December 8, 2009
- 074 The Invisible Touch – The Eight Keys to Lasting Relationships – 1. Natural Affinity
The Fourth Key: Relationships – The Failing Relationship And What To Do About It
I loved this analogy when I first heard it… the amount of time "left" on this earth is only illustrative for this story and doesn't matter what your actual time is left.
Let's say you're 50 years old and life expectancy is 78 for you. (Again, please don't let the numbers pain you… this is just for illustration).
That leaves 28 years.
If you subtract about 33% for eating, sleeping, and using the bathroom, that leaves you 18.75 years left to do what you want.
Now seriously: how much of that time do you want to WASTE with difficult clients who don't respect you!?
When we look at life like THAT, doesn't it become clear what we need to do with a difficult client?
If speaking directly (I always told my kids to be "firm but polite") doesn't improve the relationship you and your client have, then you need to FIRE your client.
Yup – it's that simple.
I'm always amazed when I hear business owners say, "But MY clients won't pay that much" or "My clients won't like that…"
Well… YOU selected those clients (let's face it, YOU are the one who agreed to work with them!) and YOU are the one who has to decide YES or NO when it comes to continuing to work with them.
See what I mean?
Life is WAY too short to work with people who cause lots of problems for you.
And your business needs your attention on the clients who will make you the most money, NOT the ones who will cause you the most heartache.
So if a relationship is failing, Move On! Be grateful for what you had and then Move On.
Life will be SO much better when you do.
And now – leave me a comment here to tell me what YOU feel about this!
December 7, 2009
- 073 The Invisible Touch – The Eight Keys to Lasting Relationships – 1. Natural Affinity
The Fourth Key: Relationships – Avoid The Fickle
If you were searching for a spouse, how seriously would you look at someone who had been married many times over?
Hey, Pam and I have been married for more than 28 years and SHE was married once before. That's not what I'm talking about.
I'm talking about someone who is famous for being married over and over and over again.
I'll guess your answer will be "not very seriously!"
So… why are you interested in a client who keeps shifting people to work with?
Do you really want to set this person as a priority when it's likely that you will only be a short term interest?
Do you want to invest lots of time with someone whose track record indicates that he/she won't be around very long?
Do you really want to build your career on the shoulders of someone who won't be with you very long and probably won't tell others to use you?
If when you ask a prospect who he/she worked with last and you get a response that doesn't sit well in your stomach, move on. Things will only get worse with time.
Look for loyal PEOPLE to find loyal CLIENTS.
And build your business around them!
December 4, 2009
- 072 The Invisible Touch – The Eight Keys to Lasting Relationships – 1. Natural Affinity
The Fourth Key: Relationships – Avoid Blind Dates
Have you ever been on a blind date?
I had to think long and hard about this one – I don't think I ever went on one.
You know the type: when a friend thinks another friend is just PERFECT for you and invites both of you to spend some time together.
Neither of you knew about the other, neither had spent much time learning about the other because some external force (this time a friend) brought you together.
We NORMALLY think that a referral is the BEST kind of external relationship builder we can find… but be careful.
Someone looking you up in a directory, yellow pages, or finding your name in Google may be the LEAST loyal type of customer to have.
Have YOU ever looked someone up in the Yellow Pages? For ME, it's been a few years and I had one of the happiest experiences I've ever had with someone doing work for me (this company replaced a garage door opener when I wasn't even there and couldn't sign a credit card slip for them. Believe me, I have recommended them to LOTS of people since then).
But I've never hired a professional to work with me just from a directory or yellow pages. Never hired an attorney, accountant, doctor, or dentist that way.
And really – is that how YOU want to be hired?
If they can find someone else (needing only an ad to get them started), will they stay with YOU?
My Wife The Coupon Cutter
My wife LOVES to clip coupons out of those newspaper circulars. She sees what is new, sees what prices are being asked, and sees how much she can save when using the coupon.
Sometimes I think it's just relaxing therapy for her.
But then she's one of the LEAST loyal customers any of these products can have. When she sees a coupon for a NEW product… snip, snip, snip and she's off to use the NEW product.
Is that how you want people finding and working with you?
I doubt it.
So find ways to let your story out (like a blog like this) so that they come to you NOT for the price but because of your tremendous level of service.
And when they learn more about you, they will stay with you.
But EARN that respect with everything you do – it really is THAT important to your business's success.
PS: So… HAVE you been on a blind date? Tell me about it in the comment space, ok?
December 3, 2009
- 071 The Invisible Touch – The Eight Keys to Lasting Relationships – 1. Natural Affinity
The Third Key: Relationships – Intro
You know the old expression: Birds of a feather flock together.
We often say in marketing that People want to work with people they like; People like people who are like themselves.
Look at communities where people live – there is seldom a bright orange house in the middle of all the earth tones. Or a GIGANTIC house in the middle of tract houses. OR a huge swimming pool in the midst of NO pools.
There are often communities of Irish, Italians, Afro-Americans; Catholics, Jews, Protestants, Muslims.
Humans flock together just as the birds do… and we often overlook that.
So when looking for the best new clients, ask your friends, ask those professionals who work with you, talk with your neighbors: and then find people who are like YOU to do business with.
They will like you best and you will like THEM best.
You'll understand each other, be "simpatico," have much in common.
Look for those with whom you share many thoughts, desires, philosophical outlooks, and economic desires and you'll find the easiest people to work with.
In other words: Look For Yourself and then work with people like you.
You'll all be happier.
December 2, 2009
- 070 The Invisible Touch – Why Tom Peters Went Mad
The Third Key: Relationships
Tom Peters, the well-known sales adviser, is often quoted, often read, and usually ignored.
Perhaps because of this he went mad several years ago.
People listened, they read, they ignored… not exactly what a coach, adviser, a guru wants to have happen.
Get Them Off The Raft Marketing
I often talk about a type of marketing (which I coined) called Get Them Off The Raft Marketing.
You're on a cruise ship in the middle of the ocean and come upon a man on a raft.
He's blister upon blister. Lips are cracked. He can hardly see.
He's delirious.
You call down over the side of the ship, "Come on… get off the raft and come onto the ship" and he says……… "no."
Now: how much of your time and energy do you expend getting him OFF the raft and ONTO the ship because YOU know it's better for him?
Oh, we can have him committed because he's crazy.
(We may have some customers and clients we'd LIKE to have committed because they are crazy!)
But what we find is that WE have to change.
So many of our clients and customers would rather stay adrift in the middle of the ocean of uncertainty KNOWING that what they are doing ISN'T working, than they would like to get off the raft and come onto our ship to do something new.
So WE have to change what we say.
We can't PREACH them off the raft. We can't berate them off the raft. We can't even JOKE with them to get them off the raft.
No.
We must find the language that means the most to THEM to help them see why they must get off the raft and onto our ships.
Or Tom Peters will remain Mad.
Not only must we teach HOW to create better marketing, we must find a way to make sure our clients IMPLEMENT the changes we suggest.
Only THEN will their marketing improve.
Only THEN will they improve their bottom lines.
Only THEN will Tom Peters (and the rest of us) see that what we tell people has actually HELPED people.
And THAT's why we do it! To help them.
Read more on 070 The Invisible Touch – Why Tom Peters Went Mad…
December 1, 2009
- 069 The Invisible Touch – The Curse of the Bad Client
The Third Key: Relationships
Even before I read this section of Harry Beckwith's Book, The Invisible Touch, I was a strong believer in firing some clients.
I can't be all things to all people, and if I'm working with the wrong client, no matter HOW much he/she will pay me, my business will suffer.
Turn Down Service Projects When You Need To
One thing I got very good at was saying "No."
Not many people are, I have found (usually they hem and haw when asked and really have little idea about whether or not a certain project is a good "fit" for them).
"Let me tell you why I can't serve on your committee" or "Let me tell you why I can't take on that project with you" has to be said in the first FIVE seconds of the conversation when it's my turn to speak.
Often I have been called by community or church committees. When I WANTED to accept the post and would enjoy serving (because I strongly believed in the project AND felt I could do a great job), I would accept quickly.
When I felt that the goals of the committee weren't in line with my passions and strengths OR felt that service would take up valuable time that I needed for other projects, I was just as quick to turn down the request.
And I have found that the words "Let me tell you why I can't…" get the attention of the person serving me with the invitation and by the time I'm finished, he or she completely understands that I was looking out for his or her best interests as well as my own.
Refuse Business BEFORE It Hurts You
Here's an example of a project I just turned down.
The person asking me heads up several well-run and well-attended Meetup Groups in our area. He's great at running the meetings, makes sure everyone gets a chance to speak, and wholeheartedly wants each of us to succeed when we join him at a meeting.
A few weeks ago he asked me to do a demonstration about HOW to create small videos for online. I recorded my presentation and asked a member of the "audience" to join me so that we could create a new video for my Facebook profile.
The presentation went really well and the group really enjoyed it (or so several of the members commented to me).
And because I did it, I was better known… though perhaps for the wrong reason.
The organizer then called me on the phone and asked me to work on a good-sized video project with him.
I didn't want to say "no" to HIM because of his position with these important Meetup groups, but I just didn't feel that his project was the one I wanted to get involved with.
And his style of working and my style don't feel completely compatible, either… at least not for a project like this. He's a cut and dry, to the point engineer-type business owner and I'm much more right-brained, chatty, talk-it-out-together type.
His project is interesting, it would be FUN, but it would take me away from my main goal of writing here and preparing for a large project with my business partner, Dr. Marc Kossmann.
So today we had a conference call to go over his project and I told him early on that it just didn't fit with my timetable, workload, and scope of projects I need to be working on now.
I agreed to meet with him before an upcoming Meetup meeting to offer any advice that I could, but I just couldn't take on the project at this time.
He understood.
And I admitted openly to him that one of my problems is that I want to work on ALL the interesting projects that come my way but that I really have to say "no" when they don't fit my ever-narrowing definition of what I should be working on.
Would HE have been a "Bad Client"? I'm not sure… but the PROJECT would have been a bad FIT for me at this time, which means that I would not be able to serve him best.
Either way, it was important to push away and not accept this project.
Have YOU learned how to do that?
Leave me some comments about how YOU turn down business when you know it won't be right for you.
Read more on 069 The Invisible Touch – The Curse of the Bad Client…
November 30, 2009
- 068 The Invisible Touch – Your Favorite Drink
The Third Key: Relationships
I often describe my attendance at a marketing group meeting as "my oasis" in my month of work.
It's MY place; MY getaway; MY group of friends who speak a common language, understand the pressures I'm under as a Successful Entrepreneur, and who are open to sharing ideas, goals, and achievements.
Like the TV show, Cheers, it's a place "where everybody knows your name."
Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida USA the ULTIMATE Oasis
Harry Beckwith writes about Walt Disney World as an oasis, and what a great example it is.
Disneyland in California, USA was plunked down in the middle of a busy area and immediately all kinds of other retail and hotel properties sprung up.
Walt Disney couldn't control the look, the feel, the atmosphere around Disneyland because he didn't control the whole Oasis.
But in Florida it's different.
As a student of real estate transactions (I sold $247,368,657.97 worth of Investment Real Estate during my career and helped market more than $1 Billion as the head of marketing for Jackson-Cross Company in Philadelphia, PA USA), I was fascinated by the way Walt and his team purchased so much land.
Land for hotels, roads, monorail. Land for The Magic Kingdom and all the other park areas.
It is said that all of Disneyland can fit in the parking lot for The Magic Kingdom and still have room for 1,000 cars.
Yep – it's THAT big.
And there's room to continue developing for decades.
But more important than the size of all of it, and that you can see NOTHING else but Walt Disney World properties when you are inside of the thousands of acres, is the point that Walt Disney controlled how you THINK within his park.
You enjoy the Oasis and forget about the outside world.
You're on vacation, so spending is loosened up. Things cost most but you go with the flow because "it's a vacation." That might not work as well if the outside world were right within your sight.
Control The Atmosphere, Control The Oasis
And think about this for YOUR business.
No… you won't purchase all the stores around you or take up all the location on the Internet near your website nor will you be the only one in your marketplace.
But when you can control what people see, hear, taste, feel, smell when dealing with you AND you can make them feel important (just as they do at Walt Disney World and in the Cheers restaurant where they know your name), you will have built your own Oasis.
Make people feel important, give them what they want, and they will continue to come back to you.
It's like at your favorite club or restaurant where you order "the usual" drink and they know… they know WHO you are and WHAT you want. It's your favorite drink, and they KNOW that!
Get that way with your clients and they will LOVE you… and do business with you over and over again.
It's THAT important!
November 27, 2009
- 067 The Invisible Touch – The Importance of Importance
The Third Key: Relationships
When was the last time that someone from a business you are working with sent you a thank you note? Or a note like "the shipment is delayed and I'll keep you informed"? Or even "thanks for purchasing from us"?
I used to make it a practice to send a basket of "cheer" (usually cookies in a designer basket) around Thanksgiving to tell my clients how much I appreciated them.
One year I sent those Photo Stamps to my family portrait, wedding, and Bar Mitzvah clients as a special "thank you."
And each of them told at least one other prospect about me because of it.
I DID it because I was grateful for their business… but the added benefit of their telling others about me was great.
Each was made to feel as important to me as he or she really was.
How Do You Feel When Getting A Birthday Card?
How do you feel when someone remembers you?
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Remember how great it feels when someone you haven't heard from in a while tells you that he or she was thinking about you?
Or a friend goes out of her way to help you with something.
Or a loved one brings you a gift just because you were being thought about.
How do you feel when a birthday card arrives in the mail? Are you happy to be the center of someone's attention (at least for the amount of time it took to buy and send a card)?
THAT is how your clients feel when you make them feel important.
My buddy, Ben Stucker, got some note cards printed – they fit neatly into a #10 envelope. They have his name, address, phone on it and it includes the same photo that he uses in his Facebook profile.
When he's thinking about someone, he jots a handwritten note and then addresses an envelope. Heck, if he spends just 15 minutes a day, he will make this personal touch to at least 600 persons a year – and how many can YOU say YOU are touching this way (believe me, I'm looking at myself when I say that too).
Remember to treat all your clients and customers the way you'd treat a personal friend and you will go MILES toward improving your close working relationship with them.
Read more on 067 The Invisible Touch – The Importance of Importance…
November 26, 2009
- 066 The Invisible Touch – Caring Versus Conquering
The Third Key: Relationships
One lesson I learned a long time ago is that getting someone to do something I want him/her to do will NOT be aided by my taking out a hammer and hitting him/her over the head.
I must build rapport. The other person and I must be in sync, feeling similar things, almost breathing in rhythm with each other.
Be Ready To Step Away If Things Don't Go Well
Several times in my real estate career, where I had $247,368,657.97 in personal sales and more than $1 Billion through my marketing leadership skills, I had to be ready to push away from the negotiating table if the deal were not the best for my client.
Transactions at these tables could pay off my mortgage, allow me to buy a new car, or pay for my children education. The financial pressures could have been HUGE, but I learned to control my emotions.
But NOT ONE of them would have been helped if I took out a hammer, started screaming, telling people that they needed to get the deal done so I could be paid.
The people buying and selling couldn't have cared less about MY needs – they only cared about theirs!
And let's face it: having a feeling that I was CONQUERING either side of the negotiations instead of CARING about them and helping them… that wouldn't have helped either.
Listen To Yourself When Selling
The other night at a Meetup meeting for entrepreneurs, one of the young members (who had worked for others but was new to having his own business) expressed how difficult it was for him to sell.
He felt a great need to help his client and never wanted to force anything on him or her.
He needed to sleep at night knowing he had done the best possible for his client, so he could never be manipulative.
He couldn't negotiate a price for his fees – if someone didn't like his fee, he felt hopeless since he did not want to force himself onto his client
Whether or not this young person has a problem, he just doesn't understand sales.
He's probably had some pushy salespeople push him into a corner before and he felt ill-at-ease telling the salesperson to Stop.
But, I suggested, if you start every conversation with a client like this, it will help you immensely:
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My Job is to find out what YOU want, and then help you get it. Period.
You are forcing NOTHING onto that person. You are LISTENING, building rapport, and then figuring out what that person needs most… and helping him/her get it.
Sales is SO much easier when approached from your being on the SAME side of the table as your client, rather than the swift-talking huckster who talks a mile a minute while singing the praises of a product he has NO idea will fit the customer.
I applaud this young business owner's ideals, but know that with a little bit of practice, he'll become very comfortable saying "My Job is to find out what YOU want, and then help you get it."
Once on THAT side of the table, he and his client will become partners and life will go MUCH more smoothly.
Read more on 066 The Invisible Touch – Caring Versus Conquering…
November 25, 2009
- 065 The Invisible Touch – Business Is Personal
The Third Key: Relationships
Relationship building – perhaps if we knew how important it would be to our careers, we'd have played better in the sandbox and during Four Squares in elementary school.
Instead, we studied math and economics and music and languages.
Do you realize that we spend nearly 12 years of school learning how to WRITE and less than 1 year learning how to LISTEN?
ynd since most of our communication is done by speaking and listening (heck, the only way we LEARN from others is to listen to them – REALLY listen to them), somehow most of us missed some important education.
Business Schools vs Other Education
After my undergraduate education at Tufts University outside of Boston, MA USA, I earned an MBA from the Wharton Graduate Division of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, PA USA.
Marketing, advertising, arts management, business law… but NOTHING on relationship building or listening.
However, when I earned my CCIM real estate designation, 20% of the course work was on relationship building, working with people, listening. It's the course I enjoyed the most. (Back in those days, I was the first in the Philadelphia area to earn a CCIM designation – Certified Commercial Investment Member: it's like the CLU for insurance people or the MAI for real estate appraisers. Others had been grandfathered-in, but I was the first to earn it.)
The designation helped me sell $247,368,657.97 of investment real estate… and as important as the investment, math, and law courses were, the one on working with people may have been the one to serve me the most.
But where in our 12 or 13 years of public or private schooling is anything like this taught?
Oh, sure… we get, "Now Johnny, talk nicer to Sally when you are coloring," but that really doesn't count. That's more behavior modification rather than skill building when it comes to working with others.
Most People Are Technicians, Not Entrepreneurs
Most people I know are technicians – plumbers, accountants, voice coaches, teachers, photographers. They got into their own business because they felt they could do better than the boss! Yet few are schooled in running businesses and even fewer are taught relationship-building.
Just look at their websites to see that they don't know what will interest others to pursue more. Just look at their emails that are curt and to the point, losing any possibility of building rapport.
And let's face it… no matter WHAT business we are in, we are all Sales People and all Relationship Builders.
So as we examine this more deeply, keep this in mind: People may forget what you do for them or what you purchased from them, but they sure will remember how you made them FEEL.
Business doesn't have to be cold, harsh, one-sided. Open up, build a relationship, and people will stick with you and purchase over and over again.
Read more on 065 The Invisible Touch – Business Is Personal…
November 24, 2009
- 064 The Invisible Touch – Is It The Ball Game, Or The Ballpark?
The Third Key: Packaging
Harry Beckwith writes about the Baltimore Orioles who, in 1992, became the first Major League Baseball team to realize a new "package" for its team.
Not the team uniform, which others have changed often, but the ballpark itself.
The Philadelphia Phillies Change Ballparks
Living outside of Philadelphia, PA USA, I have watched the Philadelphia Phillies rejuvenate their fan base when they built a new ballpark.
Notice I didn't say Stadium… that's where the Phillies USED to play, in a stadium. One designed for baseball AND football. A rather large, concrete cavern that pleased almost no one.
Oh, sure… they won their first World Series there, but they have attracted more paying fans to their new ballpark, even at today's current prices (which are higher than in the old stadium).
I first went to their new ballpark just to see the ballpark – and it was LOTS of fun.
Then I took my family to see it when Tufts University Alumni were having an affair there.
Then when my younger daughter, Liz, released her music CD, we did one of the music videos around the ballpark to wish the Phillies well!
Below are some videos for you to enjoy.
Think about it – is it the GAME (of baseball) or the PACKAGE it's played in or both?
I agree: it's both.
So… for your OWN business, how is YOUR package?
- How do you present yourself?
- How do you dress?
- How is the surroundings where people come to chat with you?
- What do your handouts look like?
Think about it – you need to be congruent with what you say and how you look.
And when you are, you'll attract more customers and clients to you!
Read more on 064 The Invisible Touch – Is It The Ball Game, Or The Ballpark?…
November 23, 2009
- 063 The Invisible Touch – Scale and Intimacy
The Third Key: Packaging
I used to go to NYC back in the days when I was working at McCarter Theatre in Princeton. We had a production rehearsing there and I visited on a regular basis.
But I never felt comfortable there.
Loved to visit but knew I didn't want to stay there permanently.
Scale And Intimacy Affect Us In Many Ways
It took me a while to figure out that it was just TOO big for me.
I grew up in a small town outside of Philadelphia, PA USA. I knew many of the people there and the scale of the homes and town center were on a very "human scale."
Trees and sidewalks and smiles.
I worked in downtown Philadelphia for a while but always felt that most of its buildings were scaled for people as well. Especially in the highest-retail-rent district along Walnut Street.
People feel "at home" there – they are comfortable – they relax, enjoy themselves, are open to purchasing.
HOW they feel when in the area plays an important role in how often they get out their wallets to buy something.
Remember that with YOUR business – people want to work (and buy from) other PEOPLE… and if they could avoid large companies, big box stores, and the sense that they are "just a number" when purchasing from others, they would.
Take time to let them know you. Show your personal attention, sharing a part of YOU with everything you do. Let people "in" to what you are all about, and they will keep coming back to you.
Personal-Touch Marketing is so important – you'll see your bottom-line grow when you share yourself with those purchasing from you.
November 20, 2009
- 062 The Invisible Touch – The Shock of the Not-New
The Third Key: Packaging
It's hard for me as pro photographer to look at the same images of people on countless websites. There's one clothes model I see in just about every retailer's catalog, making me feel that all these folks are really the same.
You need to stand out, be different, not offer the same information and images that everyone else uses.
Your style has to be different, unique, created and used by YOU and no one else.
It's only THEN that people will see you for the specialist you are, who has earned the right to work with them.
They say that Photos are worth 1,000 words and I'm guessing that videos are worth 1,000 times 1,000 words.
So if these speak so highly for you, be sure to use unique photographs, videos, written statements.
Dr. Marc and I Discuss A Joint Venture
Dr. Marc Kossmann (a great guy, super marketer, and a psychologist) and I are talking about a joint venture. We know that we've become close over the past several years and have many thoughts in common.
Our passion and our drive are similar, and our use of language and images through language are colorful.
Today we chatted about NOT standing out from the crowd.
That's right: we do NOT want to stand out from the crowd:
We want to build our OWN crowd.
Why imitate others when your own material is so good? Why worry that people will notice you and differentiate you from the others if you are standing alone outside of the crowd?
This takes work; this take time; this take a creative relook at everything you stand for so that it's not simply derivative drivel that mirrors what others have said for years.
Get rid of all the "not-new" material that is weighing you down – and break away from the crowd: the view is SO much nicer over there!
Read more on 062 The Invisible Touch – The Shock of the Not-New…
November 19, 2009
- 061 The Invisible Touch – The Small Stuff
The Third Key: Packaging
I've always loved simple statements and sayings.
To say someone is "well-grounded" really means this person is earthy, of or from the earth. Even like a flower child who was really well-grounded.
Harry Beckwith points out one in this section of his book that I had never heard described before: well-heeled.
People often shine their shoes, make sure to wear an attractive suit, wash and comb their hair.
But when it comes to the heels of their shoes, they often let that repair go until they get some more money. So to say someone is well-heeled (and not down-in-the-heel) it has to do with the physical condition of their shoes – or at least that is where the expression started.
Handle It Like Gold
Years ago when I was the VP for Marketing at Jackson-Cross Company and we hosted clients for meetings about our representing them in their real estate sale, we met in our largest conference room which we called The Board Room.
I learned how to present the proposal as if it were gold.
Think about it:
If someone hands you a report with care and gently places it in front of you like it was the finest-quality dinner, you'd think totally different about it than if the person handing out the report tossed it across the table to you.
Think about that the next time a waiter serves your dinner – do you feel they treat it with extra care and respect, or do they basically TOSS it at you?
Do YOU handle details as if you REALLY care about them? Because if you do NOT, your customers and clients will pick up on it very quickly.
Or your business cards – are they printed on your ink-jet printer on micro-perforated card stock which SCREAMS that you are cheap and don't run a real business.
Or your email address is to AOL or Google and not to your business's address?
Though some people profess that they don't sweat the small stuff (and it's ALL small stuff), I recommend that you take CARE of the small details so they don't become a problem.
And remember your heels – keep them looking good so that people can tell when you ENTER or LEAVE a room that you really care – and no detail that will help them will go unnoticed when they hire you.
November 18, 2009
- 060 The Invisible Touch – The Number One Mistake
The Third Key: Packaging
I have a friend who often says when coaching clients on the telephone, "If you're excited about this, why don't you tell your voice!!"
If You're Excited, Show People!
You can't expect others to get excited about you if YOU aren't excited. They won't care about your business unless YOU care. They won't spend money ON your business unless YOU do.
I used to do LOT of interviewing for Tufts University, my undergrad Alma Mater. And for those kids I was really strongly behind, I would tell them this:
Everyone wants to be wanted. If you want to get into Tufts, TELL them that. No university wants to admit someone who looks like s/he applied "for the heck of it.
They want RAVING fans to join them because they know that Raving Fan Students turn into Raving Fan Alumni.
The same goes for your business.
What Does Your Bathroom Look Like?
Two of my favorite local businesses have let their bathrooms go.
Cracked ties, dirty/stained floors, light bulbs often not working, soap and towels in short supply.
What does this say to those of us who USE these bathrooms?
I'll tell you: this business doesn't care or they're hurting for enough money to keep their bathrooms looking nice or both.
And if that's all the better they can care for their bathrooms, how well can they care for me?
Do you see what I mean?
Businesses spend money on getting clients but often neglect some of the easiest things to do when it comes to HOLDING clients.
"How Are You Today?"
If you're answer isn't "I'm terrific" then you'd better find a way to MAKE it terrific.
Do you really think that visitors CARE how you are? Do they really NEED your problems on top of their own.
Or how about "Hey, how's business?"
If you can't say, "It's terrific" then you'd better find a way to MAKE it terrific.
Do you really think that visitors CARE how you are and how your business are – and do you think they want to do business with a loser instead of someone who is doing terrifically?
Nawwwwww… they don't!
Be enthusiastic. Keep a eye on details. Make your clients and customers happy… your life (your BUSINESS life) depends on it!
Read more on 060 The Invisible Touch – The Number One Mistake…
November 17, 2009
- 059 The Invisible Touch – The Purist's Prejudice
The Third Key: Packaging
The "Purist" says that only education, service, what we can do for our clients is what matters.
Maybe it SHOULD be that way, but let's face it: it's not!
Your words make things beautiful. Your attitude and the way you carry yourself adds to your beauty. The materials you use to package your presentations all add up to a more beautiful package for you.
Think about a fancy restaurant where the starched table cloths and contrasting napkins really look GREAT when you enter the banquet hall. You have NO idea what's going on in the kitchen or the pedigree of the chef, but if things LOOK great, you feel they WILL be great.
Right?
And when the chef comes out of the kitchen, does her clothing matter to you? Does his tall hat tell you something about him?
I have a friend who attends one of the monthly business meetings I go to. I've mentioned attorney Virgie Vakil before. When she first walks into a room, you just KNOW that she is quality. Her hair is coiffed, her clothing impeccable, the way she carries herself with head held high and posture upbeat tells you a LOT even before you have a chance to speak with her.
That's her personal packaging… and it WORKS.
So forget about not judging the book by its cover – we ALL do it (even unconsciously) and it's really important to our thinking.
Are you doing the same for your own materials?
Read more on 059 The Invisible Touch – The Purist's Prejudice…
November 16, 2009
- 058 The Invisible Touch – Beauty Trumps Quality
The Third Key: Packaging
Beauty's in the eye of the beholder… and most of us want to behold real beauty.
Beautiful women. Great looking guys. Terrific-looking houses with curb appeal you can see for blocks.
Cars, book covers, bouquets of flower, diamond rings, a smile with pearly whites.
All of those things are beautiful.
The Cars I've Owned
Maybe you'll stop reading this article after you find out some of the cars I've owned:
My BMW 320 tii was a beautiful car. Tight, compact, smooth, jet black – until the construction workers of a new home of mine accidentally poured acid onto the hood and destroyed the look. (Their insurance covered it, and after a few weeks, the car looked great again.)
My Cadillac Catera was not as beautiful a car, but it was still pretty hot looking. And after I traded it in for my Escape, my kids kept telling me how they missed the smooth, soft leather interior.
But I've also owned a Gremlin and a Pacer.
If you have ever seen either of these cars, you know they are QUIRKY, not beautiful (and that may be kind!).
Even my Ford Contour was a bit quirky, but it drove TERRICALLY – one of the best driving cars I've owned. It was MUCH better in the snow than my Mercedes 300 was (I used to leave that car in the garage after one flake of snow, but not the Contour – it would start snowing and out I'd go… just to see how great its traction control was in the snow – even 8 inches one time!).
But somehow Beauty trumps Quality.
Taller, Better Looking People Get Paid More
So… who gets paid more: the really smart and well-trained but homely person OR the tall, gorgeous guy or girl.
Yep – you guessed it.
Studies have shown for YEARS that beautiful people get paid (on average) more than shorter, less attractive people.
So think about that for your products and the packaging of your services.
Make them attractive. Watch what colors you use – see what other folks use but be sure they are people who sell MILLIONS so that you know the colors they choose have been tested to pay them the most possible.
"IBM Blue" or the blues of Facebook and Microsoft are chosen for a reason. Are you paying attention to this?
Read more on 058 The Invisible Touch – Beauty Trumps Quality…
November 13, 2009
- 057 The Invisible Touch – Oranges and Greens
The Third Key: Packaging
The title of this section, as defined by Harry Beckwith, refers to the color of the citrus fruit of the same name and color of the putting surfaces on a golf course.
People assume that oranges that are a deep orange or greens that are a darker green are better.
And don't you think the same thing?
What about redder apples, yellower bananas, and whiter teeth? Don't we assume that each of them is better too?
Do you know that nearly all the bananas come into the USA in the hull of a ship and they're green when they do?
My wife, Pam, used to do computer-aided design work for a banana-ripening company (I know: who ever HEARD of such a company!). These bananas are stored in temperature-controled rooms, fed certain gases at exact amounts, and then when a nice yellow, they are removed and sent on to your store.
At least they don't "paint" bananas yellow the way they spray paint oranges orange – they just let the gases do the work.
But since people DO judge a book by its cover, YOU just be sure that whatever you show a client, tell a client, and how you are dressed when seeing a client tells the story you want told.
People see what they look for, and they are looking for a great person to work with. Be sure that is YOU!
November 12, 2009
- 056 The Invisible Touch – The Blue Fox Revisited
The Third Key: Packaging
We return to the Blue Fox of 028 – The More It Costs The Better It Seems. Remember the example of the Folgers Crystals replacing the fine coffee of this upscale restaurant?
People believed the coffee was great because of the brand projected by the restaurant.
And… they believed it was great because once inside the restaurant, the decor, the table cloths, the way the serving staff was dressed: EVERYTHING added to the atmosphere that THIS was a swanky place, deserving of high prices. And you can think of this "EVERYTHING" as its "packaging."
Look around the room at your next business meeting: who looks more professional, more compitent, more like someone YOU want to do business with: the young kid with the sloppy hair and unshaven face who is wearing jeans OR the snazzy businesswoman whose understated, neatly-pressed suit attracts your attention as soon as she walks into the room?
Can't tell a book by its cover? Oh, sure you can… or at least sure you DO.
HOW you present yourself and your company is as important to getting business as how educated you are and how high a level your quality is.
Remember the "Packaging" when you present yourself and your work: it ALL counts!
Read more on 056 The Invisible Touch – The Blue Fox Revisited…
November 11, 2009
- 055 The Invisible Touch – Today's Best Battle of the Brands
The Second Key: Brand
To understand the irony of Harry Beckwith's section with this same title, you have to look at the copyright date.
The book was first published in 1976 and updated in 2000. If there's a more current version of THIS book (he has several other terrific books too), I'm not aware of it.
Look What Happens When Brand Doesn't Equal Quality
Mr. Beckwith's example of great branding in THIS section of his book is Yahoo! the search engine company. He regales us with stories about how great the branding is, even though its search results are not as quick or thorough as Dogpile, Excite, or Alta Vista.
HUH?
Right: Who the heck are they?
If you've been on a computer as long as I have (bought my first PC in 1983) and on the Internet as long as I have (gosh I'm sounding SO old – but the Internet hasn't been around that long… but do you remember when CompuServe, AOL, and bulletin boards were about all we had?), you remember these search engines and more. Once they were strong, not they're hardly even here (if at all).
Yahoo! was MUCH bigger than any of the others even though it was slower and would freeze.
And you learn, when using multiple search engines, that in fact they are NOT all the same.
Google admits to indexing about a trillion pages and it knows that it's just scratching the surface. There is NO WAY that it can keep up with all the information pouring into just the World Wide Web every day (to say nothing about the rest of the Internet).
So, what happens when Brand is all smoke and mirrors or hundreds of millions of dollars poured into institutional advertising to build a brand? When the next big brand comes along and can do things better AND can build a huge name for itself, a company like Yahoo! goes under.
Look What Google Is Doing Today
Google is By Far the largest search engine (but so was Yahoo!). People use the word as a noun AND as a verb, such as "I googled it." It gets 66% of the searches and business uses it almost exclusively.
But YouTube is a search engine for what IT has. And eBay is its own search engine too. And look at all the people who aren't using search engines to find things: they are going much more directly when they use their cell phone apps and go directly to the results, bypassing Google.
So what is Google doing? Coming out with its OWN phone (DROID) running on its own software. And from what I read, Garman may be put out of business since the Google Maps feature will allow driving directions right from the Google phone.
Google – one smart company that has a HUGE brand recognition but which is also building quality even more quickly than it builds its brand name.
Don't be lulled into thinking that the largest brand will always be there: what about Sears and KMart – you think Walmart is invincible, think again and you'll understand why Wallmart works so hard to maintain its dominant position.
And How Can You Relate This To YOU In Your Service Business?
Figure out what YOU do best and build around that. Get the word out and make raving fans of those who know, like, and trust you.
Niche down so that you aren't perceived as all things to all people (translation: not strong enough in any area but a generalist in many).
Find what you are passionate about and great at and build that as your business (once you've done some research to determine there is a market for what you will be offering).
Just like a huge cruise ship in the middle of the ocean, large companies have difficulty changing course as quickly as a nimble entrepreneur. Find what you want to work on and pursue it with vengeance… others won't know what hit them until it's too late.
Read more on 055 The Invisible Touch – Today's Best Battle of the Brands…
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