Category: Personal improvement
Posted by: tammy
One of my all time favorite cartoons shows a surgeon holding a little jar, walking into a patient's room and saying, "Mr. Jones, we've successfully removed your inner critic."
Do you ever feel like there's someone following you around all day, critiquing nearly everything you do? Wouldn't it be nice if it could be successfully removed? Well, you may not be able to remove it, but my goal today is to motivate you to "shut her down."
A good number of years ago I heard a woman tell a story about one night when she went out to look at the stars. It was an absolutely gorgeous night and she was truly fascinated by what she observed. Then without any warning, she heard something in her say, "This would be so much more special, if you only had someone to share it with."
If she had not been vigilant, she probably would have exchanged the awe she felt for melancholy and/or depression. Fortunately, she was standing watch at the gateway to the thoughts passing through her mind, and she was able to stop the mutiny before it occurred.
Just recently I heard Matt Furey (a marketing guru) talk about the need to obliterate every negative thought or fear based thought as soon as it's detected. He went on to say that by consciously obliterating those kind of thoughts frequently, it would eventually become a natural process.
A week or two ago I recommended that you order and read a book by Noah St. John, Permission to Succeed. One of the reasons I recommended it is because St. John suggests a powerful way to prevent those mutinous thoughts from ever even getting started. Although St. John doesn't mention the Zeigarnik effect, which I've talked about before, his technique does indeed involve the power behind the Zeigarnik effect - the power behind asking your brain a question.
A number of years ago I went to a very high priced seminar (you probably wouldn't even believe me if I quoted the price) and one of the things I'll always remember hearing about was the power in asking yourself questions. You see, if you present a question to your brain, you don't have to sit there and ponder the possible answer; your brain will do that for you while you go on with your day, or go to sleep for that matter.
Let me assure you, <$firstname$>, the very fact that you are reading this ezine is proof positive that you want to improve your business, probably even your life. You're obviously open to new ideas. So here's the one I want you to open up to and implement this week. Start asking yourself questions that will get your brain thinking about why you're so smart, so successful, and so wonderful.
One of the things I loved about Permission to Succeed is that Noah St. John shows how we're always asking our brains questions, but we're simply focused on the wrong questions. Come on. Haven't you ever asked one or more of the following:
Why am I so stupid? Why can't I succeed at this? Why can't I remember names? Why is my calender always so empty? Why doesn't anyone on my team work?
Now for those of you who remember what the Zeigarnik effect is, I ask you, why would you want your brain wanting and working to find answers to those questions? Ah � the power of good questions! By asking yourself questions like:
Why am I so successful at this? Why is it so easy for me to get new prospects? Why am I so smart? Why am I so irresistible?
your brain will go to work (hopefully overtime) to find the answer to those questions, and you'll start to find yourself coming up with new ideas that change the course of your business, (dare I say it?) even your life.
There have been times in my life that I've been really good at shutting down that inner critic inside of me. But the interesting thing is that it not only requires vigilant work to shut it down, it requires continual work. I say that because as soon as challenges present themselves, that silly critic always seems ready and rearing to give it another try.
While I was on my way out to California this summer (remember when I had to jump in the car because our daughter was having an emergency appendectomy, when she was supposed to be having a blast at dance camp?) I made the decision to give up suffering. I don't know about you, but I can suffer over the silliest things - The chicken piccata has too much lemon (why, why, why did I add too much lemon?); The trashcan in the girl's bathroom is practically overflowing and none of them have emptied it (Oh, the horror, the horror!), and let's not forget... Where are we going to get the money to pay all these bills?
Listen, I'll tell you a secret. It's really not that difficult to stop suffering or to shut down the inner critic. It's actually fun. BUT you have to be willing to laugh at yourself and have fun with the process. Here's a tip - when you realize that you've let that inner critic get the best of you, you can't get upset with yourself. That's what the critic wants. You have to do the unexpected - LAUGH. And then ask some wonderful question like, "Why am I so FANtastic?"
Do you ever feel like there's someone following you around all day, critiquing nearly everything you do? Wouldn't it be nice if it could be successfully removed? Well, you may not be able to remove it, but my goal today is to motivate you to "shut her down."
A good number of years ago I heard a woman tell a story about one night when she went out to look at the stars. It was an absolutely gorgeous night and she was truly fascinated by what she observed. Then without any warning, she heard something in her say, "This would be so much more special, if you only had someone to share it with."
If she had not been vigilant, she probably would have exchanged the awe she felt for melancholy and/or depression. Fortunately, she was standing watch at the gateway to the thoughts passing through her mind, and she was able to stop the mutiny before it occurred.
Just recently I heard Matt Furey (a marketing guru) talk about the need to obliterate every negative thought or fear based thought as soon as it's detected. He went on to say that by consciously obliterating those kind of thoughts frequently, it would eventually become a natural process.
A week or two ago I recommended that you order and read a book by Noah St. John, Permission to Succeed. One of the reasons I recommended it is because St. John suggests a powerful way to prevent those mutinous thoughts from ever even getting started. Although St. John doesn't mention the Zeigarnik effect, which I've talked about before, his technique does indeed involve the power behind the Zeigarnik effect - the power behind asking your brain a question.
A number of years ago I went to a very high priced seminar (you probably wouldn't even believe me if I quoted the price) and one of the things I'll always remember hearing about was the power in asking yourself questions. You see, if you present a question to your brain, you don't have to sit there and ponder the possible answer; your brain will do that for you while you go on with your day, or go to sleep for that matter.
Let me assure you, <$firstname$>, the very fact that you are reading this ezine is proof positive that you want to improve your business, probably even your life. You're obviously open to new ideas. So here's the one I want you to open up to and implement this week. Start asking yourself questions that will get your brain thinking about why you're so smart, so successful, and so wonderful.
One of the things I loved about Permission to Succeed is that Noah St. John shows how we're always asking our brains questions, but we're simply focused on the wrong questions. Come on. Haven't you ever asked one or more of the following:
Why am I so stupid? Why can't I succeed at this? Why can't I remember names? Why is my calender always so empty? Why doesn't anyone on my team work?
Now for those of you who remember what the Zeigarnik effect is, I ask you, why would you want your brain wanting and working to find answers to those questions? Ah � the power of good questions! By asking yourself questions like:
Why am I so successful at this? Why is it so easy for me to get new prospects? Why am I so smart? Why am I so irresistible?
your brain will go to work (hopefully overtime) to find the answer to those questions, and you'll start to find yourself coming up with new ideas that change the course of your business, (dare I say it?) even your life.
There have been times in my life that I've been really good at shutting down that inner critic inside of me. But the interesting thing is that it not only requires vigilant work to shut it down, it requires continual work. I say that because as soon as challenges present themselves, that silly critic always seems ready and rearing to give it another try.
While I was on my way out to California this summer (remember when I had to jump in the car because our daughter was having an emergency appendectomy, when she was supposed to be having a blast at dance camp?) I made the decision to give up suffering. I don't know about you, but I can suffer over the silliest things - The chicken piccata has too much lemon (why, why, why did I add too much lemon?); The trashcan in the girl's bathroom is practically overflowing and none of them have emptied it (Oh, the horror, the horror!), and let's not forget... Where are we going to get the money to pay all these bills?
Listen, I'll tell you a secret. It's really not that difficult to stop suffering or to shut down the inner critic. It's actually fun. BUT you have to be willing to laugh at yourself and have fun with the process. Here's a tip - when you realize that you've let that inner critic get the best of you, you can't get upset with yourself. That's what the critic wants. You have to do the unexpected - LAUGH. And then ask some wonderful question like, "Why am I so FANtastic?"
Category: The Sales Process
Posted by: tammy
Do any of you remember reading Highlights� as a young child? If you do, you surely remember the little cartoons staring Goofus and Gallant.
I thought of that today and it gave me a fun idea for the ezine � Clodia and Grace. Let's look at how each of them might handle a sales situation.
Tonight both Clodia and Grace have a skin care demonstration scheduled. Interestingly enough they each encounter the same situation.
At each of the demonstrations one of the guests says that she's never bought an entire skin care collection because she can�t afford it.
Clodia responds by saying:
"Well when you see how great the results are from using all these products together, you'll be glad you bought the whole collection. Trust me."
When Clodia looks away, the guest looks at a friend sitting nearby and proceeds to roll her eyes.
Meanwhile, at the other demonstration...
Grace responds by saying:
"I can appreciate that. Some of my customers have been in that same boat. If you don�t mind me asking, are you completely happy with your complexion or is there anything that concerns you?"
The guest replies, "Well, I guess I have noticed that I�m getting more noticeable wrinkles."
Grace says, "Typically my clients have the most dramatic results by using the whole system, but I think you�ll be happy with the results you'll get from just using our Wrinkles Away night time cream. Maybe you'll feel more comfortable trying just one product before investing in the entire system."
The guest says, "I don't know. Maybe it is time I give an entire skin care system a try."
Probably the goal of most skin care consultants is to sell each of their prospects on using an entire skin care system. The customer ends up with products that are all designed to work together for premium results, and the consultant ends up with a decent sale.
The key here, no matter what it is you sell, is to remember that different prospects have different needs and wants. By discovering what each prospect needs and wants and then recommending something that suits her, a prospect is far more likely to buy something, and often ends up buying precisely what you wanted to sell her in the first place.
The reason Grace ends up selling an entire skin care system as well as the Wrinkles Away night time cream and Clodia doesn't is because Grace takes the time to address the one guest's needs. Then by addressing the need (a way to get rid of wrinkles) as well as the want (not wanting to spend a lot of money) in her suggestion, she gains the guest's trust. Clodia thinks the guest should trust her simply because she tells her to.
While Clodia expects her prospects to trust her, Grace does what is necessary to earn their trust.
There is a timeshare kiosk in the mall I usually go to. Naturally the sales reps are always hungry looking to approach people and present their irresistible offer to get a night free at a beautiful resort in exchange for attending a 90-minute sales presentation.
Not long ago, as I was walking through the mall, I overheard one of the timeshare sales reps say to his prospect, �Just trust me.� Now you know where I got the idea for today's article! When I heard the sales rep say that, it was all I could do to not burst out in laughter at him.
It is true that during the sales process you want to build an element of trust between the prospect and you, but blurting out, �Just trust me,� isn't going to achieve that. If anything, it has exactly the opposite effect. When you say, �Just trust me,� you obviously haven't figured out how the prospect truly stands to benefit from the transaction.
When I heard the salesman at the mall say, �Just trust me� to his prospect, what I heard was, �I haven't done my homework about this thing I'm selling, but I really need to make a commission check today so just trust me.�
I've found that one of the easiest ways to get a prospect to trust you as a salesperson is to momentarily forget about the thing you want to sell and discover first whether or not your prospect needs or desires what you're selling. The only way to do that is to get to know your prospect by asking questions.
The other day while I was making prospecting calls (yes, I have to make prospecting calls too; I don�t just talk about doing it), I really wanted to sell the VP of Events of a particular company on the idea of scheduling a meeting with me at an up-coming conference. But before I could do that I had to find out if she'd even be attending the conference.
That sounds elementary, I'm sure, but it's just like the selling process I described above. If the VP of Events wasn't going to be at that conference, she wouldn't have the need to meet me there, would she?
By taking time to ask her questions, I discovered that I had something more useful to offer for her situation. And if you're wondering whether or not I gained her trust -- She told me all about her Chihuahua-Yorkie that weighs 9 pounds and goes to work with her on occasion, she has no children, just broke up with someone whose last name was Butts (no kidding!)... do I need to go on, or have you figured out whether or not she trusted me?
We can't expect our prospects to trust us until we give them a good reason to. That good reason is when we show that we're willing to put their needs and wants before our own (which is obviously to sell them something). How do we show that we're willing to do that? By listening to what they say and asking questions that correspond to their comments.
I thought of that today and it gave me a fun idea for the ezine � Clodia and Grace. Let's look at how each of them might handle a sales situation.
Tonight both Clodia and Grace have a skin care demonstration scheduled. Interestingly enough they each encounter the same situation.
At each of the demonstrations one of the guests says that she's never bought an entire skin care collection because she can�t afford it.
Clodia responds by saying:
"Well when you see how great the results are from using all these products together, you'll be glad you bought the whole collection. Trust me."
When Clodia looks away, the guest looks at a friend sitting nearby and proceeds to roll her eyes.
Meanwhile, at the other demonstration...
Grace responds by saying:
"I can appreciate that. Some of my customers have been in that same boat. If you don�t mind me asking, are you completely happy with your complexion or is there anything that concerns you?"
The guest replies, "Well, I guess I have noticed that I�m getting more noticeable wrinkles."
Grace says, "Typically my clients have the most dramatic results by using the whole system, but I think you�ll be happy with the results you'll get from just using our Wrinkles Away night time cream. Maybe you'll feel more comfortable trying just one product before investing in the entire system."
The guest says, "I don't know. Maybe it is time I give an entire skin care system a try."
Probably the goal of most skin care consultants is to sell each of their prospects on using an entire skin care system. The customer ends up with products that are all designed to work together for premium results, and the consultant ends up with a decent sale.
The key here, no matter what it is you sell, is to remember that different prospects have different needs and wants. By discovering what each prospect needs and wants and then recommending something that suits her, a prospect is far more likely to buy something, and often ends up buying precisely what you wanted to sell her in the first place.
The reason Grace ends up selling an entire skin care system as well as the Wrinkles Away night time cream and Clodia doesn't is because Grace takes the time to address the one guest's needs. Then by addressing the need (a way to get rid of wrinkles) as well as the want (not wanting to spend a lot of money) in her suggestion, she gains the guest's trust. Clodia thinks the guest should trust her simply because she tells her to.
While Clodia expects her prospects to trust her, Grace does what is necessary to earn their trust.
There is a timeshare kiosk in the mall I usually go to. Naturally the sales reps are always hungry looking to approach people and present their irresistible offer to get a night free at a beautiful resort in exchange for attending a 90-minute sales presentation.
Not long ago, as I was walking through the mall, I overheard one of the timeshare sales reps say to his prospect, �Just trust me.� Now you know where I got the idea for today's article! When I heard the sales rep say that, it was all I could do to not burst out in laughter at him.
It is true that during the sales process you want to build an element of trust between the prospect and you, but blurting out, �Just trust me,� isn't going to achieve that. If anything, it has exactly the opposite effect. When you say, �Just trust me,� you obviously haven't figured out how the prospect truly stands to benefit from the transaction.
When I heard the salesman at the mall say, �Just trust me� to his prospect, what I heard was, �I haven't done my homework about this thing I'm selling, but I really need to make a commission check today so just trust me.�
I've found that one of the easiest ways to get a prospect to trust you as a salesperson is to momentarily forget about the thing you want to sell and discover first whether or not your prospect needs or desires what you're selling. The only way to do that is to get to know your prospect by asking questions.
The other day while I was making prospecting calls (yes, I have to make prospecting calls too; I don�t just talk about doing it), I really wanted to sell the VP of Events of a particular company on the idea of scheduling a meeting with me at an up-coming conference. But before I could do that I had to find out if she'd even be attending the conference.
That sounds elementary, I'm sure, but it's just like the selling process I described above. If the VP of Events wasn't going to be at that conference, she wouldn't have the need to meet me there, would she?
By taking time to ask her questions, I discovered that I had something more useful to offer for her situation. And if you're wondering whether or not I gained her trust -- She told me all about her Chihuahua-Yorkie that weighs 9 pounds and goes to work with her on occasion, she has no children, just broke up with someone whose last name was Butts (no kidding!)... do I need to go on, or have you figured out whether or not she trusted me?
We can't expect our prospects to trust us until we give them a good reason to. That good reason is when we show that we're willing to put their needs and wants before our own (which is obviously to sell them something). How do we show that we're willing to do that? By listening to what they say and asking questions that correspond to their comments.
I know most have you have heard of Napoleon Hill's famous book, Think and Grow Rich. Some of you have even read it. There might even be a few who have read it more than once.
There are many fascinating things in this book, but surely one of the most fascinating is that Hill informs his readers in the first section, "A Word from the Author," that every chapter in the book makes mention of a great secret, which has made fortunes for hundreds of men over the years. He goes on to say that this secret is mentioned no fewer than one hundred times throughout the book; however, it is never directly named. His reasoning is that it seems to work more successfully when it is left in sight but uncovered.
I'll tell you right now that this secret is not the secret that's discussed in the movie and the book The Secret. I've see this secret written out as a quote with the author as "unknown." A while back, I was sent a graduation invitation from a local high school with this quote and the author printed as unknown. I promptly called that school and informed them that the author wasn't unknown at all. His name was Napoleon Hill.
If you asked me, it just doesn't make any sense for anyone to skip reading Think and Grow Rich while simultaneously being in a business that vehemently demands that one learn and understand the principles of success. Is Think and Grow Rich the best success book ever written? Personally, I don't think so. But I think most people would agree that it is the most influential success book that's ever been written.
Not reading Think and Grow Rich and being in the direct sales industry is like not reading Dr. Seuss' Cat in the Hat as an kid growing up in America.
It just doesn't make sense
It makes no sense at all
If you don't read Hill's book
You're just not on the ball
Don't wait for a better time, I say
There are many fascinating things in this book, but surely one of the most fascinating is that Hill informs his readers in the first section, "A Word from the Author," that every chapter in the book makes mention of a great secret, which has made fortunes for hundreds of men over the years. He goes on to say that this secret is mentioned no fewer than one hundred times throughout the book; however, it is never directly named. His reasoning is that it seems to work more successfully when it is left in sight but uncovered.
I'll tell you right now that this secret is not the secret that's discussed in the movie and the book The Secret. I've see this secret written out as a quote with the author as "unknown." A while back, I was sent a graduation invitation from a local high school with this quote and the author printed as unknown. I promptly called that school and informed them that the author wasn't unknown at all. His name was Napoleon Hill.
If you asked me, it just doesn't make any sense for anyone to skip reading Think and Grow Rich while simultaneously being in a business that vehemently demands that one learn and understand the principles of success. Is Think and Grow Rich the best success book ever written? Personally, I don't think so. But I think most people would agree that it is the most influential success book that's ever been written.
Not reading Think and Grow Rich and being in the direct sales industry is like not reading Dr. Seuss' Cat in the Hat as an kid growing up in America.
It just doesn't make sense
It makes no sense at all
If you don't read Hill's book
You're just not on the ball
Don't wait for a better time, I say
Imagine you're standing in front of a group of 100 people. You don't really know these people, but you've been given the opportunity to get up and say a few words about your business. What would you say?
If you know much about marketing, you know that the first thing you'd want to do is get your prospects' attention. So, here's what I want to ask you. Would you rather get the attention of all 100 people or would you rather get the attention of a small percentage, say 10% of those 100 people? Answer that in your mind before you read on.
Okay. If you're like most people you probably thought, "I'd rather get the attention of 100 people than 10. DUH!" But as Shakespeare said, there's the rub!. Because you'd rather get the attention of 100 people than 10, you usually say something with the intention of getting everyone to want to buy your product or service.
I'll bet you've heard the ol' saying, "You can't please all the people all the time." I'd even be willing to bet that you've said that a few times in your life. Perhaps it's time to really take that ol' saying to heart. If you can't please all the people all the time, why bother trying? What a waste of energy. And in this example of standing in front of 100 people, it's a wasted opportunity.
You see, you'd be much better off designing a short pitch that's targeted to a small specific group of people, but because it's so targeted to that group, they would KNOW that you are talking to them. And further more, they'd be likely to come running up to you wanting to know when or how they could get your product or service.
Fairly recently I met a licensed massage therapist at a networking meeting I go to off and on. Her tag line is really cute, but I know now that it in no way conveys what an amazing massage therapist she is. In fact, it actually trivializes her and her abilities. I finally gave her a chance recently, but not until AFTER I got a massage that totally disappointed me (I'll save that for another article). As I was driving home from the one lousy massage, it dawned on me that I could have called this therapist I'd met numerous times at that networking meeting.
The next day I called her office and managed to get an appointment the following day. After I had a massage from her, I quickly came to the conclusion that she was THE massage therapist in town for people with terrible sciatica or serious back pain. In short, I was blown away by her technique and strength. Wow!
It made me begin analyzing why I hadn't thought of her as soon as I thought about needing a massage to stop the back spasms I was experiencing. Now to be fair, I did think of her, right? I thought of her right after I had a massage that didn't even come close to easing the pain I was experiencing. I believe the reason why I did remember her was because she often talked about specializing in back pain. But here's why I think I didn't think of her right away. Right after talking about being a specialist in back pain, she would always go on talking about all the other things she could help out with, and once she would list half a dozen other things, my mind would end up confused. Maybe she wasn't really a back specialist after all. Maybe she just thought her technique suited everyone. You have to remember, the confused mind doesn't buy!
Imagine going to a networking meeting and someone says, "I'm a bankruptcy lawyer. If you're looking at a possible bankruptcy, you need someone who knows this area of the law inside and out. Also, be sure to come see me if you need a divorce lawyer, if you're going to file a suit against someone, if you're in a car accident, or if you need a will." That starts off good, but as soon as the lawyer mentions all these other things that he/she can do, your mind fails to classify him/her as THE person to call if you face a bankruptcy a year down the road.
This is what happens when we think we need to get everyone's attention, when we think we need to get as many of these potential clients in our door as humanly possible � we often end up struggling to find good, consistent, and loyal customers who recommend us to others. But consider what would happen if you could get YOUR prospects to listen? Notice I said "YOUR" prospects, and not any old prospect. The key is identifying your ideal prospect. In the case of the masseuse I saw, she'd probably find herself booked solid, if she focused only on people with sciatica.
If you've suffered too long from sciatica (if you don't know what it is, take a moment to be grateful), she is the person to see. An appointment with her is worth the drive, if you live anywhere in the greater Phoenix area. In fact it's worth the time it would take to limp over to her office in Tempe because you'll be able to run home. I'd even consider crawling across broken glass to have a massage from her. Carol Segelke - 480-820-6695
Now, are you getting why it is that she could just focus on one little target market like people with sciatica? She'd have a troop of raving fans, just like me. Didn't I just brag about her to my entire list? And guess what? I told my hairdresser about her yesterday as well. Am I done? Not on your life. I'll be telling plenty of my friends about her. I have a good friend who has an office a stone's throw away from Carol's office. I've sent her an email suggesting she give Carol a try. I have a friend who has terrible migraines. She'll be getting a call from me this week.
Oh, did you catch that? I'll be calling friend who has terrible migraines. Notice I didn't say terrible sciatica. THAT's the beauty of focusing on a specific targeted market. When that group of highly targeted individuals experiences what you can do for them, they're so excited about the results they experienced that they begin to tell everyone about you, and you end up with people from different targeted groups after all!
I think the reason we often shy away from focusing on a particular targeted group is that we think it's going to limit our business. However, the truth is that it helps your business to grow much more quickly. Again, the key is to speak to a very select group. If you would imagine yourself back in front of those 100 people again, what could you say that would cause your ideal prospect to not only listen, but also to sit up, make that stand up and ask when he/she can get what you're selling.
If you know much about marketing, you know that the first thing you'd want to do is get your prospects' attention. So, here's what I want to ask you. Would you rather get the attention of all 100 people or would you rather get the attention of a small percentage, say 10% of those 100 people? Answer that in your mind before you read on.
Okay. If you're like most people you probably thought, "I'd rather get the attention of 100 people than 10. DUH!" But as Shakespeare said, there's the rub!. Because you'd rather get the attention of 100 people than 10, you usually say something with the intention of getting everyone to want to buy your product or service.
I'll bet you've heard the ol' saying, "You can't please all the people all the time." I'd even be willing to bet that you've said that a few times in your life. Perhaps it's time to really take that ol' saying to heart. If you can't please all the people all the time, why bother trying? What a waste of energy. And in this example of standing in front of 100 people, it's a wasted opportunity.
You see, you'd be much better off designing a short pitch that's targeted to a small specific group of people, but because it's so targeted to that group, they would KNOW that you are talking to them. And further more, they'd be likely to come running up to you wanting to know when or how they could get your product or service.
Fairly recently I met a licensed massage therapist at a networking meeting I go to off and on. Her tag line is really cute, but I know now that it in no way conveys what an amazing massage therapist she is. In fact, it actually trivializes her and her abilities. I finally gave her a chance recently, but not until AFTER I got a massage that totally disappointed me (I'll save that for another article). As I was driving home from the one lousy massage, it dawned on me that I could have called this therapist I'd met numerous times at that networking meeting.
The next day I called her office and managed to get an appointment the following day. After I had a massage from her, I quickly came to the conclusion that she was THE massage therapist in town for people with terrible sciatica or serious back pain. In short, I was blown away by her technique and strength. Wow!
It made me begin analyzing why I hadn't thought of her as soon as I thought about needing a massage to stop the back spasms I was experiencing. Now to be fair, I did think of her, right? I thought of her right after I had a massage that didn't even come close to easing the pain I was experiencing. I believe the reason why I did remember her was because she often talked about specializing in back pain. But here's why I think I didn't think of her right away. Right after talking about being a specialist in back pain, she would always go on talking about all the other things she could help out with, and once she would list half a dozen other things, my mind would end up confused. Maybe she wasn't really a back specialist after all. Maybe she just thought her technique suited everyone. You have to remember, the confused mind doesn't buy!
Imagine going to a networking meeting and someone says, "I'm a bankruptcy lawyer. If you're looking at a possible bankruptcy, you need someone who knows this area of the law inside and out. Also, be sure to come see me if you need a divorce lawyer, if you're going to file a suit against someone, if you're in a car accident, or if you need a will." That starts off good, but as soon as the lawyer mentions all these other things that he/she can do, your mind fails to classify him/her as THE person to call if you face a bankruptcy a year down the road.
This is what happens when we think we need to get everyone's attention, when we think we need to get as many of these potential clients in our door as humanly possible � we often end up struggling to find good, consistent, and loyal customers who recommend us to others. But consider what would happen if you could get YOUR prospects to listen? Notice I said "YOUR" prospects, and not any old prospect. The key is identifying your ideal prospect. In the case of the masseuse I saw, she'd probably find herself booked solid, if she focused only on people with sciatica.
If you've suffered too long from sciatica (if you don't know what it is, take a moment to be grateful), she is the person to see. An appointment with her is worth the drive, if you live anywhere in the greater Phoenix area. In fact it's worth the time it would take to limp over to her office in Tempe because you'll be able to run home. I'd even consider crawling across broken glass to have a massage from her. Carol Segelke - 480-820-6695
Now, are you getting why it is that she could just focus on one little target market like people with sciatica? She'd have a troop of raving fans, just like me. Didn't I just brag about her to my entire list? And guess what? I told my hairdresser about her yesterday as well. Am I done? Not on your life. I'll be telling plenty of my friends about her. I have a good friend who has an office a stone's throw away from Carol's office. I've sent her an email suggesting she give Carol a try. I have a friend who has terrible migraines. She'll be getting a call from me this week.
Oh, did you catch that? I'll be calling friend who has terrible migraines. Notice I didn't say terrible sciatica. THAT's the beauty of focusing on a specific targeted market. When that group of highly targeted individuals experiences what you can do for them, they're so excited about the results they experienced that they begin to tell everyone about you, and you end up with people from different targeted groups after all!
I think the reason we often shy away from focusing on a particular targeted group is that we think it's going to limit our business. However, the truth is that it helps your business to grow much more quickly. Again, the key is to speak to a very select group. If you would imagine yourself back in front of those 100 people again, what could you say that would cause your ideal prospect to not only listen, but also to sit up, make that stand up and ask when he/she can get what you're selling.
What do you do at the beginning of your home party demonstration? Do your prospects enjoy your opening, or do they look somewhat bored?
I know it might be hard to admit that they find YOUR opening boring, so instead just think back to the last home party you attended. Were you on the edge of your seat when the consultant began the demo? Hmmm... probably not if that opening was about how long her company was in business, in which state the company started, how many consultants they have, how to fill out this order form, how long it takes to get the product, BLAH, BLAH, BLAH.
When you attend another consultant's home party, you most likely find all that information incredibly boring. But low and behold, when you are doing a demo, you might just be falling into the same trap. A key point is to put yourself in your prospect's shoes (how many times have you heard me say this?). Now if you haven't gone to another home party recently, I suggest you do that. You need to feel what it's like to be a guest at a home party.
When you attend a home party and the consultant begins the spiel about her company this and her company that, it's boring to you NOT because you're already a consultant with another direct sales organization and you're already familiar with the drill, but because that stuff really is boring to any prospect.
I'm sorry to break this to you (okay, I'm not really sorry at all) but your prospects don't care about your company's 10th anniversary, how the owners of your company went to all kinds of trouble to find or make the products, etc. The reason they don't care? It has nothing to do with them and why they came to the home party.
Believe it or not, people come to a home party most often with the intention to buy something! They want to see what you're selling and decide whether or not they want to buy it.
Just in case you're not yet convinced by what I'm saying, imagine running into me at the grocery store. You say, "Hey Tammy, I sure love your ezine. I always look forward to Thursdays just to see that email from you in my inbox." Then I say, "Well <$firstname$>, you're in for a real treat next week because my upcoming issue is going to be nothing but statistics."
OOOH! Are you excited? Are you filled with anticipation for next week's ezine. I highly doubt it. When you read that word statistics, you probably thought, "That sounds boring." And believe me, it would be - the first week of my ezine I had XX subscribers. X percent of them read it. The next week I had XXX subscribers, an increase of x percent. BLAH, BLAH, BLAH.
And that, dear reader, is not much different than talking about all those company details. It's just a bunch of statistics to your prospects. So give them what they came for!
Oh, but how are they ever going to find out about joining you in your business if you don't give them the scoop about it during the home party demo? HELLO! Ever hear of a thing called the telephone?
I know plenty of people subscribe to the idea of inviting every one at a home party to consider starting a business with their company, but I never have agreed with that. To start with, it makes it look like you'll hire anyone, which doesn't make your prospect feel singled out and special, and it doesn't make you appear selective.
Imagine opening a hair salon, with the following advertisement for possible hair stylists to work for you:
If you can brush a head of hair, you can be a stylist in my salon. All applicants accepted.
Doesn't that sound ludicrous? Of course it does. Consider, however, that it isn't much different than announcing at a home party that anyone can do what you do. That's simply not true.
Now if someone has wonderful people skills, that someone just might be able to do what you do. If someone is intelligent and observant, that someone just might be able to do what you do. If someone is highly energetic, that someone might be able to do what you do. But do you see what's going on here? I'm showing how different qualities that you observe in different people are reasons to give them as to why you think they'd be good at what you do and why you'd like to work with someone like that.
If you're impressed with every guest at a home party, by all means give each one of them a call and tell each one why. A personal invitation is far more intriguing than an general invitation given to everyone at the beginning of your demonstration.
And now we come back to the point of what to do at the beginning of your demonstration. Make it interesting by getting your prospects involved. My mother taught me years ago that the easiest way to get a conversation going with people is to ask them about themselves. What could you ask the guests at your demonstrations? Why not ask them something that could help you understand what they look for or need when it comes to the products you sell?
By having each guest introduce herself and share a thought or two about herself and what she looks for when she goes shopping for clothes, or jewelry, or what she's most concerned about when it comes to her skin or health, you'll not only find it easier to remember people's names, you'll know what points to focus on during your demonstration.
And guess what? When you talk about the things that your prospects just told you they want to hear about, your prospects will find you anything but boring!
I know it might be hard to admit that they find YOUR opening boring, so instead just think back to the last home party you attended. Were you on the edge of your seat when the consultant began the demo? Hmmm... probably not if that opening was about how long her company was in business, in which state the company started, how many consultants they have, how to fill out this order form, how long it takes to get the product, BLAH, BLAH, BLAH.
When you attend another consultant's home party, you most likely find all that information incredibly boring. But low and behold, when you are doing a demo, you might just be falling into the same trap. A key point is to put yourself in your prospect's shoes (how many times have you heard me say this?). Now if you haven't gone to another home party recently, I suggest you do that. You need to feel what it's like to be a guest at a home party.
When you attend a home party and the consultant begins the spiel about her company this and her company that, it's boring to you NOT because you're already a consultant with another direct sales organization and you're already familiar with the drill, but because that stuff really is boring to any prospect.
I'm sorry to break this to you (okay, I'm not really sorry at all) but your prospects don't care about your company's 10th anniversary, how the owners of your company went to all kinds of trouble to find or make the products, etc. The reason they don't care? It has nothing to do with them and why they came to the home party.
Believe it or not, people come to a home party most often with the intention to buy something! They want to see what you're selling and decide whether or not they want to buy it.
Just in case you're not yet convinced by what I'm saying, imagine running into me at the grocery store. You say, "Hey Tammy, I sure love your ezine. I always look forward to Thursdays just to see that email from you in my inbox." Then I say, "Well <$firstname$>, you're in for a real treat next week because my upcoming issue is going to be nothing but statistics."
OOOH! Are you excited? Are you filled with anticipation for next week's ezine. I highly doubt it. When you read that word statistics, you probably thought, "That sounds boring." And believe me, it would be - the first week of my ezine I had XX subscribers. X percent of them read it. The next week I had XXX subscribers, an increase of x percent. BLAH, BLAH, BLAH.
And that, dear reader, is not much different than talking about all those company details. It's just a bunch of statistics to your prospects. So give them what they came for!
Oh, but how are they ever going to find out about joining you in your business if you don't give them the scoop about it during the home party demo? HELLO! Ever hear of a thing called the telephone?
I know plenty of people subscribe to the idea of inviting every one at a home party to consider starting a business with their company, but I never have agreed with that. To start with, it makes it look like you'll hire anyone, which doesn't make your prospect feel singled out and special, and it doesn't make you appear selective.
Imagine opening a hair salon, with the following advertisement for possible hair stylists to work for you:
If you can brush a head of hair, you can be a stylist in my salon. All applicants accepted.
Doesn't that sound ludicrous? Of course it does. Consider, however, that it isn't much different than announcing at a home party that anyone can do what you do. That's simply not true.
Now if someone has wonderful people skills, that someone just might be able to do what you do. If someone is intelligent and observant, that someone just might be able to do what you do. If someone is highly energetic, that someone might be able to do what you do. But do you see what's going on here? I'm showing how different qualities that you observe in different people are reasons to give them as to why you think they'd be good at what you do and why you'd like to work with someone like that.
If you're impressed with every guest at a home party, by all means give each one of them a call and tell each one why. A personal invitation is far more intriguing than an general invitation given to everyone at the beginning of your demonstration.
And now we come back to the point of what to do at the beginning of your demonstration. Make it interesting by getting your prospects involved. My mother taught me years ago that the easiest way to get a conversation going with people is to ask them about themselves. What could you ask the guests at your demonstrations? Why not ask them something that could help you understand what they look for or need when it comes to the products you sell?
By having each guest introduce herself and share a thought or two about herself and what she looks for when she goes shopping for clothes, or jewelry, or what she's most concerned about when it comes to her skin or health, you'll not only find it easier to remember people's names, you'll know what points to focus on during your demonstration.
And guess what? When you talk about the things that your prospects just told you they want to hear about, your prospects will find you anything but boring!
08/05: A Recommendation
I highly recommend Noah St. John's book, Permission to Succeed.
This is a good analysis of why plenty of talented, intelligent, and creative people never allow themselves to succeed. If you've ever felt like you keep working harder and harder only to find yourself feeling less successful, this is a great guide that helps you discover why that is.
There are some wonderful exercises throughout the book that help you to pinpoint what's really going on and how to move your life in the direction you want it to go.
You can order it today from amazon.com by clicking on the image of the book above.
This is a good analysis of why plenty of talented, intelligent, and creative people never allow themselves to succeed. If you've ever felt like you keep working harder and harder only to find yourself feeling less successful, this is a great guide that helps you discover why that is.
There are some wonderful exercises throughout the book that help you to pinpoint what's really going on and how to move your life in the direction you want it to go.
You can order it today from amazon.com by clicking on the image of the book above.
19/04: A tale of two dates
Category: The Sales Process
Posted by: tammy
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair"
-Charles Dickens, English novelist (1812 - 1870)
Talking to prospects on the phone is like reading those first few lines of Dickens novel, A Tale of Two Cities. The key is to avoid being the worst, being foolish or incredulous, and to prevent the season of darkness and the winter of despair.
Now imagine the following:
You hear your telephone ringing. You pick it up only to discover a salesperson on the line. She says,
"Hello, this is Angel Smith with ABC House Cleaning Service. We clean your house so you don't have to. We'll be in your neighborhood this week giving free estimates for our services. We can come by your house on either Tuesday at 10:00 A.M. or Wednesday at 3:00 P.M. Which works best for you?"
Okay, gut reaction "how do you feel? What do you want to say?
I'll tell you what I would want to say. I would want to say,
"If you think you can get an appointment with me by cornering me with that tale of two dates, think again. HEY! I'M THE CUSTOMER. I GET TO CHOOSE THE DATES, NOT YOU. And by the way, there's nothing amazing about giving a free estimate."
That's what I want to say, but because I'm pathetically polite, I'd chicken out and say, "Neither." And then I'd just hang up.
I know plenty of sales people still try to close their prospects that way, and plenty more are taught to sell and close like that, but I flat out disagree with that method. When a salesperson uses a script like that, what he/she is really saying is:
Hello, I'm with ABC Cleaning Service and I'll go wherever I can to get an appointment. I want to make some sales this week, so do you want to buy from me on Tuesday or on Wednesday?
Wouldn't you think it foolish for a sales person to use that script? Well believe me, most prospects are savvy enough to hear between the lines of phrases like 'We'll be in your neighborhood, and We have an opening on Tuesday at 10:00 or Wednesday at 3:00." Prospects are quite familiar with the tale of two dates.
When a sales person uses phraseology like that he/she is obviously trying to push the prospect in a certain direction. But prospects often resist, once a salesperson pushes. The key is to find out what your prospect wants. Once you know if your prospect wants what you're selling, setting a time to get together shouldn't be any different than setting a time to get together with a friend.
The other day I got a call from my insurance agent and my buddy, Mike. He wanted to get together with me for a cup of coffee this week. When it came to picking a time to get together, he simply said, "So what morning works for you this week?"
On Monday I called a friend of mine I'd hadn't seen in a few weeks. She likes to tease me that we'd never get together if she didn't call me. I decided to surprise her this week with a phone call. When I called I asked her if she could meet me sometime this week, she said, "Sure. When?" I said, "Any chance we could meet in an hour?"
If you look over those conversations, they both included selecting a time to get together with someone, but there was no pressure and no resistance. Indeed, I quickly suggested Thursday morning to my friend Mike, and my friend, Sue, told me she could meet me in 45 minutes.
I suggest that the reason those appointments were easy to set was because the conversations surrounding the appointments were real. When you're real with your prospects, you'll find it far easier to generate interest and appointments. You don't have to put on a 'salesman hat' and speak like a salesman. It isn't necessary.
If a prospect wants what you are selling, there's absolutely no need to corner him/her into a tight place with your tale of two dates unless you have a strange desire to resemble Dickens' character, Madame Defarge (not exactly a likable person). That technique is old and truly worn out. Your prospects don't want to feel manipulated; they want to feel like they can trust you. Trust will generate a sale far faster than manipulation.
Just this week our refrigerator went kaput. Naturally I had just spent a small fortune in groceries, so it became imperative that we go get a new refrigerator right away. We went to one of these huge places and started looking for a brand our repairman had suggested. Why did we want what our repairman suggested? Because he manipulated us? Of course not. We wanted what he suggested because we trust him.
While we were looking, a salesman came up and asked if he could help us in any way. I told him that we had to get a new refrigerator because the compressor in our refrigerator had died. I then told him that our repairman had told us that compressors typically last 15 - 20 years, but ours had only lasted 9.
How the salesman responded stopped me in my tracks. He said, "No, the manufacturers don't design refrigerators like that anymore. You know, they realized that when they make them last that long, it's bad for their business. So, these days they only design them to last 7-9 years. HUH? Pure unadulterated honesty coming from a sales person in the appliance division?
What do you think I did? I looked at his name tag. Five minutes later when we were ready to buy (no, he didn't hover over us while we shopped), I searched the place looking for Cheech. Why? I trusted him.
AH! The epoch of belief, the season of Light, the spring of hope!
-Charles Dickens, English novelist (1812 - 1870)
Talking to prospects on the phone is like reading those first few lines of Dickens novel, A Tale of Two Cities. The key is to avoid being the worst, being foolish or incredulous, and to prevent the season of darkness and the winter of despair.
Now imagine the following:
You hear your telephone ringing. You pick it up only to discover a salesperson on the line. She says,
"Hello, this is Angel Smith with ABC House Cleaning Service. We clean your house so you don't have to. We'll be in your neighborhood this week giving free estimates for our services. We can come by your house on either Tuesday at 10:00 A.M. or Wednesday at 3:00 P.M. Which works best for you?"
Okay, gut reaction "how do you feel? What do you want to say?
I'll tell you what I would want to say. I would want to say,
"If you think you can get an appointment with me by cornering me with that tale of two dates, think again. HEY! I'M THE CUSTOMER. I GET TO CHOOSE THE DATES, NOT YOU. And by the way, there's nothing amazing about giving a free estimate."
That's what I want to say, but because I'm pathetically polite, I'd chicken out and say, "Neither." And then I'd just hang up.
I know plenty of sales people still try to close their prospects that way, and plenty more are taught to sell and close like that, but I flat out disagree with that method. When a salesperson uses a script like that, what he/she is really saying is:
Hello, I'm with ABC Cleaning Service and I'll go wherever I can to get an appointment. I want to make some sales this week, so do you want to buy from me on Tuesday or on Wednesday?
Wouldn't you think it foolish for a sales person to use that script? Well believe me, most prospects are savvy enough to hear between the lines of phrases like 'We'll be in your neighborhood, and We have an opening on Tuesday at 10:00 or Wednesday at 3:00." Prospects are quite familiar with the tale of two dates.
When a sales person uses phraseology like that he/she is obviously trying to push the prospect in a certain direction. But prospects often resist, once a salesperson pushes. The key is to find out what your prospect wants. Once you know if your prospect wants what you're selling, setting a time to get together shouldn't be any different than setting a time to get together with a friend.
The other day I got a call from my insurance agent and my buddy, Mike. He wanted to get together with me for a cup of coffee this week. When it came to picking a time to get together, he simply said, "So what morning works for you this week?"
On Monday I called a friend of mine I'd hadn't seen in a few weeks. She likes to tease me that we'd never get together if she didn't call me. I decided to surprise her this week with a phone call. When I called I asked her if she could meet me sometime this week, she said, "Sure. When?" I said, "Any chance we could meet in an hour?"
If you look over those conversations, they both included selecting a time to get together with someone, but there was no pressure and no resistance. Indeed, I quickly suggested Thursday morning to my friend Mike, and my friend, Sue, told me she could meet me in 45 minutes.
I suggest that the reason those appointments were easy to set was because the conversations surrounding the appointments were real. When you're real with your prospects, you'll find it far easier to generate interest and appointments. You don't have to put on a 'salesman hat' and speak like a salesman. It isn't necessary.
If a prospect wants what you are selling, there's absolutely no need to corner him/her into a tight place with your tale of two dates unless you have a strange desire to resemble Dickens' character, Madame Defarge (not exactly a likable person). That technique is old and truly worn out. Your prospects don't want to feel manipulated; they want to feel like they can trust you. Trust will generate a sale far faster than manipulation.
Just this week our refrigerator went kaput. Naturally I had just spent a small fortune in groceries, so it became imperative that we go get a new refrigerator right away. We went to one of these huge places and started looking for a brand our repairman had suggested. Why did we want what our repairman suggested? Because he manipulated us? Of course not. We wanted what he suggested because we trust him.
While we were looking, a salesman came up and asked if he could help us in any way. I told him that we had to get a new refrigerator because the compressor in our refrigerator had died. I then told him that our repairman had told us that compressors typically last 15 - 20 years, but ours had only lasted 9.
How the salesman responded stopped me in my tracks. He said, "No, the manufacturers don't design refrigerators like that anymore. You know, they realized that when they make them last that long, it's bad for their business. So, these days they only design them to last 7-9 years. HUH? Pure unadulterated honesty coming from a sales person in the appliance division?
What do you think I did? I looked at his name tag. Five minutes later when we were ready to buy (no, he didn't hover over us while we shopped), I searched the place looking for Cheech. Why? I trusted him.
AH! The epoch of belief, the season of Light, the spring of hope!
15/04: Joining the DSWA
I am a speaker member of the Direct Selling Women's Alliance. What is the DSWA?
Imagine... belonging to a welcoming community of individuals who respect your choice to have a direct selling business, understand your challenges and have the answers and guidance that will empower you to take your business to new heights.
The DSWA is a community of direct sellers just like you and by recognizing their similarities as opposed to their company differences, they strengthen their businesses. You can go online and visit their website, www.dswa.org to learn more about the possibility of a local chapter in your area.
Imagine... belonging to a welcoming community of individuals who respect your choice to have a direct selling business, understand your challenges and have the answers and guidance that will empower you to take your business to new heights.
The DSWA is a community of direct sellers just like you and by recognizing their similarities as opposed to their company differences, they strengthen their businesses. You can go online and visit their website, www.dswa.org to learn more about the possibility of a local chapter in your area.
If you've read my book, you know that one of my all time favorite movies is The Wizard of Oz. If you're familiar with it, then you certainly remember the lyrics, "Follow, follow, follow, follow, follow the yellow brick road." Go ahead and hum that tune, but sing these words instead, "follow, follow, follow, follow, follow up with prospects today!"
The characters in The Wizard of Oz follow the yellow brick road to the Emerald City, where they hope to meet up with the Wizard who will grant them their deepest desires. In direct sales you have to follow up with prospects before they can grant you an appointment, and you have to follow up with customers before they can grant you more sales or referrals.
There are three ways to increase your business. However, most direct sales reps focus almost exclusively on only one way - increasing the number of customers in their database. The problem with that is increasing the number of customers is typically the most expensive cost of doing business. In that case, it seems worthwhile to review the other two ways you can increase business.
To increase business you can also work to increase the size of each sale or increase the number of sales per customer each year. For today's lesson, I'm only investigating that last way to increase your business - increase the number of sales per customer.
Did you know that statistically speaking, the easiest person to sell to is an existing client? It makes perfect sense really. If someone has already bought from you, he/she is already sold. In my personal experience, no company has proved their knowledge of this more effectively than Bon Appetit. There's a reason why I've subscribed to that magazine for 19 years - Bon Appetit absolutely understands how to extract business from their current client base month after month, year after year.
How can you get business from your current client base month after month, year after year? Follow, follow, follow, follow, follow up with your customers today! And when I say "follow up" I don't mean twice a year to inform them about the new product line.
Consider that before I ever receive a notice that my subscription with Bon Appetit is about to expire, I've received an absolutely gorgeous magazine jam-packed with delicious recipes for at least six months. I understand that a magazine subscription with Bon Appetit is different than a bottle of cleansing cream or a pair of earrings, etc. But here's the million-dollar question? How could you make it more similar? In other words, how could you create real value with your customers twelve times a year?
These days if I go to a home party or a trade show, I don't even hesitate to give my phone number to the sales rep. Do you know why that is? It's because there's no need to worry that the sales rep will start pestering me. You see, I know the chances are slim to nothing that the rep will ever give me a call.
Now for those of you, who actually follow up with your customers and prospects on a regular basis, picture me standing up and giving you an ovation. While I'm giving you a standing ovation, I'll also venture to place a bet on the table that you are one of the stars in your direct sales company. That was a really safe bet. Truth be told, I'm not much of a gambler. It's well known that the sales people who stand out and rise to the top follow up with prospects and customers.
Are you ready to make this fall season better than ever? There's a very simple way to do that. Make a commitment to follow up with your prospects and customers. Instead of thinking how you might be pestering them, consider the information I shared with you just a few paragraphs ago - very few sales people ever follow up with their prospects or customers! Instead of considering you as a pest, your prospects and customers are more likely to think of you as "a one in a million sales representative" that actually cares enough to follow up.
A few years ago, a friend of ours (I'll call him Mike because that's actually his name!) started a business selling insurance. The obstacle Mike faced in getting our business was that I already had another good friend in the insurance business, and our car and home insurance was with her. I wasn't going to switch insurance agents. And yes, Regis, that was my final answer!
But that final answer didn't stop Mike from staying in touch. Once a month, he'd stop by my husband's office just to see how things were going. After about 3 months, it occurred to my husband that we could give our life insurance business to Mike, since we had term insurance and our agent lived in Oregon and never had any contact with us. It wasn't much business to give to Mike, but he treated us like we were his best clients.
Every month we'd get a call from him. Sometimes he'd even take us out for coffee at our favorite coffee shop, and we'd have a great time catching up on each other's lives.
Then the unexpected happened. The company my husband worked for closed their office in AZ and left him unemployed. Suddenly he had retirement savings and company stock to re-invest. Guess who's monthly follow-up call made it easy to decide with whom to entrust that investment money?
Without a company health care plan to rely on, it also became necessary to purchase catastrophic health insurance. Hmm... guess who's monthly follow-up call made it easy to decide who could help us pick a health care plan?
I've had investments with the same financial planner for years. But after his recent retirement, just guess who's monthly follow-up call made it a breeze to know with whom I wanted to entrust those investments?
A major point here is that things change. At first we wanted to help out Mike and give him some of our business, but we didn't see how we could. Mike was smart enough not to let that keep him from staying in touch with us on a monthly basis. It didn't take us long to understand that no one out there would take better care of us than Mike. And the changes we experienced in our lives became Mike's opportunity to assist us and likewise grow his business.
What would happen if you consistently followed up with your prospects and your customers? You might not meet up with the Wizard of Oz, but it might very well have a wizardly effect on your business!
The characters in The Wizard of Oz follow the yellow brick road to the Emerald City, where they hope to meet up with the Wizard who will grant them their deepest desires. In direct sales you have to follow up with prospects before they can grant you an appointment, and you have to follow up with customers before they can grant you more sales or referrals.
There are three ways to increase your business. However, most direct sales reps focus almost exclusively on only one way - increasing the number of customers in their database. The problem with that is increasing the number of customers is typically the most expensive cost of doing business. In that case, it seems worthwhile to review the other two ways you can increase business.
To increase business you can also work to increase the size of each sale or increase the number of sales per customer each year. For today's lesson, I'm only investigating that last way to increase your business - increase the number of sales per customer.
Did you know that statistically speaking, the easiest person to sell to is an existing client? It makes perfect sense really. If someone has already bought from you, he/she is already sold. In my personal experience, no company has proved their knowledge of this more effectively than Bon Appetit. There's a reason why I've subscribed to that magazine for 19 years - Bon Appetit absolutely understands how to extract business from their current client base month after month, year after year.
How can you get business from your current client base month after month, year after year? Follow, follow, follow, follow, follow up with your customers today! And when I say "follow up" I don't mean twice a year to inform them about the new product line.
Consider that before I ever receive a notice that my subscription with Bon Appetit is about to expire, I've received an absolutely gorgeous magazine jam-packed with delicious recipes for at least six months. I understand that a magazine subscription with Bon Appetit is different than a bottle of cleansing cream or a pair of earrings, etc. But here's the million-dollar question? How could you make it more similar? In other words, how could you create real value with your customers twelve times a year?
These days if I go to a home party or a trade show, I don't even hesitate to give my phone number to the sales rep. Do you know why that is? It's because there's no need to worry that the sales rep will start pestering me. You see, I know the chances are slim to nothing that the rep will ever give me a call.
Now for those of you, who actually follow up with your customers and prospects on a regular basis, picture me standing up and giving you an ovation. While I'm giving you a standing ovation, I'll also venture to place a bet on the table that you are one of the stars in your direct sales company. That was a really safe bet. Truth be told, I'm not much of a gambler. It's well known that the sales people who stand out and rise to the top follow up with prospects and customers.
Are you ready to make this fall season better than ever? There's a very simple way to do that. Make a commitment to follow up with your prospects and customers. Instead of thinking how you might be pestering them, consider the information I shared with you just a few paragraphs ago - very few sales people ever follow up with their prospects or customers! Instead of considering you as a pest, your prospects and customers are more likely to think of you as "a one in a million sales representative" that actually cares enough to follow up.
A few years ago, a friend of ours (I'll call him Mike because that's actually his name!) started a business selling insurance. The obstacle Mike faced in getting our business was that I already had another good friend in the insurance business, and our car and home insurance was with her. I wasn't going to switch insurance agents. And yes, Regis, that was my final answer!
But that final answer didn't stop Mike from staying in touch. Once a month, he'd stop by my husband's office just to see how things were going. After about 3 months, it occurred to my husband that we could give our life insurance business to Mike, since we had term insurance and our agent lived in Oregon and never had any contact with us. It wasn't much business to give to Mike, but he treated us like we were his best clients.
Every month we'd get a call from him. Sometimes he'd even take us out for coffee at our favorite coffee shop, and we'd have a great time catching up on each other's lives.
Then the unexpected happened. The company my husband worked for closed their office in AZ and left him unemployed. Suddenly he had retirement savings and company stock to re-invest. Guess who's monthly follow-up call made it easy to decide with whom to entrust that investment money?
Without a company health care plan to rely on, it also became necessary to purchase catastrophic health insurance. Hmm... guess who's monthly follow-up call made it easy to decide who could help us pick a health care plan?
I've had investments with the same financial planner for years. But after his recent retirement, just guess who's monthly follow-up call made it a breeze to know with whom I wanted to entrust those investments?
A major point here is that things change. At first we wanted to help out Mike and give him some of our business, but we didn't see how we could. Mike was smart enough not to let that keep him from staying in touch with us on a monthly basis. It didn't take us long to understand that no one out there would take better care of us than Mike. And the changes we experienced in our lives became Mike's opportunity to assist us and likewise grow his business.
What would happen if you consistently followed up with your prospects and your customers? You might not meet up with the Wizard of Oz, but it might very well have a wizardly effect on your business!
10/04: Thoughts on teleseminars
Category: Personal improvement
Posted by: tammy
Quite a number of you expressed disappointment that you missed out on my recent teleconference, 10 Keys to Skyrocket Your Telephone Results. Here's what just a few have said about it:
I just finished listening to your teleseminar "10 Keys to Skyrocket Your Telephone Results" and I am so motivated to get on the phone and practice what I learned! I now realize the importance of a script, the "attention getting words and the "Magic Word." You have a way of presenting that made me realize how easy it is if you follow these steps. Thank you!!
-Carole S. (Freelife)
I have attended so many conferences and trainings over the past 11 years, but what and how you said it, hit the cord for me. They always say you need to hear an idea at least 5 times before it will actually sink in. I've decided it is more about the person presenting the idea that creates influence than just the idea itself.
Eileen D.F. (Weekenders)
I really enjoyed your training seminar. I have zero sales training so I wasn't sure what to expect but I was more than satisfied with what I learned. I think for me the most important part was learning what I was doing wrong. You would mention mistakes that most new sales people make and I was making them. So I was really excited to learn that and to begin to make changes and use the scripts that you taught us to create for ourselves. Thanks so much. I look forward to taking more of your training classes in the near future.
-Nadine E. (TriVita)
I heard from a good many of you that you were out of town and want to know when I'm planning on giving this teleseminar again.
THE GOOD NEWS!
I am planning on offering this seminar again. How soon all depends on you. I plan on offering it again as soon as the number of subscribers to this ezine has doubled.
If you look forward to receiving this ezine, why not let a few other people in the direct sales industry know about it. If you're a leader of a few people or of a whole sales unit, it simply makes sense to let your team know about this valuable resource. Look what just one person wrote recently about my ezine:
When I read Tammy's ezine I get ideas and remember things about achieving results and even apply some thoughts to my everyday living. My attitude has changed and my approach is turning into a natural relaxed style. Tammy is straightforward and doesn't beat around the bush. When I use her suggestions I don't beg or stumble over my feet.
I have increased my customer base and sales have improved in a short time at least 20% in my direct sales business. I look forward to the ezine and the "charge" to succeed.
Eileen R. (Weekenders)
Surely you know a few people in direct sales who also want to improve their business by 20%, get a weekly charge, and learn how not to beg or stumble in their sales business.
Send those people to:
www.tammystanley.com/ezine_offer_ds.htm
I just finished listening to your teleseminar "10 Keys to Skyrocket Your Telephone Results" and I am so motivated to get on the phone and practice what I learned! I now realize the importance of a script, the "attention getting words and the "Magic Word." You have a way of presenting that made me realize how easy it is if you follow these steps. Thank you!!
-Carole S. (Freelife)
I have attended so many conferences and trainings over the past 11 years, but what and how you said it, hit the cord for me. They always say you need to hear an idea at least 5 times before it will actually sink in. I've decided it is more about the person presenting the idea that creates influence than just the idea itself.
Eileen D.F. (Weekenders)
I really enjoyed your training seminar. I have zero sales training so I wasn't sure what to expect but I was more than satisfied with what I learned. I think for me the most important part was learning what I was doing wrong. You would mention mistakes that most new sales people make and I was making them. So I was really excited to learn that and to begin to make changes and use the scripts that you taught us to create for ourselves. Thanks so much. I look forward to taking more of your training classes in the near future.
-Nadine E. (TriVita)
I heard from a good many of you that you were out of town and want to know when I'm planning on giving this teleseminar again.
THE GOOD NEWS!
I am planning on offering this seminar again. How soon all depends on you. I plan on offering it again as soon as the number of subscribers to this ezine has doubled.
If you look forward to receiving this ezine, why not let a few other people in the direct sales industry know about it. If you're a leader of a few people or of a whole sales unit, it simply makes sense to let your team know about this valuable resource. Look what just one person wrote recently about my ezine:
When I read Tammy's ezine I get ideas and remember things about achieving results and even apply some thoughts to my everyday living. My attitude has changed and my approach is turning into a natural relaxed style. Tammy is straightforward and doesn't beat around the bush. When I use her suggestions I don't beg or stumble over my feet.
I have increased my customer base and sales have improved in a short time at least 20% in my direct sales business. I look forward to the ezine and the "charge" to succeed.
Eileen R. (Weekenders)
Surely you know a few people in direct sales who also want to improve their business by 20%, get a weekly charge, and learn how not to beg or stumble in their sales business.
Send those people to:
www.tammystanley.com/ezine_offer_ds.htm
