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Posts Tagged ‘Relationships’

By: Stephen Novak

I was heading home after a late meeting and didn’t feel like cooking.  On my way was an Italian restaurant that I’d heard had great food – being a sucker for Italian, I thought I’d give it a try.  When I entered the building I walked to the front counter. I approached the employee behind the register who was seated on a bar stool leaning back against the wall while staring off into space.  I explained that this was my first visit, I had heard good things, and would like to order some dinner to-go.  The employee leaned forward…popped out his ear buds…and said, “Hugh”.   I took a step back and then repeated what I had just said.  He had a puzzled look on his face as he said, “You can’t order to-go food up here.” 

Of course I asked, “Well, where can I order food to-go?”  He pointed to an area towards the back of the restaurant…put his ear buds back in…and leaned back.  I walked to the area that he designated and waited…and waited.  Two servers walked by at least twice before I flagged one of them down.  I immediately recognized the why-are-you-bothering-me look on her face.  I’d go on, but the rest of my visit wasn’t any better.  This experience enlightened me to the fact that although good customer service may be hard to define, poor customer service stands out like fingernails scraping along a chalkboard.  Let me explain:

You could pull a hundred different people off the street and ask them the question, “What is good customer service?”  And you would probably get a hundred different responses.  What’s OK for one person may not be good for another, but there are some fundamentals that must be present in any customer interaction.

Some typical “good customer service” elements that we all look for are:

1. We want to feel welcomed when we enter a business.
2. We want to be treated with respect.
3. We want to be listened to.
4. We want to get what we were promised and treated fairly.
5. We want to be thanked for our business.

Any business that is serious about providing good customer service must have these elements at the core of their customer service process.  Keep in mind that these elements are just a starting point.  If your goal is to provide excellent customer service, then you must notch up the intensity of the above elements while monitoring their effectiveness.  Tweak when necessary and eliminate any obstacle that prevents your customers from having such a positive experience that they honor you with their business time and time again.

Copyright © Stephen Novak 2011 Rising Moon Publications. All rights reserved.

By: Stephen Novak

 Everything we do requires some form of a process.  From brushing our teeth to planning a trip, there is always a chain of events.  Merriam-Webster defines a process as:

1 a : progress, advance <in the process of time>

   b : something going on : proceeding

2 a (1) : a natural phenomenon marked by gradual changes that lead toward a particular result <the process of growth> (2) : a continuing natural or biological activity or function <such life processes as breathing> b : a series of actions or operations conducing to an end; especially : a continuous operation or treatment especially in manufacture.

We learned as a child how to brush our teeth, walk, and eventually ride a bike.  These processes took practice and determination to perfect.  A novice salesperson should constantly read new books, continually train with knowledgeable teachers, and diligently practice with the same resolve as a strong-minded child.  Come to think of it – experienced salespeople should do the same thing!!!   

 As an exercise, let’s look at a basic step-by-step approach to sales – The ever enduring 5 Steps To A (Anything) Sale:

1) Friendly greeting.

2) Assess needs.

3) Make recommendation.

4) Explain benefits and features.

5) Ask for the sale.

 If we left out step 2, we wouldn’t have any idea which product or service was right for the customer.  It would not help to push the two-car garage if the buyer’s main concern is the age of the roof.  Your job as a salesperson is to seek out what the customer wants.

 If we did not explain the benefits and features in Step 4, it would be impossible for the customer to differentiate our product or service from our competitor.  

 If we did not even ask the customer for the pleasure of his or her business…well, we probably should be doing something else for a living.

 Just as if we had forgotten to use a toothbrush while brushing our teeth, we could not be as effective as we should have been.

 BEWARE:  Do not allow yourselves to become slaves to any process just for the sake of the process.  If what you are doing ain’t working, you MUST try something else.  If the process gets in the way of customer communication, scrap it…amend it…modernize it (Read, train, practice).  Every sales process should enhance customer interaction, and keep a salesperson on track.  A process should NOT be there just to hook customers into buying something that will later regret.   

“We must first identify, before we can satisfy the customer’s proclivity…profitably”.

Copyright © Stephen Novak 2011 Rising Moon Publications. All rights reserved.

By: Stephen Novak

Consider the following situations:

A child is eating watermelon in the blistering dog day’s heat – The smile reverberates the true joy that only a simple summer treat can provide.

A man’s feet stammer in the aisle of a church at the beginning of the best decision he will ever make – His prospective spouse’s soul sings as she steers toward the aisle.

Now contrast with the following:

A single mom is leaving work; she notices her tire is low.  She’s knows that she’ll be late picking up her child from daycare (They penalize by the minute if you’re late) as she limps towards her favorite car repair shop.  She’s relieved that the shop doors are just now coming down, someone is still there, she thinks.  The person behind the glass doors waves their hands and yells, “We’re closed”, and steals away into the back room.

Now the reason for the rant:

I went into a convenience store a few days ago.  After checking out, the clerk stuffed my purchases into the bag and said, “Thanks, young man”.  During my sales training courses, I’ve heard similar statements from inexperienced salespeople for years.  When confronted they usually say that they’ve been told to always compliment the customer…to make them feel good.  And while that statement is true, they forgot the most important part of a compliment – IT MUST BE SINCERE.  Today’s customers are a lot savvier than they have ever been – They can spot a sales pitch a mile away.  After being assaulted by such a line, most customers will just smile back while thinking to themselves, what a schmuck. 

For anyone that works with people, commit to this: if you give anyone a compliment, IT MUST BE SINCERE.  People know how old they are, if they’ve lost weight, or if they’ve been working out.  Trite or dishonest statements will shore up any preconceived barriers that the customer may have.  Always remember: it’s our job to break down ANY barriers that get in the way of building strong relationships with our customers.

As for being there for your customers…we’ll cover that later.

Copyright © Stephen Novak 2011 Rising Moon Publications. All rights reserved.

By: Stephen Novak

Work Hard – A strong work ethic is the foundation from which anything worthwhile is built.  If you are a slacker…Stay home.  You’ll just get in the way of someone who is truly trying to get something done.  If you just want to trade time for money, that’s fine…, I guess…but don’t expect any true level of success.  The old saying, “Work smart, not hard” is fine as well; as long as we understand that we still have to put in the time and do more than the minimum requirements of a profession in order to excel at that profession.  While cream usually rises to the top without any effort, it’s usually beaten up and churned into butter.

Do the job right – Whatever the task, do it right the first time, every time.  And while I try not to deal in absolutes, doing poor work will absolutely kill your business.  Have or establish a well-designed, functional, measurable quality control process.  Never accept substandard or even mediocre products or performance.  Everyone makes mistakes; However, It’s how you manage those mistakes that will differentiate you from your competition.  Make sure that you have the proper tools to accomplish the job.  Make sure that you or your personnel are properly trained to complete the job.  This area, if not mastered will turn Mr. “Good enough” into Mr. “Out of business.”  

Have Integrity and Honor – Simply stated – Integrity is what you do when no one is looking.  A person with good integrity: keeps promises, is truthful, consistent, and not interested in the Quick-fix. They know that they aren’t perfect but strive for constant improvement.   

To me, honor is the inner respect and high self esteem that you will gain from good integrity.  Shame is what you will experience with poor integrity. 

Possess Good Character – Closely tied with integrity and honor, your character is the values, beliefs, and nature of who you are.  Make sure that each one of those core values are firmly rooted in goodness and decency.  If your moral compass can’t point due north, you will never achieve meaningful success.

In his book: “Winners Never Cheat” successful businessman and author, Jon Huntsman Sr. challenges us to think about the kind of person that you want to do business with…then…be that person.  Huntsman writes, “The rationale that you have to cheat to stay competitive is a powerful lure. Moral bankruptcy is the inevitable conclusion.”

Copyright © Stephen Novak 2011 Rising Moon Publications. All rights reserved.

Flowers transcend the memory of shattered glass and bone;

Their point reflects the precious lives this world had called a home;

Sunrise, again; they conquer darkness, evil holds no sway;

our broken heats will forever grieve the thousands for we pray,  

‘till we abide with thee and close our eyes at the end of day.

                                                                                      Stephen Novak 2011

My thoughts and prayers go out to all the victims of the violent 9-11 terrorist attacks as well as all of the brave men and women serving abroad and within the borders of our homeland to make our lives secure.  S.N.

INTRIOT and KYRIE: Faure Requiem

Requiem aeternam dona eis,Domine:  Rest eternal grant them, Lord our God we pray to thee:

et lux perpetua luceat eis.                       And light perpetual forever shine on them.

Te decet hymnus, Deus in Sion:            Thou, O God, art worshipped in holy Sion:

et tibi reddetur votum in Jerusalem. Unto thee the vow shall be performed In Jerusalem.

exaudi orationem meam,                         Hear us, Lord, Lord hear thy servants’ prayer:

ad te omnis caro veniet.                            Lord, unto thee all flesh shall come.

Kyrie eleison.                      Lord have mercy.

Christe eleison.                   Christ have mercy.

Kyrie eleison.                       Lord have mercy.

Requiescat in Pace

Rest in Peace

One of the most important things when it comes to your business is PR or Public Relations. How your business is perceived by the public is very instrumental in how well your business does. At the end of the day it’s all about your customers past, present and future.

So how do you go about getting PR for your new business? Well there are a couple of ways you can do this, one is through press releases in your local and near local newspapers. You can put whatever you want into these ads so you have full control.

Make sure that when you issue a press release that the information you provide is interesting to the readers and will grab their attention and interest them enough that they will want to visit your new business or attend your grand opening.

Any positive previous or current customer comments will be great for your business so be sure to ad these to your press release also. These will be small parts of your press release but they will help tremendously!

The second part is word of mouth, the more positive customers, feedback and testimonials you have the better it is for your business. So do your best when it comes to customer service so that you have many more positives than negatives. We all know you can’t please everyone all the time, but the more you do please the better for you business in the end.