Training Your Customers vs. Serving Your Customers

          “We only deliver on Tuesday and Thursday.” As the company owner said it to me, I had to use all of my poker playing skills not to let shock take over my face. This wasn’t the milkman, fuel oil company, or a transatlantic container shipper, this was a B2B service in a highly competitive localized market with literally over 100 competitors within 20 miles. “We decided it was easier for us so we tell our customers our delivery days are Tuesdays and Thursdays. If someone wants it Wednesday, we tell them it will be Tuesday or Thursday.”

          I’m all for training customers on the value of pulling off incredible feats and why such activity is worth a higher price, but I was at a loss for how to respond to such a clear disregard for customer service in an industry currently operating at less than 50% capacity.

          Training your customers is the process of reaching a mutual understanding and agreement on how you will conduct business with each other including pricing, lead time, quantity, frequency, and payment terms. If someone wants to buy more, they rightfully expect to pay less per unit. If someone wants extended terms, it is not uncommon to charge a slightly higher price. But what happens when the seller says flatly, “We won’t give you what you want?”

          According to this owner, there hasn’t been a significant backlash. I would say there hasn’t been a significant backlash yet. When customers need something and call their normal supplier, they may accept the adjusted service level. Until, that is,  a competitors walks in their door and using proper selling skills asks, “What one thing would you like to change about your current supplier?” only to hear, “Well, they only deliver on Tuesdays and Thursdays and sometimes we need it on Monday.” At that point, it is only a matter of time before the current supplier loses a client and the competitor gains one.

          Are you training your customers and serving your customers or are you training your customer to find a new supplier? When was the last time you actually looked at your company from a customer perspective and asked if, “I knew nothing about the industry, what could we do better?” Or, when was the last time you sat in front of your best 20 customers and asked them point blank what you could do better?

          I am all for charging as much as possible for performing better than your competition. I’m also in favor of you staying in business by providing better total value proposition than your competition. If you haven’t asked your clients how to improve in the past three months, your homework for this week is to get out and ask them. Sooner or later, either I or one of my competitors will be working with your competitor. When that happens, we will find out what you aren’t doing right and it’s only a matter of time before your client base shrinks one by one.

Differentiation Comes With a Price

Teaching a class the other day, the topic of advertising messages came up. Just for fun I counted the advertising messages in the room at that moment. Amazingly, I saw at least 126 different messages yelling at me in one 14×24 room with 15 people. That’s a lot of clutter. Then I read an article that stated our daily commutes are so much easier because fewer people are working. I assume their facts were correct that total employment is down but I started thinking about how many people I meet every week launching new businesses who are trying to make a new name in an already crowded market. Is it possible to stand out?

While prepping this article I typed “accounting firms in Indianapolis” in my search engine and got back 55,100 hits. I then tried “graphic designers in Indianapolis” and got back 584,000 hits. Ouch—way too many to fathom. I tried yellowpages.com and found “only” 749 “Accountants—Certified Public” and 348 “Accounting Services” and 185 “Graphic Designers.” Even these lower numbers show each field overflowing with firms scrambling for the same client.

Google says each person is exposed to 400 to 5500 advertising messages per day (search on “how many advertising messages do I see a day”). Think about that. At 3000 which is in the middle of the range, assuming you sleep only 6 hours a day, you are hit with 167 messages per hour or 2.8 messages per second. No wonder cable television and satellite radio are so popular.

Advertising messages today must not simply cut through the clutter but completely erase it. Business has to make all the other messages irrelevant in the ears and eyes of its target. Doing so is not as difficult as it seems as long as you know:

1) what people buy from you and

2) who is most likely to buy it

 People never buy what you do; they buy the results or effects of what you do. People buy what you give them, not how you get them there. The tools you use are cool and fun to you because you like using them. If your client liked using your tools they wouldn’t be your client, they’d be your competitor. Too many people confuse process with outcome. To find out what people buy from you, ask them. Buy your clients a coffee or lunch and ask, “At the end of day, what are you really buying from me?” Listen carefully, take notes, and don’t reinterpret what is said. Their words need to become your words in your advertising message.

After you know what people buy, you can choose who is most likely to buy it. Is that contradictory to my second point? Not at all because the reality is you can choose your target market. Your target market is a function of your message which controls your branding. Your advertising message defines your target market by both word choice and focusing on results that are only of interest to your narrowly defined market. Are you adding to the clutter? Not when your message is poignantly more focused than the competition. When you define your market, really define it. Draw an indisputable border around it, and then own that market with a message that will make all other less focused competitors disappear in the fog of clutter.

Let’s look at two examples. Are you looking to buy or sell a home? There are thousands of realtors in central Indiana, all happy to help you. Nathan Phaler knows because he’s one of them. But Nathan would really like you to call him if you are interested in buying or selling a historic home in the Irvington or downtown Indianapolis area. Why? Because in the clutter of thousands of realtors, Nathan has decided to be “the” historic home realtor in his personal branding, his marketing, and his focus because he knows the market, he lives there, and he talks about his focus in his marketing.

Maybe you need accounting help. Earlier we read of hundreds of accountant types in the Indianapolis area. If you happen to be a horse farm or in the equine industry, then you are looking only for Jennifer Foster of Foster Results. Why? Because she has decided to be “the” accounting services firm for that market from Michigan to Kentucky. How? By declaring it, talking about it, focusing on it, calling on it, and being known in it.

Who will buy your product is a function of message and focus. After finding out what your market is really buying from you, the next step is to communicate consistently with that market in a manner that shows without any doubt that you are the only person focused on that market. When you target your message to your market using your clients’ words, your competitors’ messages will become the clutter, and yours will become the headline.

Customer Satisfaction – “Who are your customers?”

by Jake Doll

This is a question that most business owners cannot answer in a definite way. Aren’t customers actually stockholders in a sense? When they buy your product or service they are investing in your business. And, if you do what you should, they keep coming back and buying more! Does a stockholder, in the normal legal sense, do it that easily? I don’t think so. The responsibility of creating this satisfaction rests with you, the business owner.

As owners of businesses, we get so involved in developing new customers that we overlook the ones we have. How many of us can segment our customer base into the categories of an Advocate, Apathetic or Assassin? Or segmenting into A, B or C customers? How much time do you spend engaging, building trust, and creating loyalty with your customers?

To create an Advocate or Promoter you must go beyond the expected level of service. They will go out of their way to tell people about you. And, they are fiercely loyal to a brand. Advocates can easily become your Raving Fans!

Apathetics or Passives are customers that feel you just meet their basic needs. They will not go out of their way to talk about you to others. They tend to remain loyal, but are susceptible to competitor advances. Most customers are in this group. The opportunity for you is to turn these customers into Advocates or Raving Fans.

Assassins or Detractors are easily created by making basic mistakes. These are created by a bad experience or product, and will aggressively seek out a competitor for the product or service. They will also go out of their way to tell others of their bad experience! Remember, bad news travels from ten to twenty more people than good news.

Most companies talk about the value of customer satisfaction, but do not invest in it. They do not train their employees to engage with the customer and create trust. Most employees are not allowed to make decisions that actually help the customer. Has anyone ever dealt with a telephone or cable company problem? Remember, your employees represent your brand!

Data has also shown that there is a direct correlation of Return on Investment (ROI) to Customer Satisfaction Initiative (CSI). Look at how Wal-Mart is doing in this recession. And a few years ago, Staples was losing their position in office supplies. They listened to their customers, made the changes in product and stores, and have recovered a top spot in office supplies.

Talk and interact with your customers on a regular basis. Find out what they like or dislike about things, not just your product or service. How do they buy, what stores do they like and why? Where do your customers live, work, their positions, etc.? Train your employees. Don’t over promise and under deliver – that creates Assassins!

According to McKinsey & Company, a national research firm, the current recession is changing the way people think about their buying practices. 90% of people are belt tightening at some level, with 33% doing it significantly. Main reasons for the belt tightening are 45% are forced to, and 55% are being cautious. The majority of people are paying down debt and saving more. The Personal-Savings Rate in March, 2009 was 5.7% of disposable income. The rate one year earlier was 0%! In post WWII it was 9%.

How will all of this affect acquiring and keeping customers, intensifying relationships, or improving service to the customer? These changes in your customer’s thinking will have an affect on your business activities, especially marketing and sales. Customer Satisfaction will become more critical in the future; will you be ready?

Sandol & Associates

Jake Doll is the Principal of Sandol, with over 40 years of experience helping business owners Discover, Change, and Grow while creating increased Value in their businesses. Whether your need is encouragement, advice, or an interim executive, Jake will help you create positive results. Learn more at www.sandol.com.

Nearly Free Workshop on Combining Sales and Marketing 2010 and Beyond

Kim Brand & Jeff Bowe speak at Business Ownership Initiative:

Sales & Marketing 2009 (and Beyond)

“How I wasted over $200,000 and three years on

ineffective marketing schemes and inept sales strategies

and why you don’t have to.”   Kim Brand, Presenter.

What: Business Ownership Initiative (BOI) presents Sales & Marketing 2009 (and Beyond).

This four hour seminar will be conducted over two days and will be co-presented by Kim Brand, Serial Entrepreneur and President of Computer Experts and File Engine and Jeff Bowe, Chief Sales Strategist at ACTUM Group, a leading sales training company.

When: November 14th, 9AM to 1PM

Where: 4755 Kingsway Dr., Suite 314. (Near 46th & Keystone)

Why: You won’t get a better ‘reality check’ than to hear us talk about real world sales and marketing problems and solutions for small businesses from the perspective of an entrepreneur and sales pro.

Special Bonus: BOI normally charges $20 for this class…that’s cheap!  But everyone that attends will receive a $20 discount coupon from Computer Experts – your net cost is zero and your upside potential is huge and a free chapter from Jeff’s book, Get INFOCUS Get Cash!

You need to call now to register:  (317) 917-3266 ext. 100.

Space is limited, call today

Welcome 2010!

Only 75 days to get 2010 launched towards success! Do I mean 75 days left to finish strong in 2009? That might be important, but more important is to start now on 2010. 2009 is basically over. Even if you peak in the holiday season, your product line, inventory, and marketing are probably too far along to change enough to make dramatic differences in your total 2009 results. Therefore, it’s time to focus on 2010.

      To launch 2010 strong, focus on three issues:

1. Objectively evaluate your market for 2010. I don’t mean take 2009 and add the 40% sales increase you hope you can get. I mean look at all the economic and market indicators and very critically examine what will and will not change in 2010. Determine how big the market will be and set a sales goal that reflects reality, not stupidity. You can grow in a flat market; just look closely at issue 2 and 3 as you set that goal.
2. Objectively evaluate your strengths in your market and know what will bring you business over your competition. This will form your marketing plan which should be implemented today.
3. Objectively evaluate your weaknesses against the market and know what weaknesses your competition will exploit against you. This forms your development plan so that before spring comes you have minimized the opening that your competition is going to leverage for their success.

The problem with starting in January is the lag between marketing, prospecting, and gaining commitments. You have 75 days to evaluate, launch, and see immediate results in January instead of seeing the cold winter warm into the spring thaw.          

For a workshop on adding new tactics and skills to use in making 2010 the year you want and need, watch our website for the half day workshop, Launch 2010 Now!

Shine Like the Star You Are

Shoes make the man, or so the cobbler hopes. I was told once that to see if a man has money look at his watch and to see if a woman has money to look at her purse and shoes. I disagree—I think shoes show the man as well as the woman. Ever see a high dollar executive in dull scuffed shoes?

Why is this important in sales and business development? Because we are a visual species and first impressions are nearly impossible to change. Our appearance is a vital sales tool. Our clothes, accessories, and image imply success or spaciness. When you are in front of an important prospect, do you want your appearance to work for you or against you? We don’t have to dress in suits and ties and designer dresses, but we do need to appear organized, coordinated, and concerned. An organized appearance indicates that you take care in at least one area of your life. A disorganized appearance makes one question what level of attention may be paid to other areas.

I was recently interviewing candidates for a sales position. There was a slight mist coming down and while not cold, the mist and rain suggested that a coat of some type was in order. I watched who I hoped was not my candidate hurrying through the parking lot, no coat, no umbrella, portfolio and purse hanging off arms, with a flustered look on her face. She walked in, quickly introduced herself, and continued to act unprepared and disorganized. Her paper credentials were good but her presentation failed her.

Selling and interviewing are the same process. Your appearance is a key component of how you are perceived. A reader of my blog wrote how important it is to “fake it ‘til you make it.” My response was if you can’t fake it, you can’t make it. If you can’t look successful, organized, and coordinated, it’s difficult to be perceived as a professional and more difficult to be hired as one. With today’s economy and the preponderance of big box retailers, even the budget conscious can look good every day. Take the time to make sure you match, dress like you are the success you want to be, and while you’re at it, make sure your shoes are shined.

Hiring Salespeople: Much More Difficult in Down Times

Hiring quality salespeople has become very difficult. Not because they are hard to find, but because they are now mixed into a very large crowd of unemployed salespeople who range from mediocre to miserable.

 Only three years ago, great salespeople were employed and you had to recruit them. With so much downsizing in the past few years, great salespeople have been the victim of bigger problems.

The sheer volume of available salespeople has made us forget what hiring is all about. Hiring is about finding the best candidate you can afford to fill a tightly defined job description. Filling holes with bodies is not a strategy you can afford—the costs in missed sales opportunities and damaged client relationships is too great.

I had a client admit that a recent hire had been based on how well she got along with the person, how much she enjoyed the person, and that it was an emotional hire. There was only one glitch—the person was totally unqualified for the position and the result was a termination in less than 30 days. How terribly expensive and disruptive for both the company and the person.  Yet, had this person been allowed to stay in the organization, a tremendous statement would have been made regarding the level of expertise and performance allowed at all levels.

The main responsibility of a president is to set the standard for inflexible and absolute excellence.

If you are trying to grow, every hire is critical toward that goal. Hiring is about increasing the average quality level of your employee team. It is a no-compromise approach that mimics the way you expect your R&D department to innovate and your manufacturing line to produce. Commitment to excellence starts at the top and your commitment to hire only the best sets a tone that will resonate throughout the organization. Today’s compromised hire is tomorrow’s painful termination, and is the beginning of an uncontrollable slide to mediocrity. When we allow someone into our organization who does not fit our requirements, we dilute the power and productivity of all our other team members, and create a myriad of unpleasantries including loss of profit, reduction in quality, and increased employee terminations.

Do you want to shorten the list of unpleasantries as president? Be brutally and painfully honest in sales team hiring and you will have fewer terminations. Sales hiring should follow this process:

• Consider the level of active sales management you are willing and able to perform and commit to on a regular basis
• Know if you are looking for an internal salesperson (who will focus on account maintenance, growth, and retention) or an outside salesperson (who will focus on new account development)
• Have a written set of expectations, objectives, duties, and minimum requirements and qualifications.
• Interview without emotion remembering the risk in today’s terminations.
• Consider all candidates for 48 hours–never hire on the spot.
• Invest the time to have multiple people interview your top candidates, even if that means going to someone outside your organization who can be more objective since he or she does not feel the pain of an empty sales desk. Use people who have different goals, perspectives, and personalities so that you get different views on your candidates.
• Invest in communication, style, and skills profiling to see if the person is as presented. A mediocre sales person can sell a non-salesperson doing the hiring an igloo when it is 95 degrees out.
• Include the expectations and duties in the written offer letter and go through the letter line by line face to face.
• Relentlessly stick to your written objectives and do not get caught up in hiring someone who looks good if you really need someone who looks great. Stay the course and get a great addition to your team
• Look for bad trends on the first day. Anything that does not seem right will only get worse.

 Once a salesperson has been added to your team, it will be your responsibility to keep this person on track. Hiring a salesperson is an investment, not a cost. You are spending cash now to receive more cash later. And like any financial investment, it needs monitoring for trends and results. No matter how little sales management you want to do, every salesperson, even the best salesperson, needs a sales manager. A sales manager is a coach, confidant, motivator, consultant, and congratulator—sometimes all in the same day. You cannot hire a salesperson and expect him or her to tackle the world and bring in sales on the first day or even in the first year without your input. You know your company better than a new person and you know where you are strong or weak in your market. (If not, find out before you invest in a salesperson.)

 With our current unemployment and underemployment, there are probably 1000 qualified candidates within an hour of you. Follow the steps above to be sure you are ready to hire and ready to manage. If you are ready, then as you add people to your organization, don’t get a good one–get the best one.

The Myth of Busyness

Busyness is dangerous for business. I’ve heard repeatedly in the past 60 days that things have opened up. When so many businesses have gone as long as they have without being busy, this sudden surge seems overwhelming and distracting. Sales reps get bogged down, the now lean operations department gets stressed, and everyone breathes a collective sigh of relief that the worst is over. This is a big mistake. I’m about to spout some heresy so hang on.

It’s nearly October meaning we have only three months left to finish strong in 2009 and only three months to start feeding the 2010 pipeline. If you are experiencing a sudden uptick in business, that’s great and I’m happy for you. Now, work longer hours and keep selling. Forget about breathing easy and forget about smiling at how all your networking has paid off.

Right now you should be having two kinds of meetings: prospects who are prospects right now and prospects who are prospects for 2010. If someone is not a prospect, take them off your calendar. You don’t have time for fence sitters and wishy-washy people who “might do something” in a month or two, or who are “thinking it over” or who are “looking to see if it’s in the budget.”

Your time is incredibly valuable and you owe it to yourself and to your family to bring it home. Learn how to spot a true prospect from someone who has no chance of buying from you. Think about what those who became clients said during your meetings and compare it to what was said by those who never signed. As you meet new people, listen carefully and objectively but not optimistically. If you hear a fence-sitter, be polite but be specific. Find out if they are serious and if not, stop wasting time on them.

Before I get razzed for thrashing networking, I’m not saying that networking is not still part of the mix. It is, and you need to network. But networking meetings are different from prospect meetings in that networking meetings end with referrals and introductions. Prospect meetings end with either an order or a decision not to go forward. Either is fine; something in between is not.

You network to fill your calendar with prospect meetings. You meet prospects to fill your sales column. If someone does not fit either column, you’re too busy to meet and you need to focus on the sale right in front of you.

Click here for information on a nearly free workshop on Sales and Marketing in 2009 and Beyond sponsored by Business Ownership Initiative.

Personal Branding Message Lesson From My Car Doc

The last time I saw a family doctor make a house call was on a black and white television. Aside from a large animal vet that came to our house one time while I was growing up, no doctor ever came to diagnose or treat me or any member of the family.

Meet John Cannon of My Car Doc, self proclaimed graduate of bad car repair companies. He knew after working for one that there had to be a better way to give customers respect and value.

How many hours a year do you spend waiting to get your vehicle fixed? Instead of making you schedule appointments at the repair shop and waiting in a dirty, noisy, and cramped waiting room for an unspecified amount of time, My Car Doc comes to your home or place of business to fix or maintain your vehicle. John says that most businesses allow him to do repairs in their parking lot because they realize the cost of unproductive time spent at a repair shop. Some of the local office parks have regularly scheduled days as an employee benefit for tenants.

Asking John about what he learned as a business owner, he reports, “I was surprised by how quickly I became recognized throughout the social circles as the face of My Car Doc. I was also surprised by how much people wanted to get to know not only about my business, but also about me personally.”

This is personal branding and is a key issue for any new business–you are always on. You are the face of the company and people will associate your business with how you come across in all situations. Regardless of the impact of social media—or maybe because of the impact of social media—people buy from people and any time day or night you might be in front of your next prospect. No amount of marketing replaces face to face contact and personal relationships for the small business owner. John has learned the power of networking and personally spreads the word about his unique business.

John also said that his customers changed his business. “Be open to new ideas and suggestions from your customers; what they want and need is what you need to know to stay successful.” Target marketing is important but we cannot forget that the market may be smarter than we are. The market gives us valuable feedback on our offering. Too many entrepreneurs are so wrapped up in providing their service from their lengthy technical background that they fail to listen to what the market is telling them. John’s suggestion is a good one–you have to pay attention to the market and you have to listen to your customers. Your best idea will be improved when you listen to what you can’t or don’t do and then add it to next week’s offering.

Many repairs can be done in your driveway or parking lot if you have the know-how and tools and they aren’t messy—serpentine belts, air conditioning, alternators, brakes can all be done with nothing more than an open hood and maybe a simple floor jack which looks like a tire change. While the value of time is high for so many people, My Car Doc charges less than the traditional car repair shop due to low overhead.

“When you boil it all down, helping people is what My Car Doc is all about; it’s why I started this company and why we charge less than most shops in town for the most convenient service possible in Indianapolis.”

At the end of the day, you must be perceived as valuable business. What are you doing that is truly unique and what is the market telling you?

Click here for information on a nearly free workshop on Sales and Marketing in 2009 and Beyond presented by Business Ownership Initiative.

For more info on My Car Doc visit MyCarDoc.com.

Selling Today is Simple

I made this comment while speaking at a Rainmakers event and I got some raised eyebrows from some very tired salespeople. I said that selling involves three simple steps, and I believe that to be true. Here are the three steps.

First, meet more people. By meet, I don’t mean LinkedIn or Facebook friends. I mean meet more people face to face. When you are growing a business, you are the brand whether you are the owner or a salesperson. You are the face and your face needs to be everywhere. The more people you meet, the more people will know you and your company, and the more people who will be prospects for your offering.

Second, meet with more people. By meet with, I mean face to face, one on one, in a location where you can have a serious discussion without interruptions. You cannot have the type of discussions you need to grow your business in a room full of people, or over the telephone, and definitely not via email. Get out of your office—and your comfort zone—and have sales appointments. Sales is a contact sport so get make contact with your prospects.

Third, have simple conversations with the people you meet. Too many business owners and sales people talk about their business using techno-jargon that doesn’t mean anything to the prospect. Forget terms that mean something only to an expert like you. You must be able to break your business down to a simple result statement. “We help our clients become filthy, stinking, rich.” It doesn’t get much simpler than that! Ask simple questions and use examples that any high school graduate should be able to understand. “What about your computer bothers you the most?” I can’t tell you about DRAM and registry errors but I can sure tell you that taking five minutes to boot up is a real pain in my day. Build your credibility by asking questions that only an expert would know to ask, and by providing answers in a way that anyone can understand.

Selling today is simpler than ever. Let your competitors focus on being part of the noise. You need to take the path they have forgotten—meet people, meet with people, and have simple conversations.