Matt's Believe It Or Else

No Room at the Inn

2012-02-18T20:25:00.000-08:00

What a lovely Valentine's Day my wife and I planned (this was seriously romantic to us): She flew to Atlanta, I to DC.

She picked up a new car and drove to get me, arriving at my hotel (or should I say FORMER hotel?) on Feb 13. Lovely.

On Valentine's day she was well rested, but violently ill. Our ETD for Colorado (28 hrs of road time from Warrenton, VA) was 4pm. It wasn't happening. I had arranged the usual 1pm checkout earlier in the day, but called the hotel from the client's shop at about 12:30.

"I'll have to check availability." I was told. "OK," I said, "Would you like my num "... She had hung up on me. I figured that must mean she already had my number. I kept working. I called my wife and checked: still vomiting. Hard to get off the floor much less pack. I called the front desk again at about 1:30. I was transferred to the MOD immediately. "You have to leave." He said. "The room is sold." I explained my wife's condition. I explained in detail that I get his situation, that we would rather stay and pay for another night or could indeed at least try to switch to another hotel, and even simply stay until perhaps 5PM? And also pay?

"If she doesn't get out, I am calling the police." I was tersely told.

"You do that." I said. "Have them meet me there.
I'll be there in fifteen minutes, and you, me, and the cops can pick my wife up off the bathroom floor and we'll see if they actually want to cuff her."

Mind you it was 1:30 PM. This hotel was "oversold". There are at least 200 rooms. There were 7 cars in the lot. I've been on the road long enough to know that there was probably a tour bus or two scheduled for later that night, but nobody explained that to me, nobody apologized, not one employee attempted to make any comforting move whatsoever to a repeat customer traveling with his (suddenly) sick wife and trying to balance a work schedule.

When I arrived at the hotel, I convinced the manager to refund my client's money, and apparently was so thorough in my debrief of the situation that he at one point insisted that my parents were never married.

My wife, for her part, managed to muster an insult she insists was coherent as she left the lobby. I wasn't present, but I wish she wouldn't do that. Insults are a high art form for me as some of you know, and I like to be invited.

When we arrived at the "other" hotel in town (HI Express, Warrenton VA rocks! Ask for Katrina.), we were warmly greeted by "Trina", who promptly sent someone to the grocery for crackers and ginger ale for my ailing wife, put us in a suite with a large bath for her, and brought ice and washcloths for her as if she were family. BRAVO. She recovered over the next 3 hrs and we got out of Dodge.

Yesterday I got the Customer Satisfaction Survey email for my stay... hehehe...

This was seriously among the worst customer service and communication I've ever seen, much less encountered as a customer. Think about that for a minute. One fewer loyalty card...

Selling and Thermodynamics: Need More Data

2011-11-03T09:39:00.000-07:00

In science there are a set of verifiable physical constraints in our universe which we refer to as "laws". One such example would be the laws of Thermodynamics, which deal with how heat works here. "Heat Rises" (in earth's gravity and atmosphere) is just one derivative of these laws with which you're probably familiar.

In sales, there are a similar set of "laws" which deal with influential sales presentations. One such example would be the tenet that a salesperson "Never discuss the price until they've established the value." This is the practice I have used and for which I have become notable for teaching. A Value-added selling approach.

Recently I was discussing some business with my friend and business associate Ellen Rohr, and she brought my philosophical world to a screeching halt with the following bomb: "I am trying a new approach. I am giving my attendees (workshops, seminars) a flyer with the price for the next step BEFORE the workshop begins." Those of you who are not in our business may not understand that this was like Einstein proclaiming that matter could travel faster than light. And with similar authority and credibility.

I was astonished. She defended herself, of course, when pressed: "My feeling is that we do so much, and actually do provide such an overwhelming exchange of value for our fees, that it may be too difficult to take in at one bite. This way, they get to slowly add up the value side in their own minds over the course of the day, so I in essence prove the value, and give them enough time to do the math along with me."

Now, I take a scientific approach to selling, and therefore I am open to new data and to changing my mind. Especially when the idea has Ellen's credentials behind it. I have certainly seen this approach work, but as an overlying philosophy I remain temporarily unconvinced. Someone please, give me more data!

Is it easier to discuss price before or after value has been amplified in your sale?
Why?

Is it more effective to discuss price before value has been established in your sale?
Why?

Send me the 411.
Happy Selling.

Upfront Price Messages

2011-05-06T08:17:00.000-07:00

Today I am discussing the need for Technicians to clearly establish the value of our pricing system itself. If we wait until after the customer has seen the price to attempt to explain upfront pricing advantages and benefits, many times it is far too late, as the customer has already developed "sticker shock".

We recommend a procedure called the "Upfront Pricing Message", which is a narrative about the way we price jobs in flat-rate service. It is intended to be discussed BEFORE even the diagnostic event. Something like this:

"At Michael & Son, we use a menu-price system for 2 pretty good reasons, protection and fairness. Have you ever hired a contractor because their price looked pretty good, and then by the time the job was done, maybe it didn't look so good anymore? We don't do business that way. The price we quote you is the price you pay for the completed job, whether it takes 5 minutes or 5 weeks, and you won't have to watch the clock."

This gives you the opportunity to add lines like "you won't have to watch the clock" BEFORE the "clock" is running! Keith Mercurio, Service Manager at Winters Company in Boston, has an absolute gem here: "That means this discussion isn't costing us anything. While I am here, let's be sure to be thorough and get all of your questions answered."

The second issue is fairness. We handle that this way:
"At Michael & Son, we have over 180 technicians serving this market, and no 2 of us work at precisely the same speed. That means we would be giving out 180 different prices for what really is the same work if we were on Time & Material estimating. We won't need to estimate anything in your home today. We aren't here to train ourselves, we've been in business since 1976. So no matter which Tech you get, and no matter which part of town you live in, you know you didn't pay more than your neighbor for the same work."

That looks like a lot to say in a service call. We have each Tech come up with his own defense of the pricing system covering Protection and Fairness. It's a worthy exercise. Or if you like, you can continue to look into the shocked eyes of a customer as they calculate their cost-to time. "20 minutes? You charged me $450 for 20 minutes? What are you trying to do to me here?"

Learn it. Live it. Love it. The upfront pricing message can go a LONG way.

Cat toy testing department? TECHS READ THIS

2011-03-20T09:40:00.001-07:00

So while I was away in Pittsburgh this weekend my wife took the 2 smaller kids to the pet store. Now, to be clear, this wasn't the same customer service nazi from the "dude" story posted on this blog earlier. Apparently, there is a gap in retail sales training for pet stores...

They looked at cat toys for 15 minutes. The clerk, who was aware that my family was in the store, and was also aware that they were looking at cat toys, pointed out that there were also some on the end-cap behind the counter.

They looked some more. And when finally they settled on a couple of noisy fake mice with feather stings attached to a feathered stick, 20 minutes had elapsed. Neato.

This 20 minutes on its own is neither an inconvenience nor an unexpected development. Entertaining an 8-yr old and a 5-yr old for 48 hours when you're down a parent requires many of these sojourns.

So my wife has her selection rung up by the same (and only) clerk mentioned above. Upon scanning her items he remarks, "The feathers come off really quickly. I give 'em 2 minutes. I tested them. I tried all of them and that one didn't last 5 minutes." My wife didn't feel the need to defend the fact that she already knew that too. But it was blue. And it made funny electronic mousy sounds. Honestly she's had cats for 20 years--about as long as this kid has had oxygen--the fate of this cat toy is unknown to her? Interesting presumption.

The point of all this is that the ORDER of subjects in selling matters. More than you realize. And what of the potential that you pre-qualify some of your customers regarding particular subjects, and surprise them in similar ways?

Example: Let's say you're talking with Mr. Jones about his upstairs tub drain which needs replaced. This discussion is taking place in his dining room, directly under what will be the work area, and you make this point to him in this general order, although probably not this specific language: "Ok Mr. Jones, the tub drain does need to be replaced. In order to do that we'll have to remove the old one first. We'll have to go in right here (pointing to the ceiling) and pull out the old one."

Stop. Tell me what Mr. Jones reaction likely is. "Whoa. Wh-- there's gotta be , is there ANY other way? I mean this is my dining room and this can't be.. I mean all torn up right?" Now consider this: At this point Mr. Jones has DEMONSTRATED that he is averse to the idea of cutting into his ceiling. Why? BECAUSE YOU LET HIM. By pitching your services out of order, just like the cat toy boy. If you even bring this subject up again, and I mean in the innocent ways that you're used to like, "Im sorry Mr. Jones there just isn't another way to do it." and forcing your way through it, you not only LOOK pushy and aggressive, you actually ARE pushy and aggressive.

Here is the proper flow of subject matter, once again in an example language: "Ok Mr. Jones, (begin pointing to the CORNERS of the ceiling, hand flattened and planing the wall) when we're finished with this, you won't even believe how clean this will all be. Our drywall guys are so good, they will cut this seam so tight to the corner, there's not a chance you'll even be able to tell we were here at all. OK? So what we'll do is carefully cover and move all of your chairs and tables, and make sure we have good clearance and access well before we begin, and we'll run a super-clean job. I mean, we get that this is your dining room so you'll be happy you called us. Let me show you how we'll proceed."

Beat the customers to the objection, and you own the subject. Let them get there first and you're the counter-puncher we all hate to have to fight with just to get a professional job done.
Happy selling.

Cat toy testing department? TECHS READ THIS

2011-03-20T09:40:00.000-07:00

Resistance to the "Free Safety Inspection"?

2011-02-03T05:58:00.000-08:00

In my Sales Summit class, one of the most common questions I face is regarding the 'Free Inspection" of a plumbing or electrical system which is a standard service for most flat-raters. For the contractor, it is an opportunity to "nip it in the bud" if there's a potential problem looming. For the customer, it is sometimes viewed as nothing more than a mechanized sales pitch for add-on work, and they are resistant. If this is happening to you, I recommend you examine your TIMING on introducing the inspection.

Consider the drive-through oil change franchises, like Jiffy Lube:

When you pull into this garage, what do you want? An oil change. How would you react if the technician began telling you about all of the other things they're going to check on, like fluid levels and filter conditions, BEFORE he even popped the hood? "Can you just change the oil please?"

And what if they opened the hood, drained and replaced the oil, and buttoned the hood back up and said "Your oil is all changed. Let's talk about inspecting the filters and fluid levels..." At this point, what do you want? You want to leave.

So the beginning isn't the ideal place, and the end isn't the ideal place. That only leaves the middle. And if you pay attention, that's exactly when the pitch comes. They open the hood, drain the oil, and stop. Now, they casually stroll up to you. "How ya doin? Not going anywhere for a few minutes? I didn't think so. See that? That's your air filter. How do you feel about that? Want a new one?"

Now consider your customer in flat-rate: When you arrive at the customer's house, where do they want you? At the problem. If, before you've even seen the problem, you begin pitching or requesting access for the inspection, how do they react? "Can you just look at the (toilet, outlet, whatever) problem?"

If you go ahead and look at the problem, then go ahead and actually complete a repair/installation all buttoned up, now where do the customers want you? GONE.

So once again, the beginning is no good, and the end is no good. That only leaves the middle. Try this: Go ahead and soothe the customer's urgency by BEGINNING the repair (once that task is sold). Somewhere in the middle of that repair, ideally if you have to move the customer's belongings around, like bleach and cleaning supplies that may be found under most typical kitchen sink areas, STOP. If you've built enough value in your very presence, and there is a bit of a mess in progress, you'll be ASTOUNDED by how quickly the homeowner leads you to other areas of the house if at that point you simply say, "Would you take me to the (basement, panel, whatever) please?"

I'm not talking about literally making a mess. But with a kitchen floor full of the customer's own undersink belongings arranged in a half-circle around the tech, or a hole in the ceiling where their chandelier once was, their interest in cooperating seems to be heightened. "Make a mess!"

Happy Selling.

"Is price your only concern?"

2011-01-25T07:35:00.000-08:00

I am constantly training. I meet thousands of Technicians in flat-rate who struggle with the price objection. I am constantly telling them that THEY are bad judges of the value of their skills (the Techs), because they personally would not pay what they charge for mechanical service. This leaves them in a condition we call "consumer advocacy", or simply: sympathy for the customer's point of view on pricing. This condition leads to a lack of "confront" on the price issue.

On the flip side, those technicians (many, apparently, as I have this discussion 4-5 times in the weeks following a Sales Summit workshop) who GET IT always follow my advice for handling the price objection:

Upon hearing the price objection in whatever form it takes, it is a MISERABLY BAD idea to ask "What did you think it would cost?" Instead, acknowledge that it's more than they were expecting, by using an analogy like this: "You know, Mr. Jones, I can remember when gasoline was 75 cents a gallon. (Bread was .39 a loaf, whatever) How about you?" And watch in amazement as they begin to nod in agreement with you that this will probably cost more than they expected. You are now beginning the process of handling their objection from a position of Power, not a position of cower. "When was the last time you had plumbing (electrical, HVAC) work done?" is not a bad follow up. However, this discussion is leading us to ask the following question, from which all of your value ideas can be put on the table: "IS PRICE YOUR ONLY CONCERN?"

Almost no customers say "Yes. I am hiring the cheapest guy who shows up." Almost nobody wants to be that customer. Instead they'll likely say no. "What are your other concerns?" leads you nicely into a tidy summary of the value, service, warranties, and devices most flat-raters employ in order to heighten their customer experience.

This is obviously not the entire lesson on handling the price objection, but an excerpt from the Sales Summit Technician's Course. But if you've never been to Sales Summit, I would recommend two things: 1. Go. Those who have been there would tell you the same thing. 2. Try using this question in the field. Watch what happens. If you've got the confidence and product knowledge to defend your flat-rate price, this question will get you the proper stage on which to display it.

Happy Selling.

Alpha males: "Sales Judo"

2010-06-01T11:14:00.000-07:00

My good friend Lee Brooks is constantly calling attention to the "reach and withdrawal" aspect of selling, or what he calls "sales judo". It really is remarkable how much can be learned about selling by watching the direction of the communication. Are you pushing info across? Or pulling out an answer in a friendly and agreeable manner?

One way in which the direction of the sale can be observed is through body language. One of the most common questions we field at our Sales Summit (www.EliteServiceClass.com) is "How do I beat an Alpha Male?" Well, you don't. You recognize when you're up against one and you "bend like a reed in the wind", grasshopper.

Firstly, when two very seasoned salespeople get together (You'll have to pardon my self-inclusion in the group I just listed; for practical purposes, someone has to write this blog. Those of you who know me very well know that if you asked me to rate my own selling skills on a scale of 1-10 I would respond by saying perhaps 2 or 3, indicating only that I may be using a bigger yardstick than you...)and they shake hands, the "argument" that takes place physically is precisely opposite that of two very aggressive men. There is a firmness, yes; but there is a speed to the "submission", or the sliding under of your hand, so that the other ends up on top and palm down, that would amaze you. We actually try to "out-submit" one another.

Ever watch two Techs shake hands? It is like an armwrestling match.

Besides outward bossiness, the Alpha can also be a bit of a know-it-all, and sometimes a flat-out pain in the nether region. If you hear one of these words, it could be an Alpha:
Champ
Sport
Skippy
Pal
Junior
My friend
Chief
Bubba

Yikes. Its amazing that these people not only feel so inadequate themselves, but are actually willing to treat the one person in the world at the moment who is there to help them in this manner. But they do.

OK general recommendations for one of these bozos (No, don't call him Bozo...)
1. Submit. Use the underhand handshake.
2. Listen carefully. See if you can get him to open up about his interests by asking good questions.
3. Don't ever be taller than him in an enclosed space, like a basement or a bathroom. Find a way to sit so that you're always looking up, never down. (Did I need to add that the tub is preferred to the toilet?)
4. Don't allow physical barriers to empower objections. By seating or positioning yourself next to him while looking at documents or proposals, rather than across a table or countertop from him, you will find his agreement much closer and his objections more a matter of curiosity.
5. Show concern for his time and convenience. After all, he's "wasting his time" with you.
6. If you have to ask a question which he may find confrontational, soften it using the words "I'm curious," and you'll find whatever follows to be a matter of polite information exchange rather than a challenge to his opinion.

The especially funny punch line to the Alpha is that after all of this bossiness and "Large and in charge" persona, this dolt will still say "Well I need to talk to my wife."

And no, we can't simply LOL. But don't you wish you could? It should be added that a man who thinks he's the head of his household is like a jaywalker who insists he has the right-of-way: It's probably true on some level, but just go ahead and walk on out there...)
-MS

Salesmanship from hell...

2010-05-26T09:49:00.000-07:00

What an interesting day of dichotomy in customer service for me yesterday. Within 30 minutes of one another, I had two starkly different experiences illustrating the bandwidth of the gauge of salesmanship:

While driving to errands in Old Town Ft Collins, my wife remarked how lousy the tires we had bought the previous winter now were. They were loud and wore unevenly, and really weren't much to look at. I had bought them at a discount tire store in a rush last year. A "bargain" for which I was now paying the price: Our trusty Volvo Cross Country is readying for another trans-continental trip through the heartland to Alexandria, VA in one week or so. So I made a phone call to the Old Town Goodyear rep, and told him of my predicament.

Wow. 10 minutes later, as I was entering the restaurant which would soon become a wait-staff tarpit, I was HAPPILY concluding my purchase of the top-of-the-line Goodyear tires, with an installation appointment being emailed to me for next Tuesday, just in time. Perfect. That's when this extremely personable and polite young man asked "How you doing on an oil change? Want to handle that while you're in?" Are you kidding me? (Honey: Do we need an oil change too? Yes?) Once again, perfect. See you Tuesday. I am THRILLED to have spent 33% more with you than I did just last winter for a brand of tires I have never heard of.

The next 30 minutes, needless to say, were a lesson in plain bad manners. We were passed off twice, so a total of 3 waiters ignored us in two different locations as we suffered through the unanswered requests for BBQ sauce, refilled iced tea, and the like. Just simple attention could have cured this pretty easily, as the food was not bad. During dinner my wife said "I just read a craigslist post saying NOT to come to work here, that they treat the employees badly and the culture is gloomy." Hmm. Check please. I can't ever remember leaving only $5 ON $37 before, especially when I know 3 people will argue over it. But so be it, gloomy kids! I have $644 for your friend next door at the tire store, and I'll probably tip him too. And you know something? I can't wait to reward their excellent service.

Ejected from a... pet store?

2010-04-29T08:13:00.000-07:00

It's true. Last week I was nearly ejected from a pet store for my "abusive" language toward the store manager.

Now, those of you who know me very well know that this is highly likely.

However, in this particular case, I was purely attempting to explain my perspective. What then, was I saying that was so abusive that the store manager threatened to have me "removed" from his store? Not my critique of his juniors' recommendations. Not my critique of his inventory. Not my lengthy review of our customer loyalty. No, none of that was argued. The "offense" came in the form of the word "Dude".

Apparently my "colorful" language included several inflections of this word which implied some sort of disrespect. I really am still not clear in which way I hit this man's hot button.

"My name is not "dude". You call me dude one more time, and you're out the door!"

Yes, I was working extremely hard to keep my composure... from laughing. I don't really consider my "admission" to this store to be something I covet to begin with, so what's your point dude?

What I find amazing about this particular fraying of customer service nerves is that whenever I am in England, or South Africa, or Jamaica, other English-speaking people always-- and I mean always-- request that I use this word for them. "Say dude for us!" is a request I've heard on more than one continent.

Apparently for some of us, it's not OK on this one. Sorry dude.

Home Depot's Hypnosis

2010-04-21T08:28:00.000-07:00

I am constantly telling people at my Sales Summit that they are very nearly hypnotized by our media in the US. I then go through a few easy exercises to prove it to them. It isn't difficult to do.

How hypnotized? Well it depends on the level of immersion into a particular medium one goes. In this case, marketing, sales, and customer service. THAT is a deep hole here in the good ole' US of A.

For instance, in word association, customers (yours, not mine) are as likely to respond to the word "Plumber" with the word "pipe" as they are to respond to the word "faucet" with the words "Home Depot". I'm not kidding. The same is true for "Electrician" and "wire": The customers are as likely to respond to "chandelier" with the words "Home Depot".

What can this mean for us as a larger implication than "Home Depot's marketing works"?

Well, one possibility is the depth to which our customers have been re-trained in this generation: Trading Spaces, The HG network, and the apparent mother of all optimisms "You can do it..." What it means is that this generation doesn't even consider most of you a legitimate resource for "sexy" (please people, installations are never going to be sexy to the layman; something shiny!)things like tub spouts or decorative dimmers.

We have ways of causing you to buy...

The number of ways you have for making the customers aware that you carry these sorts of things matters to your bottom line. How many do you have? Can you do them all without appearing pushy?

Benn trying to coach Job Average? Listen to a sales coach...

2010-04-06T08:27:00.000-07:00

Coachability is a factor I discuss at my Gameplan Coaching Course for Service Managers. We make fun of the managers who claim to be "coaching" (giving distinct advice for a distinct action) Job Average. If they claim they do it, we tell them they are using an ancient method of sales management called pulling it from their nether-regions. Consider Average Sale (Or Job Average, Average Ticket, Invoice Average, etc.):

The total number of dollars brought in via sales
(NOT non-sales such as “Dispatch, Trip, Service, or Other Door Fees”)
Divided by
The number of sales written
(NOT “estimates”, “quotes” , “Invoices” or “Dispatch, Trip, Service, or Other Door Fees”)

There are in fact only two ways in the world a Tech can ever drive up average sale mathematically:
Sell more things to each customer OR sell more expensive things to each customer.
There is no third way.

The problem is that Average Sale doesn’t indicate which of the two main tributaries is in need of
coaching; and the skills, behaviors, and media which drive each statistic are completely different and widely untrained and uncoached.

Selling more things to each customer is an indication of an ability and willingness to ADD-ON work to the main job, which is more precisely tracked by the number Tasks Per Call. (TPC) The greatest add-on salespeople in the world reside under the Golden Arches and always have. Can you remember ever pulling through McDonald's and NOT being offered super-size, fries, or an apple pie? You think these kids at McDonald's are just concerned that you get all you want? Or do you think perhaps their jobs are on the line...indeed, their jobs ARE to ask that question. The key skill in adding on is simply asking. There are certainly others.

Selling more expensive things to each customer involves the ability to sell higher priced materials and services and hold the line on price negotiations by establishing value, which is more precisely tracked by the number Dollars Per Task. (DPT) What is the key skill in these areas? Well its Product Knowledge. A tech has to know the very specific reasons the more expensive things are more expensive, so that their value can be displayed to the customer.

TPC and DPT are coachable.
Average Sale is not.

C'mon coach, COACH!

2010-03-30T10:15:00.000-07:00

It is true that in business, as in sports, there are undeniable numbers that report the status of the current competition at any given moment in time.
Both disciplines keep a statistical record that we could accurately refer to as a Scoreboard.
Now, try to imagine the following scenario:
Football Player: “Uh, coach, I’m starting to feel a little depressed about the game.”
Coach: “Why’s that, Player?”
Football Player: “Well, it’s that scoreboard up there. It says we’re losing the game. Any chance you could get them to turn it off?”
Coach: “Ah, I understand - no problem. I wouldn’t want any of my players to feel depressed about how we’re performing in this game.”
Coach: “Hey, could someone please turn off the scoreboard? It’s really upsetting my players.”
It’s a fairly common scenario – one you’ve probably heard of before.
What? You mean you’ve never heard of this happening on a football field? Well, maybe you’ve heard of it happening in business. Maybe it’s even occurred in your business. Bad numbers recently? Well, we wouldn't want to let anyone get any more depressed than they already are by displaying red. Let's not fill out the board this week...
Are you guilty of turning off your business’ Scoreboard?
After all, the sales result is the game in a sales-focused company. Are you leading that way? Are you coaching that way? Are you coaching at all?

From Merriam-Webster:
Coaching: To instruct, direct, or prompt as a coach* (used without permission)

When was the last time you prompted a new behavior? In the field? Where it matters?

C'mon coach, coach!

I recently had an encounter with a gentleman from Indianapolis who said that he had one Tech who is having no problems at all selling add ons and service agreements at fat prices, even in this economy. I said "Terrific. When was the last time you rode along with him to figure out what he's doing differently?"

"I haven't."

Oh. Well. Do I need to be here for this meeting then?

COME ON COACH. COACH!

My First Sales Lesson

2010-03-26T09:57:00.000-07:00

I’d been with the company all of two hours when the first customers of the day walked in. They were a middle aged couple, a husband and wife. It was a large mall music store, the old-fashioned narrow rectangular piano and organ store with a few token acoustic guitars in the back. The kind that relied on “front pumping”, or the act of playing an organ in the front of the store to attract mall traffic. Mind you, I’m a guitar player. I’d never touched an electronic organ in my life. I was alone on the floor with an older guy “from the home office” (words I would later learn to dread) who was purported to be the “District Manager”. This 50-something white-haired grizzled veteran of the piano and organ game stood behind the counter and cleaned the shelves as the customers approached slowly, looking at this organ or that. My first sales lesson came abruptly and in a mortifying fashion when I turned and looked at him to ask what I should do.

“Show them something.” was his expert sales advice. Show them something? Seriously? Not, watch how I sell this part of the organ, or this little demonstration here is a catchy one, not ask great questions like these, or break the ice and get to know them; but Show them something? Talk about a high wire without a net. Two hours earlier, I was unemployed. Since then, I’d filled out tax forms and learned how to ring up clarinet reeds. Now I was expected to essentially prove my mettle in front of a 30-year veteran. The “mettle” I speak about is of no other sort than the nerve it takes to actually greet a customer and attempt to serve them even though you don’t know the FIRST thing about the merchandise. This is the essence, or the spirit of selling. It’s that nerve and moxie which most great salespeople all have in common. We’re willing to fail. We’re willing to fail in dramatic and horrific fashion. We often do.

The payoff to the story has already been delivered. Of course I eventually sold the customers an organ (what kind of storyteller would I be if I didn’t?), relying on help from others in Product Knowledge and my own general knowledge about music and sound. The answer to “how?” is that my instincts took over, and instead of trying to act as though I knew anything about the merchandise or put on a demonstration worthy of commission, I simply said, “How are you folks doing today?” And the rest was a process of following bread crumbs. What I didn’t know then was that it always is. From a $.25 guitar pick to a $2.5M consulting sale, the process isn’t different.

Your customers are already presuming you're an excellent mechanic. Trying to convince them that you're worth more than XYZ Plumbing or Electrical because you tighten that wire nut so much better than they, or you solder that joint so much better, is spinning your sales wheels into a rut. Focus on the relationship. Assuming all of your competitors are focused on: Timeliness, orderliness, cleanliness, courtesy, salesmanship, and craftsmanship, it's the only conceivable advantage you have.

The Value of Time

2010-03-16T07:32:00.000-07:00

There once was a man whose sole passion in life was Rolls Royces. He was an upholsterer and did a fine upholstery business out of his garage behind his house. As he worked on the interior of Rolls Royce automobiles over the years, he developed a fascination with them and came to own a couple of his own through rebuilds of crashed frames, scrap parts, and auction material, though he was a man of humble means. This man was a mechanically adept artist. His passion was upholstery, but working on the
engines soon became the more intensive effort. Since he possessed the unique ability to upholster the interiors of the crashed Rolls Royce’s to full restoration specifications quickly, he took advantage of the chance to educate himself through experience by rebuilding the motors. After many years of this, there wasn’t a part on a Rolls Royce that this man couldn’t identify or fix. Any year, model, size, color, or style - he knew the Rolls Royce motors so well that, more often than not, he could hear the problem with an engine before he even looked at it (I bet you know mechanics like this). As his reputation grew, many Rolls Royce owners would bring their cars to him for maintenance and repair.

He told me one evening after hours, a man called to say he was bringing a car over. An hour later, he was standing in his driveway and, as usual, heard the problematic car coming from several blocks away. He had diagnosed the problem and the solution by the time the flawed Rolls Royce arrived. He waved to the gentleman inside and instructed him to open the hood, not to bother to get out; it would just be a couple of minutes. Sure enough, less than two minutes later the problem was fixed and the owner delighted. The man said, “That’ll be $500.00.” To which the shocked owner replied, “You can’t possibly charge me $500.00 for two minutes’ work!” And my friend leaned into the window of the car, reached for the switch and turned off the motor. As he removed the keys from the ignition, he stood up and winked at the gentleman, and just before pocketing the keys and walking away said, “You’re right. Call me in a week.”

This gets me to thinking about the diagnostic event in flat-rate contracting. If it looks too easy to the customer, how much value does it have? Ask the questions you think you already know the answers to, and watch how customers begin to follow you like the pied piper.

Revoking Your License to Steal

2010-03-09T07:37:00.000-08:00

There are so few true entrepreneurs. Guys and gals whose sole passion in life is running a business on which they turn a profit, regardless of the product. No, most of us are enthusiasts. I cannot tell you how many industries there are in which people downplay their salesmanship, or deny it outright. Probably in every single one of them, there’s a guy collecting somebody else’s money and saying “but I’m not a salesperson.” Here’s a brief list of the kinds of deception people use to fool themselves into thinking they aren’t a salesperson: Product Specialist, Associate, Assistant Manager, Team Member, Team Leader, Account Executive, Service Professional, Strategic Alliance Manager, System Engineer, Interior Designer, etc.

What do all of the above people have in common? At least 2 things: They’re enthusiastic about their expertise in some field (which represents a product category for someone else), and they are all, despite their gyrations to the contrary, salespeople.

I think we all know what it means to be enthusiastic about a product which pertains to a skill or an interest of our own. Guitar players sell guitars. Who owns the local pool supply company? The ex-state champion swimmer. The retired race car driver didn’t run out and open up an electronics store, he opened a car dealership. I’ll bet every person who works at your local tack store has some experience with horses.

When people are put into a position of perceived authority, an amazing thing happens: other people start asking them questions. The problem is that the more people ask your opinion, the more you believe it matters. You really start to think and act as though you are an expert. And this is not to suggest that you don’t have expertise, only that your opinion of the merchandise is not as important as the customer’s opinion of the merchandise. Pride is a sale-killer.

Anyway, in service contracting, one of the more common results of using our system is a high level of trust with customers, which frequently leads them to ask the Technician the following question: "What would you do (if it were your home or your decision)?"

There is only one possible answer to this question if you're true to your ethics as a craftsman, and your salesmanship matches that resolve.

“Thanks for asking my opinion, but it would be completely unfair of me to
answer. See, I'm a Technician. I'm a craftsman. I actually like doing this stuff, it isn't an inconvenience or an interruption to my life. I know distributors and have access to the parts. So the decisions I'd make in my own home really don't have a lot to do with what's going on in yours. I haven't given you a bad option, we just need to work closely to figure out what's the best solution for you.”

The customer just gave you a license to steal. And you just handed it right back. Lots of Techs talk about ethics. This is walking that walk.

Can I just be right?

2010-03-04T08:21:00.000-08:00

Starbucks is in an operations versus sales quasi-quagmire. In order for the Barista to get the order correctly from the order-taker, she must know a few things in a certain order, or the operation is somewhat crippled and not as smooth. The order in which the Barista needs your order is:

1. Temperature. If nothing specific is stated about temperature, the Barista presumes the drink is "hot", which dictates the cup type that's chosen. 2. Size. In Starbucksese this is Tall, Grande, Venti, or Short. 3. Espresso shot number. For instance, if someone wants 3 shots, they say "triple". 4. Drink style. This is the range of confusing combinations which exist for the expression of espresso, such as "Americano", "Machiata", "Latte", or what have you.

So I pull up to Starbucks and I say, in as economically suitable syllabic form as possible: "I'd like a triple-tall iced Americano, please." To which I am always replied, "That's an Iced Tall Triple Americano, is that correct?"

Umm, I'm not sure. I know that's not what I SAID. I mean, if you're going to charge me $3 for 6oz of coffee, can I just be right?

Figure it out people. Evolve or die.