Does the person you are speaking to have a need for what you offer?

This question should be upper most in your mind in every discussion.

Why do I say that? It is because business life is very busy these days. Do you want to spend a great amount of time with someone who has no need for your product or service? I hope you said no. So what do you do?

1.      Learn how to build rapport quicker with the potential client.

2.      Develop a number of key questions that you will ask to find out where this potential client stands when it comes to a need for your product or service.

3.      Be prepared to move on if you don’t hear what you want to hear. But do it in a positive way.

When will you start this 3 step action plan?

Is your business card giving you more than its perceived value?

You may be wondering what I am talking about.

I now believe that a business card can be used more effectively than I’ve used it before. The reason why my attitude has changed was because of a number of incidences in my business life.

For years a business card for me was just a give away. Now I know it can be used to really draw attention to the type of work or service I am offering. Let me give you a few examples;

1. You meet someone and had a very quick exchange of ideas. The person says they would like to continue the discussion. When you give them your card, what would be wrong with putting a couple of words on the card to remind them of what you were talking about?
2. What about including a unique logo on your business card that is a graphic example of the type of work you do. After you give them you card you state; ‘By the way you might be interested to note the graphic I have on your card.” Then you take a few seconds to explain what it means. Can you see you how your introduction will be more memorable?

These are just a few examples on how you can use your business card for better results.

When will you update your business card?

Are you providing solutions or selling products and services?

There is a big difference in the customers eyes, isn’t there?

When you provide solutions you have a through understanding of your future client’s wishes, wants and needs. If you are selling products it is based mainly on price and what you are promoting in this time period. If you are selling products you are more than likely going to be experiencing the potential client’s doubts about your offering especially about price.

So what can you do?

1. You need to get to know your future client on a more intimate level. What are their special interests? Are they married? What are their inner values?
2. You need to understand their problems on a deeper emotional level. So you need to ask significant questions.
3. You need to be firm in offering a solution, but you never need to be pushy. You don’t need to be pushy because if you understand their wishes, wants and needs you can explain to the future client how what you are offering meets those needs.

When can you start today to become an advisor not a pusher of products or services?

If you are in sales do you find it hard to work with some business owners?

Could it be that you don’t understand their attitude?

Let me give you an example; an advisor approaches you with a unique suggestion that they would like to help you out with. It is in an area that you are having difficulty with. Do you automatically say no or yes?

Let’s look at the types of owners, so you can judge where you fit;

• The ‘ill-tempered’ lone proprietor who is skeptical of any advice.
• The ‘do it yourself’ owner will listen and is very confident in their own ability.
• The ‘unprepared’ are as their title states are not organized.
• The ‘second career’ business owners are likely to have a trust issue with you.

So what do you do?

You have to get more creative in your approach if you want to connect with more business owners. You can’t do business the way you’ve always done it. You have to improve your own abilities to get them to say – ‘Why not?’ to your proposals.

What can you do today that will help you get more creative in your approach?

Does your business vision appear to be limited at times?

In other words do you have doubts about the future of your business?

I believe that most business people have struggled with this at times. The key understanding is to realize that at times you are going to feel that way. I say that so when you get those negative thoughts you can say to yourself ‘I expected this.’

What do you do to overcome those negative feelings?

1. Think back to when you started your business and ask, ‘Why did I start this?’
2. Then ask yourself, ‘What were the emotional reasons for starting it?’
3. Now ask yourself the tough question, ‘What has changed so that I don’t have my passion anymore?’
4. Then ask, ‘How will not having my passion affect the business?
5. Finally create a list of the impact these negatives will have on you, your family and anyone else that has some sort of a vested interest in your business.

If this doesn’t jump start your passion – sell the business quick.

Are you innovating to penetrate your marketplace?

Even if you are a long-term business you need to read this.

If you think you have your market all wrapped up I would suggest you think about this conclusion again. In my years of business I’ve seen massive changes because one business was innovating more than another.

Take for example Research In Motion (RIM) the business has been going for over 25 years. They created the Blackberry® and were doing a wonderful amount of business. Then all of a sudden they were out-maneuvered by innovation. The same can happen to you.

What do you need to do? I would suggest you ask yourself the following;

• When was the last innovation done in this business?
• What is one unique thing that your customers would like buy from you but can’t now?
• What innovative idea would raise your profile in your potential customer’s eyes?

“Can I help you with something?”

All retail sales staff make this statement every day, much to their ruin in my opinion.

I believe that when you ask ‘Can I help you with something?’ it does nothing to build rapport between you, your business and the prospective client.

The late Charlie Mouser was a nationally known lecturer and editor. For years he spoke to associations and business owners across North America and he was known for his ability to detect business trends far ahead of most. At one of his seminars in 1987, he asked one of the participants to ask him ‘Can I help you with something?’ His response was a gem. He said, “Yes, you can come over to my house this evening and cut my grass.”

I tell you this story because when you ask a dumb question you are going to get an answer that is appropriate to the question. We all need to get smarter. We all need to get more adult. We all need to take stock of how we are approaching prospective clients. I would suggest you answering the following questions;

• Are the people who approach me a little concerned about being ‘sold’?
• What can I do to lessen their fears?
• What type of questions can I ask that would make me appear to be more of an advisor that a sales person?

Are you aware of the words that you are using?

As a professional you need to be aware of particular words that can turn others away from you and your product or service.

I am going to start with one that has caused me great difficulty is the word is ‘frankly’. This word sounds deceitful or dishonest. If you were to say ‘quite frankly’ it will make people suspect you even more. The next word you need to be aware of is the word ‘honestly’, as it is almost always followed by a tall tale or a lie.

For the sales people that are reading this (and by the way we are all selling something to someone) I give you this question; ‘Are you prepared to order today?’ Talk about a distasteful question! I say that because if you have to ask for the order you haven’t built up enough rapport with your potential client and you don’t really know what their needs are.

I hope this has given you some insight as to how much you need to watch you words and your questions.

My final question is; when are you going to take action to improve your choice of words?

How balanced are you in life?

As we start this New Year, there is a tendency to get overly focused on business goals. Come with me as I explore some other options.

We must remember that work is only one of 7 balls that we juggle in life. The others are learning, financial, physical/health, social, family and spiritual. It is my opinion that work is the only ball that we can afford to drop as it is made out of rubber and it will bounce back. The others are made of fragile materials.

When we find balance in our life we are able to solve the problems in our work life with much more ease. With balance you will grow your business with ease as being balanced gives you a better perspective on all aspects of life.

If you can’t find balance on your own, you need to work with someone who has the insight to help you get the balance you need in life.

Who do you think could coach you in the understanding of what I’ve just written?

I can be contacted at timothygibney@sympatico.ca or call me at 519-539-2267.

Do you measure the results of your activities in your business?

You’ve heard; what get’s measured gets managed, haven’t you?

So are you measuring the results of all aspects of your business? Are you measuring the ratio of appointments to purchases? Are you measuring the number of visits to your store to the purchases? Are you keeping track of the incoming calls and whether these people purchase from you?

It is so easy to get lost in the activities of business, but if the activity does not lead to results – it is a waste of time.

I can assure you that if you don’t have a clear idea of what is important, you will be easily sidetracked into responding to the urgent activities of your day. Remember it is the important activities in your life that lead to results.

What can you do in the next month to assure that your activities turn into positive financial results?

Are tag-lines really effective in marketing?

Taglines are often used at the end of a marketing effort. In effect they are your last chance to give your message to a future client.

Many of the writers of marketing blogs promote tag-lines as an opportunity to communicate an idea about your business. Sadly I’ve seen that many tag-lines are really not used effectively.

I say that because if the potential buyer of your product or service doesn’t know enough about you, the tag-line will have no effect at all. Instead of working on your tag-line, start developing better ways to explain in detail what it is that you do from the customers perspective.

It has been proven by experts in the field of marketing that frequently a longer description has more of an impact and is more influential than shorter descriptions.

So when can you improve and lengthen the descriptions of your offering?

Why do 96% of all companies fail within the first 10 years?

Some people say that it is due to the management of the company. I will argue that that is not the real reason.

Let’s take a quick look at what businesses are doing in my marketplace.

• When I look at the advertising, all that they seem to be promoting is their business, not how they can help me – rather self-centered isn’t it?
• Many appear to be promoting price all the time.
• When you enter a store, many are very pushy and never seem to be interested in my needs.

I bring these things up because when a business is self-centered, only thinking about price and are not interested in my needs, they are not marketing properly. When businesses are not marketing properly they are guaranteed to fail.

What can you do to stop the down-ward trend in your business?

Oh, you say there is no down-ward trend, think again. In you are not growing and improving you are dying.

When can you make improvement in the areas I mentioned above?

Does your business need intellectual capital to grow?

Does your business need an injection so that you can create new ideas so that your business flourishes?

In a recent article about political parties I read about how they use their political foes, the civil service and research to implement ideas while there are governing. What I plan to do with this blog is to look at this premise from a business perspective.

What do you need in your business to create new ideas and grow your business?

I know that the following is of prime importance;

• You need to reignite your passion for your business.
• You need to raise your standards in all aspects of your business.
• You need to ask better questions to give you new answers to the old problems.
• You need new people who bring different perspectives, thus new ideas.
• You need be willing to try new ideas even if you are concerned that they might fail.

The question remains; will you do any of the above suggestions? When?

Did you know there is a big difference between taking action and wanting something?

I hope the following comments give you some insight.

When we were young we had many wishes, hopes and dreams. Thankfully our parents assisted us in getting many of these dreams. But now you are an adult, you have to take action. For many people it appears that this is a struggle as they don’t fully understand that action is the greatest sign of maturity.

So why is it so hard to take action?

Or should I say, why do we procrastinate? Let me give you my reasons;

• We are not motivated enough. We don’t feel enough pain to move from our present situation.
• We are afraid of change.

In order to motivate yourself you need to create a visualization of a better life or a better situation. If that doesn’t work, you need to develop the ability to do what you don’t want to do. Lastly, remember that without change there is no progress.

What can you take action on today?

Have you learned anything about marketing over the past year?

This is a very serious question from someone who is interested in your business growth.

It is my hope that with this blog that your knowledge and understanding of the aspects of marketing are increasing. As you know there are four levels of learning;

• Unconscious incompetence – That meaning we don’t know what we don’t know.
• Conscious incompetence – We know what we don’t know.
• Conscious competence – We are able to do specific things as we consciously think about it.
• Unconscious competence – We do things without even thinking about it.

Where are you positioned in the levels of learning when it comes to marketing?

Can I make a suggestion to you that you set a goal of moving up at least one level in your understanding and learning about marketing over the next year.

Wouldn’t that make sense?

Did you know that your customer’s are evaluating you all the time?

Are you passing their test?

Let me give you a simple example. Let’s look at pizza. I believe there are 5 areas that most people look at when it comes to pizza. They are;

• Is the price/value comparison good?
• Was it delivered in the time they stated?
• Is it what you ordered? That meaning, the type of crust and correct toppings.
• Was it hot on delivery?
• Does it taste the way you hoped?

Now if there are that many ways that a pizza is evaluated, how many ways is you business evaluated?

When can you create a list so that you are aware of what your clients are looking at from you?

Are you able to get your prospects attention easily?

I’ve failed, you’ve failed, and you’ve seen others fail in getting the attention of those they needed to talk to.

I find that when I am very self-centered, no one pays attention to me. When I view advertising and see how self-centered some advertising is, there is no doubt about why their advertising is not working. When I see someone start to make a presentation and they are so focused on themselves, there is little doubt about why people are not interested.

So what can you do to get the prospects attention?

I believe that you need to ask these few questions;

·        What do my prospects really want from my product or services?

·        Why do they want it?

·        What do I have to do to understand their needs?

·        How can I improve from what I am doing now?

·        When can I do it?

How many assumptions do you make each day?

By assumptions, I mean guesses, notions or ideas about how something is going to turn out before you even take action.

The challenge isn’t in the assumptions, it is in the guess that things will turn out bad.

As humans we have a tendency to assume that something will end up being bad, negative or wrong. Why is that? I am sure there is a lot of reasons or excuses but let me look at this from a solution based answer.

It is my belief that when we think negatively we are predicting the future in negative terms. A question; when was the last time you were able to chose a lottery number and win millions of dollars? It hasn’t happened very often for you, has it?

So my suggestion would be to quit trying to predict the future, live the moment and accept the result, but then learn from the result and try again. Look at all the possibilities that you have to gain.

What can you do today that will cause you to focus on the possibilities that life offers?

Have you establishing a daily practice of good habits?

This is a daily routine that gets you focused and keeps you focused and ready to take action.

This practice takes you to another level of productivity. Yes, I know you are juggling many things everyday, but that may be the problem. I say that because you may be doing many things that will not lead to goals or true fulfillment in your day, week or life. For example; when you get to work do you spend the first 20 minutes talking about a T.V. show you saw the night before? This is an interesting but not really a productive way to start your day.

I have found that by;

• asking a number of questions early in the day it helps me get focused, for example; What can I do today that will improve my life?
• checking your e-mail at particular times during the day gets you to focus more on the important things.
• planning your day, the night before gets you more focused and productive.

The key thing to remember in that you will do it every day. It is a must, as you know if you don’t do it, you will not have an effective day.

What can you do to create a daily practice of good habits?

Does the little stuff make a difference with your customers in your business?

I hope you said ‘yes’.

I say that because it is the 'little touches' of personalization and interest that make a customer feel really appreciated.

If you are already adding these ‘little touches’ my compliments. My question for you is; what more can you do to create an even better impression from your customers?

If you are not adding these ‘little touches’, what can you do to create a wonderful feeling in your customers that will make them clients for life?

Does anyone really know staff indifference can impact your business?

In mid-December I purchased a particular unit for my entertainment system. This purchase unfortunately caused me to make 4 trips back to the store.

On the third trip the store manager decided that he would exchange the equipment I purchased as there had to be a problem with the one I had. The box he gave me looked like it had been opened before, but I never questioned it. I got home to find out that my original thoughts were right as the batteries were still in the remote device. I immediately package the equipment up and took it back to the store.

When I walked in the store manager was a little surprised to see me as it had only been about 30 minutes from the last visit. I told him that I didn’t appreciate getting a used machine. He never apologized and then asked if I wanted another machine. I said “No, just give me my money back.”

Why do I write about this? It became obvious to me that this manager was indifferent to my concerns. He was only interested in getting me out of the store.

So what does indifference cost?

I will never return to this national store again. I will go to other businesses that are willing to help me and I will gladly pay them.

How can you remove any indifference attitude from your business?

You’ve made the sale, so what do you do next?

Besides counting your profit, there is more to the sale than that.

It takes more work and costs more to get the first sale than to make the second sale. That is why we need to build great rapport in the first encounter. Now that you’ve established rapport you need to find ways to keep you and your business in the customer’s mind. This is very challenging in this day and age. I say that because we are constantly bombarded with marketing every moment of the day.

So how do you keep your name as a top of mind topic?

There are the old-fashioned ways of a newsletter or an occasional phone call. Have you ever thought about hosting an event for clients? What about sending your on-line newsletter to your clients? Do you keep in contact with Facebook?

What ways would work well for your clients and you?

When can you start to really keep in contact?