Are you the dominant brand, or is your brand bland?

/in /by

What’s the difference between you and all of your competition?

Are you different from your competition, or do you just THINK you are? Are you different from your competition, or do you just tell customers and prospects you are?

Or are you different from your competition, and others CLEARLY perceive you as both different and better?

REALITY: It’s not what you think or believe, it’s what your customers do and say.

REALITY: If I ask you what the difference between you and your prime competition is, and your answer is ‘our people’ or ‘me,’ you’re in serious trouble.

REALITY: If you asked your customer what the difference is, what would they say?

  • “Cheaper?”
  • “Closer to my home?”
  • “I dunno, been using them for years.”
  • “Six of one – half a dozen of the other.”

You’re in trouble.

Your reputation is a reality check of where you actually are versus where you think you are:

  • What’s your customer reputation? NOT A SATISFACTION SURVEY. A face-to-face talk. NOT A PHONEINTERVIEW. A face-to-face talk where you ask 100 of your customers what they really think of you, and why they buy.
  • What’s your social reputation? As posted on your business Facebook page by your customer, or as recommended by customers on their social media accounts?
  • What’s your industry reputation? How do both leaders and vendors perceive you in your industry?
  • What’s your community reputation? If you had a town hall meeting of the community, what wouldthey say about you?

Here are more painful ‘reputation’ questions about your company and your products:

  • What are you doing to build it?
  • What are you doing to innovate it?
  • What are you doing to change or enhance your customer’s experience?

Apple is the classic example of a brand, with products that back it up. Their competition is ‘me too,’ and often mentions Apple in their ads. If you brag that you’re ‘just like Apple,’ personally I want Apple. The experience I have in Apple stores is in perfect harmony with the brand they’re portraying.

In the computer industry, the smart phone industry, the tablet industry, and the music player industry, everyone has to start with some sort of comparison to Apple – just like, better than, cheaper than – whatever they say, they mention Apple. Only Apple stands alone not comparing themselves to other products unless it’s a joke. They don’t have to talk about their competition – Apple is the innovator. And they do it at their price.

What’s up in your world? Are you the dominant brand? Are you Amazon? eBay? Jello? Kleenex? Kellogg’s Corn Flakes? Jacuzzi?

HARD QUESTION: Are you comparing your products to the competition, or differentiating yourself from the competition?

HARD QUESTION: Are you trying to justify price, or does your quality reputation precede you?

OUCH QUESTION: Is your brand, product, or service market superior, and you haven’t elevated yourself to that position?

NOTE WELL: Then there are the brands that USED to be #1 and have fallen to #2 or lower. Either by inferior products, inferior service, or disgraced reputation. Blackberry, American Airlines, Barnes & Noble, Microsoft, and Tiger Woods to name a few.

Here are 5.5 interviews you need to do to get the TRUTH from people who are willing to give it to you. In order to get better tomorrow, you gotta know where you are today.

1. Interview customers who love you. They’ll tell you the good stuff.
2. Interview customers who left you. They’ll tell you why, and how to improve.
3. Interview customers who said no to you. They’ll tell you why they chose someone else.
4. Interview loyal employees. They’ll tell you why they love you.
5. Interview departed employees. They’ll tell you why they left you.
5.5 Interview industry leaders. They’ll give you the big picture you may not be able to see.

CAUTION: Leave PR, marketing, and advertising out of the equation, or you may NEVER get to the truth. My recommendation is hire an outside branding company, and at least get a new perspective on the outsideworld (your customers and the marketplace) and the inside world (your people).

After your interviews, here’s what to do:

  • Be realistic as to outside opinions, and how you can create improvement.
  • Create internal excitement about innovation and new ideas.
  • Train and teach attitude, self-belief, and creativity.
  • Give people paid days off just to think and create.
  • Create a sense of self-pride in your people by listening to their thoughts and ideas.
  • Praise and implement new ideas.

RESULT: A new, market dominant, more profitable you.

If you want to learn my secret for long-term brand, name recognition, and loyal customers, go to www.gitomer.com, register if you’re a first-time visitor, and enter the word NAME in the GitBit box.

Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.

About the Author

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].

The Eiffel Tower: An iconic monument and a critical lesson.

/in /by

We went to visit the Eiffel tower again. Our fourth visit in five years.

What do you know about the Eiffel Tower?

When it was built it was, to say the least, the most controversial structure of all time. Hundreds protested it, criticized it, campaigned against it, said it was a disgrace to architecture, and predicted it would be the ruination of Paris.

The story is fascinating. You can read about its history on Wikipedia, where I learned, “Some of the protestors eventually changed their minds when the tower was built. Others remained unconvinced. Guy de Maupassant supposedly ate lunch in the Tower’s restaurant every day. When asked why, he answered that it was the one place in Paris where one could not see the structure.”

EPILOG: The tower was built to world acclaim. It’s one of the most impressive structures in the universe. It’s not just stunning to look at, it’s also inspiring to be in its presence. An estimated 10 million visitors a year visit to admire its glory. It is the heart and soul of Paris, France, and it’s the symbol by which the city has been known for more than 100 years.

At the base of his tower there’s an amazing statue to honor Gustave Eiffel. Interesting to note that NONE of the people who criticized him have statues at the base.

How much more wrong could the protesters and critics have been?

Were they trying to build up or tear down? Encourage or discourage? Encourage or disparage? In hindsight, the critics seem contrite, shallow, self-serving, prejudiced, and baseless.

Kind of like today’s critics.

Call it what you will, a naysayer, by any other name, is just that.

  • Is it an opposing point of view, or criticism?
  • Is it a ‘pundit,’ or a critic?
  • Is it ‘commentary,’ or just criticism?
  • Is it an ‘op-ed column,’ or criticism?
  • Is it a ‘panel discussion,’ or criticism?

And what are these people really saying?

  • Are they debating? Or discussing and deciding?
  • Are they blaming ‘it’ or ‘them?’ Or are they offering answers and taking responsibility for the remedy?
  • Do they talk about what they WILL do? Or what someone else DIDN’T do?
  • Did they talk about what didn’t happen, who’s wrong, and why it won’t work? Or did they offer their ideas about what could be?

Do these critics (pundits) ever offer answers, ideas, or recommendations?

Critics try to label the ‘wrong-doers’ into a group for easier identification – unions, teachers, liberals, conservatives, left, right, or in your familiar terms: the competition or the purchasing department.

THINK ABOUT IT: It’s never everyone is it?

And of course, today’s world paints criticism as some sort of pious, politically correct, and necessary element of society. REALITY: People criticize to suit themselves, further their agenda, or even make the sale.

In the late 1800’s, Finnish composer Jean Sibelius said, “Pay no attention to people who criticize. No statue was ever erected to a critic.” And in the late 1960’s, the great Glenn W. Turner added, “But the people they have criticized, many statues have gone up.”

Makes me stop and think. I hope it does the same for you.

Got statue? Or are you just criticizing?

How much of your time is wasted criticizing other people, their ideas, or their thoughts? And how could you be investing that time to build your own monument? Your own Eiffel Tower.

YOUR REAL JOB: Convert your criticism to answers, resolve, solutions, and responsibility. You’ll be thought of as a thinker, make more sales, build stronger relationships, earn a better reputation, be seen as a resource, and be a happier person.

Dale Carnegie, author of the 70-year bestseller, How to Win Friends and Influence People, nailed it in 1915 when he penned his most dominant principle, “Any fool can criticize, condemn, and complain (and most fools do).”

There should be a law that says all criticism must be followed by a solution, an answer, a resolve, or an idea. That would shut a lot of people up – or at least make them think and see the positive side of things.

FOOTNOTE: Apple just released the much anticipated iPhone 5. The critics lined up to tell you how it ‘falls short’ or ‘disappoints’ or some baloney about speed or connectivity or maps or keyboard. They gave it three and a half stars. Meanwhile Apple, in spite of the jackass critics, has sold ten million phones in the first 30 days for $400 a device. Do that math. I wonder how much critics earn?

Free GitBit: If you’re looking for a change of language to launch your new ‘criticism-free’ lexicon, I’m making available eight pages of positive quotes and ideas from Dale Carnegie. Go to www.gitomer.com, register if you’re a first-time visitor, and enter the words CRITIC in the GitBit box.

Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.

About the Author

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].

Drill or hole? What are they buying – and what are you selling?

/in /by

A guy walks into a hardware store and says to the clerk, “I need a drill.”

Clerk says, “Well, not really. You want to make a hole.”

If you’re in retail and your customer comes in and says, “I need a drill,” or “I want a drill,” or “Where are the drills?” you, the salesperson, begin some response dialog.

REALITY: He didn’t come for a drill. He needs a hole.

Now you may have heard some version of ‘drill-hole’ in your career, but you have never heard what the situation is, how to address the buying motive, how to take control of the sale, how to gain trust, and how to create a vision of “outcome” in the mind of the buyer.

HERE’S THE REAL LESSON: (And it can be applied to ANY sales situation where the buyer is wanting a service or a product and needs your help to “find the right answers and achieve the required or desired outcome.”) If you ask, “What kind of drill are you looking for?” you’re asking an annoying, self-serving, time wasting, price-based question. Zero value to the customer. Wrong direction to close a value sale.

It’s likely the customer has NO IDEA what kind of drill he wants – and you, in your sales brilliance, are gonna point out the “drill aisle” and be done with it. You smile and say, “They’re in the hand tool area over by the wall” or “Here’s what’s on sale.”

NO! This is your opportunity to become an advisor rather than a traffic director. So far you don’t know WHAT KIND OF HOLE THE CUSTOMER NEEDS.

  • How big (what diameter) of a hole are you drilling?
  • What kind of material are you drilling into?
  • How deep is the hole?
  • Are you drilling inside or outside?

If you’re trying to show the customer the 3/8ths inch drill ‘on sale’ and the customer needs a half-inch hole, you’re gonna have an unhappy customer. If you know it’s a half-inch hole through a wooden post, you can recommend the right drill, and also tell them they need a “starter hole” with a smaller drill bit to ensure a perfect outcome.

OK, you get it! Drill – hole – want – need – outcome.

But how does this apply to you and your sales?

Well, it applies to every sale that everyone makes – including yours:

  • I need a filling in my tooth. No, you want to be healthy and pain free.
  • I need copies. No, you want to send a proposal in color that reflects your image and wins the sale.
  • I need a new roof. No, you want to have no leaks, and enjoy quality of life.
  • I need a credit card. No, you don’t have cash, or you don’t want to spend your cash.
  • I need tickets to a concert. No, your favorite group of all time is playing and you have never seen them before. It’s on your bucket list!
  • I need to find a restaurant. No, you need to eat.
  • I need new tires. No, how do you use your car now? How many miles are on your present tires? City or highway driving?
  • I need a flight to New York City. No, why are you going? What will you do after you arrive? Where are you staying?

NOTE WELL: Just because you don’t have what the customer needs, does not mean they no longer need it.

If I call a hotel to book a room and they say, “Sorry, we’re full,” I respond, “Oh, I guess I don’t need a room after all.”

Think past ‘sale’ to ‘genuine need and desired outcome.’

What does the customer need or want to do AFTER the sale is made? And how can you show him or prove to them that you have the answers, and you are the best choice to create the best outcome? A happy ending, if you will.

That’s what the customer is really buying: OUTCOME.

  • It’s not what it is (a perceived need) – a drill.
  • It’s not just what it does – makes a hole.
  • It’s the desired outcome – the result of drilling the hole.

As a salesperson, if you’re looking to successfully sell at your price, build a relationship, and earn a referral, you better stop selling the features and benefits of your product, and look to what happens after the sale – after the customer takes ownership.

GOOD NEWS: If you are able to find (by uncovering and asking for) the desired outcome, and agree that your answer, your solution, or your idea will be the best one – the customer will buy.

GREAT NEWS: When the outcome comes to pass, the customer will tell Facebook what happened.

Want insight on buying motives – to help yourself answer the question What makes me want to buy? Go to www.gitomer.com, register if you’re a first-time visitor, and enter the word EMOTION in the GitBit box.

Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.

About the Author

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].

Salespeople have questions, Jeffrey has answers.

/in /by

I get a ton of emails from people seeking insight or asking me to solve sales dilemmas. Here are a few that may relate to your job, your life and, most important, your sales thought process right now.

Jeffrey, I am a marketing and sales rep for a company that sells emergency cleanup services. I visit prospective customers almost daily, mostly insurance agents and property managers, and provide value. Given the nature of what we do, my biggest challenge is coming up with objectives for each visit. Do you have any advice for me? Roxanne

Roxanne, Bring a current customers that has just had a major cleanup. Talk to them about what happened before, what caused it, what happened during, and then what happened after. What was the outcome? If you’re really looking for an objective, if you’re really looking for subject matter to talk your customers about, what could be better than something you’ve already done and what could be better than the proof you could provide through the voice of your existing customer? Do that and all of your watermelon will come right from the heart. Best regards, Jeffrey

Jeffrey, It’s a known fact you are a great believer in the teachings of Napoleon Hill, like many other sales guys out there such as myself. Expanding the sales team with the most suitable people can be a challenge, and if the person who selects the new sales guys is a fan of Napoleon Hill’s philosophy, then it seems natural that the new guys also should share it. How do you personally go about finding new employees, assuming you’re looking for people that share the same philosophy? Do you have a certain approach of recognizing if a person will qualify, in order to spare a potentially unnecessary meeting? David

David, No. There is no way. However, there are questions you can ask during the interview such as, “What are the most impactful books you’ve read?” instead of “Have you read Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich?” This will give you a long list of books, or it will tell you the person doesn’t read books. I want to know the most impactful books the person has read. That will tell me a little bit about their philosophy. For example, if he or she is reading a John Grisham novel versus an Ayn Rand novel, I have a clue as to what kind of thinker the person is. If a person has read Woody Allen he or she will likely be kind of a humorist. Or maybe the person has read Dorothy Parker. But the bottom line is whatever that person has read is an insight into his or her thought process. Find that out and you will find out if you have a good person or not. Best Regards, Jeffrey

Jeffrey, My company helps small B2B businesses plan a video strategy and develop web series and webinars to tighten their bond with their customers. I’m feeling a great deal of resistance from people about creating videos to grow their business. The objections seem to fall into two major categories: 1) fear of visually being on the web (in fact, their social media is probably non existent as well) and 2) I can do this myself. I can hire the kid next door. Besides leaving them a copy of Social BOOM!, which I do, what approach would you suggest? Pat

Pat, My recommendation is that you have examples of video testimonials from other customers, not just about a video testimonial of a third party, rather a video testimonial about you. It should be about how they were reluctant, about how they thought the kid next door could do it, about how they thought the price was too high, about how they thought they were ugly on film. All of the elements that you have as objections can be overcome by an existing customer who loves you. That’s the easiest way to do it so when you get the objection you can say, “Oh, you know what? You may be right, but let me show you how a couple of my customers feel about the entire process.” That’s the first half of your presentation. The second half should be examples of videos you’ve done that rock – examples of videos you’ve done that are up on somebody else’s Facebook business page or up on their YouTube channel that has 2,000 or 3,000 views. Your job is not to give a sales presentation. Your job is to show examples of how other people can use and profit from what it is that you do. Do that, you win. Best regards, Jeffrey

Jeffrey, There’s something that has never made sense to me. I’m required to make cold calls as part of my daily routine. At the same time, my boss man could not be more put out by people that cold call him throughout the day and I agree with him. Yet every morning starts out with the same old “Let’s get smilin’ and dialin’!” Smile for what? You don’t even believe in what I’m doing! Scott

Scott, Have your boss sit down next to you and make cold calls himself. Let him piss off the same people you’re pissing off. Let him see what a total waste of time cold calling is – how it affects your mood, how it affects your belief system, how it affects your personal pride, and how it affects your attitude. Then start to call customers you’re already doing business with, customers who love you. Ask them if you can come over and help them out for an hour. Ask them if you can come over and talk about how your product is used. Ask them if you can come over and help build the relationship. Tell them you need to make a ‘good will’ visit. Those are the people who will invite you right in and talk to you for a half an hour and maybe help you earn a referral. That’s where the money is in sales, not in cold calling. Cold calling pisses off your boss. Imagine what it does to your customers. Referrals – that’s where the money is. Best regards, Jeffrey

Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.

About the Author

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].

Recommended Resource – The Pocket Small Business Owner’s Guide to Negotiating

/in , , , /by

The Pocket Small Business Owner’s Guide to Negotiating

by Richard Weisgrau

About the Reference

The Pocket Small Business Owner’s Guide to Negotiating by Richard Weisgrau provides readers with a complete set of practices and strategies for successfully negotiating through numerous situations. Richard explores both the psychology and activities occurring before, during, and after a negotiation. Through his book, readers learn to:

  • Differentiate between principle and positional bargaining
  • Negotiate contracts, purchases, and service deals
  • Resolve conflicts
  • Barter
  • Assess risk
  • Take advantage of the psychological aspects of negotiating
  • Employ rhetorical tactics and body language successfully

Benefits of Using This Reference

StrategyDriven Contributors like The Pocket Small Business Owner’s Guide to Negotiating for its thoroughness in covering a multitude of negotiating situations. We found Richard’s book a good ready reference for small business owners and large company division and department managers.

The Pocket Small Business Owner’s Guide to Negotiating covers the psychological and behavioral aspects of negotiation, both being critically important to a successful outcome. Additionally, Richard provides an easy-to-follow method for negotiation preparation, execution, and follow-up. By using the prescribed methods, readers should find their negotiations more successfully resolved.

If we had one criticism of The Pocket Small Business Owner’s Guide to Negotiating it would be that the negotiating approach seeks an equitable outcome; precluding the opportunity for overwhelmingly positive terms.

The Pocket Small Business Owner’s Guide to Negotiating provides readers with actionable steps to negotiate the situations most commonly encountered by small business and business group leaders. While not intended to inform the actions of those negotiating ‘super-deals,’ the thoroughness of the methods and real world examples conveyed makes The Pocket Small Business Owner’s Guide to Negotiating a StrategyDriven recommended read.