When I say the words, ‘set the standard,’ what comes to your mind?
Is it personal standards of yours?
Is it standards that your business sets?
Is it standards you have in your mind about other people?
Is it standards you have in your mind about other products?
When you go to a restaurant and order your favorite steak, you’ll always recall the one restaurant (especially if it’s the one you’re in) that had the best steak (or whatever your favorite food was). That restaurant set the standard. All other steaks you will ever eat will be compared to the standard bearer, until one day you may get a better steak, and then that restaurant will become the new standard bearer.
You know and recognize dozens of standard setters in your life – especially if these products or people are amazing and have your undying loyalty and especially if you proactively refer them. It could be as simple as the best ice cream or the best apple pie. It could be the best dentist or the best chiropractor. It could be the best financial planner.
And it could also be your own brand loyalty. The best car. The best clothing. The best computer. The best phone. Things that you would never consider doing without.
Whatever those products are, whoever those people are, they set the standard. Your standard.
There are third party standards…
Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points in a single basketball game. He didn’t just set a record. He set the standard.
Abe Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address. It wasn’t just a speech. He set the standard.
At the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, Martin Luther King, Jr., gave a speech to 500,000 people. It wasn’t just a speech. He set the standard.
The Beatles. Elvis Presley. They set the standard and paved the way for others.
When Wilt Chamberlain set the standard for scoring, it was on March 2, 1962. That standard has endured more than 50 years. Kobe Bryant’s 81 points were good, but not as good as Wilt’s 100 points – the standard.
Accomplishments are always compared to standard. Quality is always compared to standard. Products are always compared to standard. You know what the best products in your industry are. If you work for that company, you love it and vice versa.
MAJOR CLUE: Now that you get the idea of what I’m talking about, let’s talk about your business and your career.
What standards are you setting and who are the people involved in setting those standard – not just in your company, but also in the mind of your customer and in the reputation of your business in your community and in your industry?
If you’re not setting the standard, you’re fighting price. Reputation trumps price.
Your reputation stems from what others think about you and say about you. In today’s world, it’s what others post online about you. Reputation comes from setting standards in service, quality of product, consistency, and availability.
You may think of it as ‘best.’ But there’s a big difference between bragging about the fact you are the ‘best’ and ‘we set the standard.’
There are many products in which you can argue ‘who is best.’ There’s often an obvious winner. German automobile engineering has set the standard. Many computer products are best. Microsoft set the old standard and Apple set the new standard. There are many social media sites that can be argued as better than others, but Facebook set the standard.
As a salesperson, I’d like you to take a moment and evaluate (or should I say self-evaluate) where you are on the standard-setting scale. Are you just a rep? Are you one of the top 25% of reps? Or have you achieved the status of trusted advisor, who is setting standards not just in sales numbers, but also in customer loyalty, profitability, and relationships.
What about your company? What standards are they setting? What high ethical ground have they achieved?
If you look at the example of Bank of America, you see a century-old company who had set many standards and achieved global greatness. All that was destroyed by indiscriminate greed and a total lack of understanding of social media in general. Standard bearers can fall quickly. Just ask Tiger Woods.
I’ll admit this is pretty high-level thinking and for many of you reading this. You may believe that setting the standard is out of your personal control – especially standards that your company sets. But in the new world of transparency, thanks to the internet, mothered by Google and social media, you now have the opportunity to build your personal brand, create your personal reputation, and set your own personal standards – standards that will remain yours even if you change companies or careers.
I challenge you that the key word in standard setting is endure. Set standards that will last. Many have come and gone quickly. Don’t be one of them.
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].
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How can managers possibly do everything presented on the StrategyDriven website?
StrategyDriven Response:
Managers should be able to perform all of the best practices presented on the StrategyDriven website as these focus on the manager’s primary role – to manage people, resources, and their deployment. It is when managers are ‘working managers,’ doing the work of subordinates, that performance of all of our recommendations becomes untenable.
Additional Resources
The concept of the working manager is not a new one nor is its practice limited to a handful of organizations. StrategyDriven Contributors believe such practices diminishes managers’ effectiveness and diminish their organization’s overall performance. Specifics on how to recognize and avoid the pitfalls of the working manager are contained within the StrategyDriven article, Management and Leadership Warning Flag 1 – Working Managers.
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"Individuals should be ready and willing, at all times, to have their work observed by their manager."
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Salespeople (not you, of course) are known for asking poor questions – questions that are not only embarrassing, questions that are also rude. And I would be remiss if I didn’t add: questions that make them appear desperate and pressing for a sale.
The dumbest question in sales is “What will it take to get your business?” It’s by far the worst question you can ask a customer. It makes you a price seller rather than a value provider, and it makes you look like you ‘need’ the sale rather than want to earn and grow a relationship.
REALITY: There is a close second to the dumbest question, and it’s the subject of this article. “What keeps you up at night?” Are you kidding me? NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS, that’s what!
You’re at the beginning of a sales call, trying to build positive rapport and earn some level of ‘like’ and ‘trust,’ and you’re asking me that kind of question? It’s almost as dumb as trying to ‘find the pain.’ Please don’t get me started on 1972 sales manipulation and insincerity.
Why not ask the prospect a question that relates to their real life, and their present situation, that’s potentially more revealing than a Miss America question?
MAJOR AHA! QUESTION: What wakes you up in the morning?
It’s a positive-based question that, when asked with a smile, will get you real answers, real facts, and reveal real truths. It’s light hearted, but powerful, and when followed up with ‘what else’ or ‘then what’ will create a dialog that is totally customer focused – thereby achieving the purpose of the interaction.
Below are possible answers. Here’s what to do: Think of all these answers IN TERMS OF YOURSELF, FIRST. What wakes YOU up? It reveals your top-of-mind thoughts, issues, concerns, goals, problems, and attitude toward them. Got it? Now direct them at the customer or prospect and listen to the eye-popping, ear de-waxing, and self-qualifying answers.
You ask, “What wakes you up in the morning?” They answer:
Light of day. Easy answer. Leads to, ‘Then what?’
Alarm clock. Another easy answer. Still leads to, “Then what?”
Kids. Great answer! Leads to all kinds of mutual discussion points and common interests if you also have them
Relationships. A bit touchy. Let the prospect lead.
Coffee – shower – exercise – the news. These subjects will provide more superficial answers that might reveal things in common.
The day and things to be done. People will make their day more important than your day. And you’ll feel it when they chatter and complain about ‘having so much to do.’
Now let’s take it deeper. Asking the ‘then what?’ question will get them to the next phase of their reality. It started out light, now it gets to some real issues. You might ask, “What else wakes you up?” or the more powerful, “Then what?” They might say:
Money, or the lack of it. Think of this one in terms of yourself. Go lightly, but it’s very revealing.
Health issues. If they have a physical ailment or some medical condition, it may impact their attention span or decision-making capability.
Pain. If they’re in pain, then the pain will affect concentration and span of attention.
Energy/positive anticipation. This is GREAT. An enthusiastic person can connect with your compelling presentation and catch your positive feelings.
All the stuff he or she is excited about. These are golden issues that need to be embellished and compared to what it will be like when your stuff gets its chance.
Big issues. IRS, business failure, damaged reputation, lawsuits. A pending merger or pending big order could be a positive light.
Business issues. The day-to-day often gets in the way of the month-to-month and the year-to-year. Stay away from the mundane, and be aware of the complainer.
Personal issues. Family and relationship issues can have a real impact (either way) on your meeting outcome – pending marriage or pending divorce?
Career issues. Work, boss, sales, people, and events can have huge implications on your need to do something today.
Nagging issues (worries). These are elements that slow down the actions a business is willing to take. If you know what they are, you’ll be less likely to be impatient, and more likely to create a winning plan to make the sale.
Unfinished issues. Stuff undone. ‘Wait until after…’ are defeating words to the ears of salespeople. But if you know what they are, you can get a better sense of ‘when?’
Projects underway. Most people are limited in the amount of work and projects they can take on. When your customer dwells on ‘present situation’ and ‘major project’ you can expect postponement. Make sure you nail down expected completion date.
Deadlines. If it’s close, you’re toast. And the best thing you can do is offer assistance.
If the prospect or customer answers:The reality of: get my ass in gear. This doesn’t address any issues, and is really skirting the question. You might ask ‘for what?’
MAJOR CLUE: Don’t overdo the process. Ask a few questions, gain a few answers, and then move on.
As a result, you have some new information, maybe some common interests, a few smiles, and certainly a thinking prospect.
I made you think, didn’t I? You can do the same with your prospect. Stay away from the defensive-based questions, and your responses will lead you down the right path – the business relationship and mutual respect path.
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].
https://www.strategydriven.com/wp-content/uploads/JeffreyGitomer.jpg218156StrategyDrivenhttps://www.strategydriven.com/wp-content/uploads/SDELogo5-300x70-300x70.pngStrategyDriven2012-06-04 06:37:122016-08-07 22:22:29What keeps me up at night? None of your business!
“What you do speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you say.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 – 1882) American essayist, philosopher, and poet
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It’s not being best, it’s setting the standard.
/in Practices for Professionals/by Jeffrey GitomerWhen I say the words, ‘set the standard,’ what comes to your mind?
Is it personal standards of yours?
Is it standards that your business sets?
Is it standards you have in your mind about other people?
Is it standards you have in your mind about other products?
When you go to a restaurant and order your favorite steak, you’ll always recall the one restaurant (especially if it’s the one you’re in) that had the best steak (or whatever your favorite food was). That restaurant set the standard. All other steaks you will ever eat will be compared to the standard bearer, until one day you may get a better steak, and then that restaurant will become the new standard bearer.
You know and recognize dozens of standard setters in your life – especially if these products or people are amazing and have your undying loyalty and especially if you proactively refer them. It could be as simple as the best ice cream or the best apple pie. It could be the best dentist or the best chiropractor. It could be the best financial planner.
And it could also be your own brand loyalty. The best car. The best clothing. The best computer. The best phone. Things that you would never consider doing without.
Whatever those products are, whoever those people are, they set the standard. Your standard.
There are third party standards…
The Beatles. Elvis Presley. They set the standard and paved the way for others.
When Wilt Chamberlain set the standard for scoring, it was on March 2, 1962. That standard has endured more than 50 years. Kobe Bryant’s 81 points were good, but not as good as Wilt’s 100 points – the standard.
Accomplishments are always compared to standard. Quality is always compared to standard. Products are always compared to standard. You know what the best products in your industry are. If you work for that company, you love it and vice versa.
MAJOR CLUE: Now that you get the idea of what I’m talking about, let’s talk about your business and your career.
What standards are you setting and who are the people involved in setting those standard – not just in your company, but also in the mind of your customer and in the reputation of your business in your community and in your industry?
If you’re not setting the standard, you’re fighting price. Reputation trumps price.
Your reputation stems from what others think about you and say about you. In today’s world, it’s what others post online about you. Reputation comes from setting standards in service, quality of product, consistency, and availability.
You may think of it as ‘best.’ But there’s a big difference between bragging about the fact you are the ‘best’ and ‘we set the standard.’
There are many products in which you can argue ‘who is best.’ There’s often an obvious winner. German automobile engineering has set the standard. Many computer products are best. Microsoft set the old standard and Apple set the new standard. There are many social media sites that can be argued as better than others, but Facebook set the standard.
As a salesperson, I’d like you to take a moment and evaluate (or should I say self-evaluate) where you are on the standard-setting scale. Are you just a rep? Are you one of the top 25% of reps? Or have you achieved the status of trusted advisor, who is setting standards not just in sales numbers, but also in customer loyalty, profitability, and relationships.
What about your company? What standards are they setting? What high ethical ground have they achieved?
If you look at the example of Bank of America, you see a century-old company who had set many standards and achieved global greatness. All that was destroyed by indiscriminate greed and a total lack of understanding of social media in general. Standard bearers can fall quickly. Just ask Tiger Woods.
I’ll admit this is pretty high-level thinking and for many of you reading this. You may believe that setting the standard is out of your personal control – especially standards that your company sets. But in the new world of transparency, thanks to the internet, mothered by Google and social media, you now have the opportunity to build your personal brand, create your personal reputation, and set your own personal standards – standards that will remain yours even if you change companies or careers.
I challenge you that the key word in standard setting is endure. Set standards that will last. Many have come and gone quickly. Don’t be one of them.
Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.
About the Author
The Advisor’s Corner – Can a Manager Really Do It All?
/in The Advisor's Corner/by StrategyDrivenHow can managers possibly do everything presented on the StrategyDriven website?
StrategyDriven Response:
Managers should be able to perform all of the best practices presented on the StrategyDriven website as these focus on the manager’s primary role – to manage people, resources, and their deployment. It is when managers are ‘working managers,’ doing the work of subordinates, that performance of all of our recommendations becomes untenable.
Additional Resources
The concept of the working manager is not a new one nor is its practice limited to a handful of organizations. StrategyDriven Contributors believe such practices diminishes managers’ effectiveness and diminish their organization’s overall performance. Specifics on how to recognize and avoid the pitfalls of the working manager are contained within the StrategyDriven article, Management and Leadership Warning Flag 1 – Working Managers.
Practices for Professionals – Make Your Electronic Calendar Visible
/in Practices for Professionals, Premium/by StrategyDrivenWhat keeps me up at night? None of your business!
/in Marketing & Sales/by Jeffrey GitomerSalespeople (not you, of course) are known for asking poor questions – questions that are not only embarrassing, questions that are also rude. And I would be remiss if I didn’t add: questions that make them appear desperate and pressing for a sale.
The dumbest question in sales is “What will it take to get your business?” It’s by far the worst question you can ask a customer. It makes you a price seller rather than a value provider, and it makes you look like you ‘need’ the sale rather than want to earn and grow a relationship.
REALITY: There is a close second to the dumbest question, and it’s the subject of this article. “What keeps you up at night?” Are you kidding me? NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS, that’s what!
You’re at the beginning of a sales call, trying to build positive rapport and earn some level of ‘like’ and ‘trust,’ and you’re asking me that kind of question? It’s almost as dumb as trying to ‘find the pain.’ Please don’t get me started on 1972 sales manipulation and insincerity.
Why not ask the prospect a question that relates to their real life, and their present situation, that’s potentially more revealing than a Miss America question?
MAJOR AHA! QUESTION: What wakes you up in the morning?
It’s a positive-based question that, when asked with a smile, will get you real answers, real facts, and reveal real truths. It’s light hearted, but powerful, and when followed up with ‘what else’ or ‘then what’ will create a dialog that is totally customer focused – thereby achieving the purpose of the interaction.
Below are possible answers. Here’s what to do: Think of all these answers IN TERMS OF YOURSELF, FIRST. What wakes YOU up? It reveals your top-of-mind thoughts, issues, concerns, goals, problems, and attitude toward them. Got it? Now direct them at the customer or prospect and listen to the eye-popping, ear de-waxing, and self-qualifying answers.
You ask, “What wakes you up in the morning?” They answer:
Now let’s take it deeper. Asking the ‘then what?’ question will get them to the next phase of their reality. It started out light, now it gets to some real issues. You might ask, “What else wakes you up?” or the more powerful, “Then what?” They might say:
MAJOR CLUE: Don’t overdo the process. Ask a few questions, gain a few answers, and then move on.
As a result, you have some new information, maybe some common interests, a few smiles, and certainly a thinking prospect.
I made you think, didn’t I? You can do the same with your prospect. Stay away from the defensive-based questions, and your responses will lead you down the right path – the business relationship and mutual respect path.
Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.
About the Author
Leadership Inspirations – Actions Speak Louder Than Words
/in Leadership Inspirations/by StrategyDrivenRalph Waldo Emerson (1803 – 1882)
American essayist, philosopher, and poet