Who are they defending against?

Take Good Care

The Immeasurable Things: Admitting you are wrong

John Gies — 2010-06-06T21:27:00Z

I don’t watch a lot of sports but one story has captured my attention recently. It was a game between the Detroit Tigers and the Cleveland Indians. In this game the First Base Umpire clearly made a call in error in calling the runner Jason Donald Safe.

Later Joyce publicly apologized to the Pitcher Armando Galarraga and said, “I was wrong, and I cost him a perfect game.” WOW. You don’t see umpires admit they were wrong very often. It is even rarer when they admit it publicly.

Now look at the general attitude of the public and the pitcher after the apology. Prior people were up in arms and wanted Joyce’s head on a stake. Galarraga was upset and talking about it after the game. But once Joyce apologized the furor died down and in the eyes of some Joyce is seen as a bigger man for admitting his mistake.

Contrast this behavior to that of BP when the spill in the gulf originally occurred and how they downplayed the seriousness of it and minimized the potential effect. It will take BP a long, long time to regain their brand capital after his in large part because they were not honest. People will forgive all sorts of wrongs and mistakes when we own up to them. In fact, sometimes mistakes if handled well build a stronger relationship. (The buyer now knows how you will respond when the chips are down).

- When you make a mistake, are you quick to admit it?
- What happened last time you tried to shirk the responsibility for a mistake?

There is big value in being sincere and admitting when you have made a mistake. Jim Joyce for one understands that.

Take Good Care

The Immeasurable Things: Environment

John Gies — 2010-05-26T00:49:00Z

A few weeks ago, I started what will become a series of posts on the type of things that make up the “Immeasurable Things That Make a Measurable Difference”, those behaviors and beliefs that while we cannot measure them, they make a measurable difference in the quality of our careers and our lives and dare I say it, the world! One of those behaviors is the structuring of our environment. I believe we operate in three environments the physical, mental and emotional.

The Chinese have a field of study devoted to the art of environment, “Feng Shui” which is a system, (according to Wikipedia ) that balances the energies of heaven and earth such that the occupants of the space optimize their Qi [spirit or energy]). I think we have all felt it when we walk into a home or an office and it just “feels” right. We feel calm and energized, we feel as if we can accomplish things.

I spend a lot of time in Business Offices and Call Centers, where people have little cubes that are their offices. When these cubes are of the right height, the right colors and well kept, (not leaning over, dirty or torn for example) the staff seems to be able to perform at productive levels. When the staff is stuck in a trailer with no cube walls, dirty floor and loud Air conditioning …well there is a different level of performance.

Then there is our mental environment. Our mental state makes a big difference in the way we act and perceive the world. When we foster positive mental attitudes, we are able to work through challenging and good times to achieve remarkable things. As leaders, are there things we can do to help foster our staff’s attitude? Is that something we should be concerned with?

I remember one company I worked for, upon hire, I had a 90-day training program before they would let me sell for them. It required that I spend 30 – days collecting bills and working through the assistant collection manager-training program. (This taught me a lot about the business I was going to be selling at an intimate level). At the same time, I had to read several books and listen to tape series on things like “How to Dress for Success”, and the “Power of Enthusiasm”. In addition, I spent a couple of weeks at “corporate” learning how they would support me and the client in the field. At the end of this time when I hit the streets, I had CONFIDENCE! I knew our company’s capabilities; I knew what we did, how we did it and what we could do for the client. Every sales person and manager in the company had been through the same program, we had a shared experience and attitude.

While the physical environment is important and our mental environment is critical, there is another environment to consider, our Emotional Environment. (Talk about hard to measure).

If you think back to the organizations that you felt most connected to; I will bet it was really a connection to your manager. If you look closely, it was or is an emotional connection. Studies from the field of positive psychology demonstrate that when we make and help our teams make emotional connections with each other we see productivity and innovation improve. Why is that?

I think it has to do with Trust. When I think of the leaders that I have been most connected to, as bosses, in associations and clubs or in school there was a common trait; I knew that they cared about me as me. It was not just about what I could do for them, (Although there was no doubt that there were expectations). I knew they had my back and that I could stretch into performance. I remember one time shipping a truckload of foil backed insulation instead of paper-backed insulation to a customer (at a cost of $15,000) by mistake. Jeff and I examined the order and what happened; and then went back to work. Jeff had my back and in three years that I worked with the company, I continued to stretch through three different roles.

-   Have you been aware of the three environments that affect your organization?
-   What have you done to influence these environments (We influence them consciously or unconsciously)
-   What steps will you take this week
-   For those of us that are self-employed, what can we do to help ourselves?

Take Good Care

The Conflict in giving a referral

John Gies — 2010-05-19T13:22:00Z

Recently I had a friend ask me about a relationship with an organization I had done business with. In particular, he disclosed who in the organization he was working with. Here is the dilemma. I severed my relationship with this firm in large part due this individual and the way he did business and communicated.

A long time ago I took a course by Dale Carnegie in Human Relations and learned that if you can’t say anything good about someone you should not say anything. Yet I have a friend who has asked for my input. What would you do?

I’ve made my decision and know what I am doing but as I thought about this I was struck by the opposing thoughts that ran though my mind. I am still trying to befriend ambiguity.

I ended up sharing my experience with the firm and the individual with the caveat that it was my experience and they might have a different one. This now allows my friend and colleague to be perhaps more aware as he moves into his dealings.

Do you share your negative as well as positive experiences? If you don’t can you be counted on?

How Much Control Do We have

John Gies — 2010-05-17T12:43:00Z

I was reading yesterday morning and getting my attitude on, and I read about control. In particular I read how it is important to recognize what we can control (and focus there) vs. what we can’t control, (great way to get frustrated). And, that led me to think of my chosen profession, selling and business development.

If you think about it, traditionally sales people were hired to control the thinking of others to get them to change their minds and to make a purchase. Yet, how many of my fellow professionals can say, “The buyer is in my control”? I read a quote by Seth Godin the other day talking about surfing (not on the web) that captured the sales process well. It is kind of like riding a wave where you are controlling the board but the wave is a little out of control.

So here is my conclusion, I don’t think we are here to control the sale or the buyer. (I welcome your letters) We are here to control the process to the extent that we can by controlling our part. (We can’t control what they do). My job is to open the mind, discover the pain or need, help the buyer visualize a solution, and present my products possibilities so that they can change their own mind, while asking for a commitment. This is high level. In the moment, we are controlling our ego, our curiosity, our ability to stay focused on their solution vs. our sale and so on.

I cannot tell you how many great presentations and proposals I have delivered. Where we had the pain identified, we proposed specifically to that pain, we had a compelling offer and we had rapport; and yet, they chose another solution. (Not always to their benefit, I might add.)

I can’t control the sale - I can only control my part in it. That means staying focused on the behaviors that contribute to the process:

-   Getting their attention
-   Asking good questions
-   Focus on their solutions
-   Listening attentively
-   Clarifying
-   Presenting to their needs
-   Asking for the business
-   Dealing with objections
-   And so on

What are you trying to control that you can’t? What can you control that you are not trying to?

The Immeasurable Things: Attitude.

John Gies — 2010-05-10T12:33:00Z

What are the immeasurable things that make a measurable difference? The title for this blog came out of a cup of coffee with two good friends where we were discussing trends we saw in the world of business and leadership. We were wondering why some organizations seem to thrive while others struggle.

In the course of this conversation, we talked about traits like, Attitude, Honesty, Environment, Trust, Generosity, A Smile and so on. It struck me how do you measure any of these traits? Yet, we all notice the difference each of them makes in our daily encounters. These immeasurable things can make a measurable difference in our lives, our careers and our communities.

For example, I think we can all recognize the difference a positive attitude makes in our lives.
Attitude, is defined by Dictionary.com as

   –noun
1.   manner, disposition, feeling, position, etc., with regard to a person or thing; tendency or orientation, esp. of the mind: a negative attitude; group attitudes.

2.   position or posture of the body appropriate to or expressive of an action, emotion, etc.: a threatening attitude; a relaxed attitude.

Yet how do we measure attitude? I used to work for Mike. The burning rafters could be falling around us in a situation and Mike could keep the team focused on our goals while encouraging a smile. I am in awe of that ability and it is a result of his attitude. The way he sees life.

Many of you may be familiar with the story of Jerry. I first encountered in one of the Chicken Soup for the Soul books.

Jerry is a manager in a restaurant. He has always had a positive attitude towards life. Always when somebody asks him: “How is it going?” he replies: “It can’t be better”.

Many of the employees left when he left the restaurant because he was able to motivate people. Always when any of his colleagues had a bad day, Jerry was next to him trying to find out the positive side of the situation.

I noticed this and became curious. I went to him and asked him: “Hi Jerry, how do you succeed to always have your positive attitude? Nobody can stand being positive all the day!!!”

Jerry just smiled and told me: “Every morning I wake up and say to myself – hi man, today you have two choices: negative or positive attitude. I always pick up the positive option.

Every time someone comes to me and starts complaining, I have two choices – to just listen to the complaints or to try point out the positive side of the situation. I always choose the positive side.”

“But this is not so easy” – I replied

“Just the contrary! It is easy” said Jerry. “Everything in our lives is about making the right choice. You decide how you are going to react in a situation. You decide how and if the people around you will affect your mood. You decide to have negative or positive attitude. You decide how to live your life”.

Some years after I heard that Jerry had done something unacceptable in his work. He had left open the back door of the restaurant; several armed guys entered and robbed the restaurant. While trying to open the safe Jerry had his hands trembling and could not find the correct combination; one of the rubbers got panic and shot him.

I saw him six months after the story.

“How are you, Jerry” – I asked him.

“It can’t be better, man! Do you want to see the scars?”

I declined but asked him about his thoughts during the robbery.

“First thing I had in my head was that I had had to lock the back door. After I got shot I thought that I have two choices – to live or to die. I picked the “to live” option”

“Weren’t you scared” – I asked him.

“The doctors were fantastic. They kept repeating that everything will be OK. But when they took me into the ambulance and when I saw their faces I got scared. I read in their eyes: “He is a dead man”. There was a nurse who was constantly speaking to me to keep me conscious. She asked me if I had any allergies. I replied: “Yes against bullets”. Everybody laughed. Then I told them: “I choose to live. Please treat me as a living human - not as a dead man”.

So how do you measure the impact of an attitude? In Jerry’s case he measured it with his life.

-   What attitude are you displaying today?
-   How can you infect your team with the attitude of Service/Success/Winning?

Cold Calling for Success

John Gies — 2010-05-02T19:42:00Z

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again; selling is a life skill. Regardless of your profession, you will have to use selling skills to get ahead. In this essay, we are going to explore one of the more terrifying aspects of selling. The Cold call

There are a number of activities that go into selling. Arguably, the most challenging is “Cold Calling”. Talk to almost any salesperson and ask them what their least favorite part of the game is and they will tell you cold calling. And yet, if we don’t cold call… that is if we do not look for ways to turn ordinary people from suspects into prospects we will make no sales.

So what is Cold Calling? The definition I am using “is calling suspected prospects that we don’t know (Complete strangers) and engaging in a dialog to determine if they are a prospect and then if there is an opportunity for us to help them.”

Now this does not come easy to anyone. I mean think about it. We grew up hearing Things like:

-   Don’t speak until you are spoken to.
-    Kids should be seen and not heard.
-   Don’t interrupt people.

Cold calling violates all of these rules!

For a definition, a Prospect is someone that
1.   Can use your product or service
2.   They can afford it
3.   They have authority to buy it

So what steps do we need to take to turn a suspect into a Prospect? I am going to focus on two main tools that I have found successful in turning suspects into prospect and then moving forward in the sales process.

The first thing to remember when calling other people at work (or at home) is we are interrupting something. How do we turn that interruption into a conversation? Once I give them my immediate benefit statement, I always ask, "Do you have a minute?" (I acknowledge that I am interrupting their day) If not, I ask when I can call back. Now I’ve shown some courtesy that 99% of the sales people calling on the buyer have not shown. I sound different.

Once they agree to talk to you, we have 30 seconds or so to gain their attention and their desire for more information. I have recently had the opportunity to ride with a number of sales people. They all talked in features. That is they spoke about the technical specs about the company… We are $500 Million, We use IVR, we have a training program that is 6 weeks, etc. …WHO CARES! WHAT DOES THAT DO FOR ME! We want to make the conversation about them and their situation. Get them to describe their circumstances as it relates to your product or service. Once I can get them talking and describing their world it easier to demonstrate how I may be able to serve them. I am no longer “selling” I am facilitating their purchase.

The second tool I use is a two-prong approach 4-6 times per year. First, I send out a letter using what’s called a reference story. Then a week later and over the next 2 weeks I follow up with a series of telephone calls. I try to turn the cold call into a warm or at least tepid call by having something already in their hands (my letter).

The reference story I refer to is from Michael Bosworth’s – Solution Selling program. It is designed to engage the buyer by demonstrating how someone just like him or her had a similar situation and we helped solve it. A variation on this approach is the feel, felt, found approach. Which is also good for handling objections but that’s another topic.

The reference story contains the following parts

The Situation
The Critical Issues
Reasons
Vision
We provided
Results

The Situation – Includes the Title of the person you are talking to or a customer in their vertical market (someone just like them)

The Critical Issue - is the pain or problem in need of a solution. Hopefully, a problem that is common to your industry.

Reasons - are the reasons the other party was having a problem

The vision - is a vision of how the problem can be solved or what an ideal result would look like

We provided - The Service you delivered to help achieve vision

The results - The outcome they achieved. Preferably this is quantifiable.

However, the reference story is a way to accomplish a couple of things to happen in the buyer’s mind.

1.   Remind them of their pain
2.   Let them see that others have the same pain
3.   Recognize that you have helped others solve this pain
4.   Open up to the idea that you might be able to help them

Finally, we always ask for the appointment either another call or a face to face. Today with tools like Webex and others, you can make presentations without ever leaving your desk

They Get it; Rosey's Apparel at Park Meadows

John Gies — 2010-04-16T13:58:46Z

A few years ago I read a book called, The Wealthy Barber by David Chilton. It is a Parable about investing and becoming wealthy. In it he introduced me to the word Lagniappe. This is a value add concept like the Bakers Dozen. A little bit of Extra Value. I can remember when I used to buy donuts when visiting customers, some shops would always throw in an extra one for me. A nice touch.

My wife likes to visit Park Meadows shopping center with her girlfriends when they get together. And when ever they stop into Rosey's Apparel and make a purchase she gets something else. A pair of earrings, a little tote, some lip gel, something.

The result of this is Rosey's has developed a place in my Wife's mind. If they go to the Mall and they are in that section she visits Rosey's whether she needs to or not. And as a merchant getting you in the door is more than half the battle.

Rosey's Apparel has recognized that by giving a little away, they can gain a lot in return. They get it.

What are you doing to add value that is unexpected for your customers?
What can you do?

Take Good Care,

Managing Expectations

John Gies — 2010-04-14T13:01:00Z

Recently I read an Article in the Customer Collective by Kevin Eikenberry that spoke to the idea that as we engage with customers it is important that we ask the question, “What do you expect?” We often engage with clients and colleagues and we don’t ask what do you expect we make assumptions. And Eikenberry’s advice was to ask this question early in the buying process so that everyone is on the same page.

Yesterday I was reading Forbes on line and saw an article on the worst business jargon. Here Patrick Gray of Prevoyance Group says that the phrase Manage Expectations is a phrase that has to go. He says that when he hears this phrase he hears, "You're telling co-workers what we're going to give the client will suck, but you have to convince the client it's what they really wanted in the first place."

Neale Donald Walsh writes that, “Expectations are the greatest source of unhappiness.” Buddha also stated that human suffering is caused by our attachment to our expectations.

Two different views on Managing Expectations; what do you think. Is it important to be clear about expectations and then manage to these? Or, is it as Mr. Gray says it’s just a way to divert the client from poor performance. I have my view and it is a strong view but I want to hear your view first.

Take Good Care

Can You Make Meaningful Connections On-line

John Gies — 2010-04-12T18:23:00Z

For a long time I thought that Social Media and online communities like Face Book, Twitter, etc were just for people with nothing else to do. However, I heard enough about it from people I respected that I dipped my toe in several months ago. The way I dipped was on Face Book, Twitter and Linked in.

I also started to follow individuals and engaged them on line. Essentially I said "Hi, I Like your material." And just like in our day to day world some responded and some did not. At the same time I started a blog and started Tweeting.

And then I lef a company that I had been working with and started a job/career search. And the results have been very interesting. Several of the people I met on line and people they have introduced me to have all been very responsive to my requests to learn more about them, their work and how they got started. And in fact many have asked for copies of my resume and extended themselves in ways I could not have expected.

My point in sharing this story is that for those of you that think Social Media is not of value, I beg to disagree. I have made some very valuable connections. Now that we've engaged we still have to move the relationship forward just like you did when you are making friends outside of the E-World.

If you haven't started let me encourage you to start. You can start small and experiment to find your way. And here si how to start:

- Set up an Account Face Book, Twitter and or Linked In.
- Post your profile and make some connections
- Post some thing of value (A book review, a piece of news others may not have seen and a little about yourself) I know its risky but making friends can be risky.
- Engage with others. When they say something of interest comment. It's how you build connections cyber space is just a different channel.

Have some fun.

Who have you met online recently?

What relationship have you started?

Take Good Care

Are We Getting The Best From Our Team

John Gies — 2010-04-04T15:47:00Z

Recently I have been following and participating in a discussion on LinkedIn regarding the question of “What is the root cause of the mindset that fails to put customers first”. There are a whole host of good observations and viewpoints on the topic. These, range from, the greed of executive leadership, to ivory tower thinking to the lack of “servant” mentality and so on. I think we could ask this question of each of the organizations we work in. Recent studies have pointed out that, customers expectations continue to fall with respect to customer service. This does NOT mean that the customer is happy about the situation.

I think there may be another reason for this apparent disconnect between organizations and their customers.I say apparent because most organization (although I've met a few who don't think much of their customer) want to deliver value to their buyers. What happens?

One observation is with the suggestion box. Many of us have worked in or with organizations that have one. Perhaps executive leadership in their zeal for unlocking the creative juices of the organization have even offer a cash reward for creative ideas. People want to contribute to the success of their companies and they really thrive on recognition. So what happens?

The ideas begin to flow. The suggestions come in. The senior leadership examines the suggestions. Remember now in many cases senior leadership is in a leadership position because they are the “experts”. When the suggestions do not fit in their box of experience, expertise and point of view, the suggestions are disposed of or watered down at best. Because it is not obvious, where the revenue stream will come from or what it will cost, the idea is squashed. As a result, the creative juices of the organization are blocked.

Tim Brown in his book Change By Design, suggests that in order to make this kind of initiative work leaders have to make a serious commitment to step out of the box to examine the creative ideas and to unlock the value in them. There has to be a commitment to trying ideas that may fail.

Realizing that as leaders, managers and creators of value, each of you wants to unlock the creative juices that lie latent within your organizations; what commitment will you make this year to nurture the flow of ideas? How will you identify the next I-phone or game changing process?

Take Good Care,

Intent is More Important Than Capabilities

John Gies — 2010-03-27T18:01:00Z

How often have you lost a sale to a competitor that you know you could out-perform? How did you respond? Did you blame the “stupid buyer?” Or, perhaps you affirmed that the competition lied to get the business? What if you stepped back and asked yourself, “Why would they have bought from me?”

I have observed hundreds of sales calls and selling cycles in my career. And, I have seen sales won and lost by the intention of the sales executive. If we are more interested in making a commission our buyer will sense that. How would you react to the sales professional that only wants to make the sale? Buyers are already worried because they know we are compensated for our ability to influence others.

This is by no means a call to water down the profession of selling. As professionals, our job is to identify, qualify and bring in good deals for our organizations. If we are good at that, we earn a lot of money.

It still comes down to intention. If the buyer recognizes that we are interested in helping them to solve a problem and that we really want to understand the problem so that we can devise a good solution we will see our sales improve on a large scale.

So what do we do when we have a quota to meet, a boss that is jumping up and down screaming for more business?

1.   Have a healthy pipeline – when the pipeline is full of quality deals individual deals lose their power and you are able to act from a place of confidence and strength. This also relieves the pressure to close now. You can take the time to build the relationship, the trust and the base of information to deliver a compelling solution.

2.   Don’t love ‘em and leave ‘em. I just finished a meeting with my Financial Advisor, we were talking about my mother in law, how her planner had sold her some annuities had disappeared, and she was thinking of moving her money. He explained how the other advisors were paid up front on these products and now there was no commission for the advisor, so they probably didn’t call. Paul and I both recounted stories of how some of our smaller clients (in different professions) had turned into multi-million dollar clients because we stayed in touch in meaningful ways. Your existing clients are a great source of business.

3.   Remember it is about helping the client solve their problems. When we are offering real value with sincere intent, we will get the deal.

They Get It:Selling While Servicing

John Gies — 2010-03-17T14:49:00Z

My wife was on the phone today with Capital One regarding a disputed charge. While on the phone with (Lets call her) Jenny, my wife learned that Capital One is the only credit card that does not add a surcharge when traveling out of the country and that because there are no blackouts or time restrictions there are card members that have over 2,000,000 miles.

Let’s look a little closer. Jenny was helping my wife with the dispute. She also passed along two value added pieces of information clearly differentiating Capital One from the other firms.
First, it was that they do not add a surcharge when you are traveling out of the country. (That could add up). Second, that there are no blackouts or time restrictions on mile usage or accumulation.

This was subtle but very effective. Where are you reinforcing the value you add to your customer relationships? What could you be doing?

Take Good Care