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Monday Morning Motivators – March 3, 2007
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Enjoy your java with an eclectic collection of tips and ideas to use today and to get energized for the week ahead. Subscribing and unsubscribing at www.mondaymorningmotivators.com
“If we don’t take care of our customers, someone else will.”
--UNKNOWN
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Table of Contents
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1. The Customer is the Most Important – Linda Fayerweather
2. Facing the Facts New Media - Rebecca Booth
3. Enjoy the Journey – Pat Altvater
4. Good Listening - Good Networking – Paula Frazier
5. To Do This Week
6. Fine Print
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1. The Customer is the Most Important
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I’m going to take you on some shopping trips at local stores this month for some true stories. Feel free to send me your experiences – linda@changinglanes.biz.
Story 1 – Buying shoes. I wear comfortable shoes and my favorite brand is only available at one local store. The sales staff at this store receives commission and on the weekends, I dress garden-casual. So in my jeans, sweater and cowboy boots, I went to see if the storewide shoe sale included my brand. The shoe department was a mad house of bargain hunters and the sales staff was well . . . hard to find. Alas, my shoes were not on sale (they seldom are) so I picked up a sample and waited near some other customers hoping for some help. After being overlook several times by sales staff choosing to help other more stylishly attired customers, a young man from the “fragrance” department came over and asked if I needed help. I told him my size, he returned with the shoes, I tried them on, and was ready to buy. Instead of making me wait at the shoe cash register, he took me over to his department and rang up the $140 purchase. Now, he saw a customer in need, holding one of the most expensive shoes in the department and made the decision to aid that customer. He understood the first rule of customer service “The customer is the most important person”. Next time I shop there, I’ll stop at the fragrance department first to see if Brad is there to help me.
Copyright 2008 Linda Fayerweather
“Did you thank a customer today?”
Changing Lanes LLC
www.ChangingLanes.biz
The Customer Service Rules
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2. Facing the Facts About Today’s Reliance on New Media.
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Facebook is here and it’s sticking around. What can a business owner do to embrace this new social networking media online? For those of you who are unfamiliar with the new medium, Facebook is a social utility that connects people with friends and other who work, study and live around them. Brand messages are spread virally (from person to person) on the web. Some people use Facebook to gather insights into the activities of other users. The smart marketer will embrace Facebook and will encourage visitors who visit your page to form groups in those areas related to your business. For an example, if you’re an online movie retailer, allow your Facebook friends to compare their favorite flicks on your site. Or if you’re a photographer, you might want to start a group that discusses photo tips and tricks. When you’re creating your Facebook page, make sure that you have a detailed (if not exhaustive) profile that distinguishes you as someone in the know. Also include links to landing pages on a website that you build especially for your Facebook friends so that you can target offers more effectively. And please, please, please, contribute to the conversations that people are having on your site. Soon, you’ll find yourself flooded with new friends and hopefully new customers!
Copyright 2008 Rebecca Booth
Marketing Goddess
Imagine That!
419-855-3399
www.rebeccaboothmarketinggoddess.com
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3. Enjoy the Journey
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You’ve got written goals, stated as intentions and also have the belief that you will achieve your goals. There’s one more important ingredient in getting to goal achievement and that’s your approach.
Forget about using willpower to force yourself to get up early or make phone calls. You'll need to work, sure. But you'll never make it if that's all you've got going for you – willpower is hard to sustain in the long run. Instead, take the time to embrace the process that's going to get you there.
How? By examining the essence of what you want to achieve. This means going deeper than the superficial reasons you want to achieve the goal – like to make more money or become thin. Instead, connect the intention to what it really means to you and what you might find is that the process is the JOY! Enjoy the journey to goal achievement!
Copyright 2008 Pat Altvater
Certified Law of Attraction Practitioner
www.thesecretofpermanentweightloss.com
www.permanentweightlossebook.com
www.transformationsinstitute.com
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4. Good Listening - Good Networking
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Good networking takes good listening. Unfortunately, most people spend their time talking! What good is word of mouth if nobody is listening?
Think about the last networking event that you attended. Was everyone quietly listening, maintaining eye contact, asking valuable questions, and responding to you with more than just “uh huh”?
Listening is one of the most important parts of effective networking. It allows you to learn what others are trying to accomplish, hear others express needs they may have, and strategically connect them to other people in your network.
Here are 5 tips to help you become a better listener at your next networking event:
1. Maintain active eye contact. Don't look over the persons shoulder as if there might be someone better coming into the room.
2. Ask open ended questions. Again, people love to talk about themselves! You can ask them about what they do, why they choose to do it and how they get into their business.
3. Take notes whenever possible. Jot them down on the back of their business card. Be sure to include how you intend to follow up. Meeting 10 new people can test your memory…now is not the time.
4. Honor the person by staying engaged in the conversation. Most people are busy thinking about what they are going to say and not hearing what is being said.
5. Let them know your were listening! At the end of the conversation give some feedback. Emphasize something you may have heard or learned from that person.
Just remember . . . God gave us 2 ears and one mouth. Use them proportionately. Listen twice as much as you speak. It’ll take you far in your referral marketing efforts and in life.
Paula Frazier and Hazel M Walker are Master Trainers for Referral Institute and Executive Directors for BNI, the world’s leading business marketing organization. To learn more about increasing your referral revenue visit http://www.bniswva.com or http://www.referralinstitutevirginia.com.
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5. To Do This Week
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Look for your Brilliant Idea!
