I Don't Have Time For the Little Guy Syndrome

Back in the day when I was selling medical products I learned many lessons from many managers and mentors but the best lessons were from mistakes I saw others make or I made myself.
A large hospital where I had little business and my main competitor had a lot had the decision maker to whom they referred to as The Chief in the office . Out front in the salesman's waiting area was his assistant who received us and announced us. My competitor often came in the without as much as a greeting or acknowledgement and said " I am here to see the Chief". I actually enjoyed talking to the assistant while I was waiting so we got to be buddies. One day my competitor came in and said to a new guy behind the desk " I am here to see the Chief" Well guess who the new chief was? LOL Needless to say my star shineth brighter from then on out simply because I had been genuinely interested in the new Chief's story when he was the "lowly" assistant.
I had another small account that I started neglecting because I had most of the business and I thought I was in a locked in situation. A new guy showed up on the sales scene for a competitor who heretofore was listless. This new guy went after this one first and when I realized that I was losing business and it was too late, I lost the account. Believe me. I never made that mistake again.

Yesterday I attended a webinar that was put on by Jeffrey Gitomer and Andy Nixon on having a YES ATTITUDE or what i also call being part of the solution rather part of the problem. It is so prevalent in political circles to criticize but offer no solutions to the very thing you are critical of. Let's avoid falling into that trap in our relationships. If you don't have something positive to offer that will move the issue forward or even stop it if it is a bad idea to begin with then it would be wise to be a professional listener. Listening professionally is something to which we all should aspire. It means not spending valuable listening time thinking about how smart you can show yourself to be by rehearsing your part in the conversation when you haven't even grasped what you are supposed to be hearing. Get up in the morning or whenever you get up and determine that you are going to have a good day and rehearse in your mind on your way to work how you are going to do that. You want to be a great friend or a great salesman or a great anything be a great listener and then a great contributor to the conversation by keeping your remarks positive. It is not easy but you are what you watch on TV and garbage in usually creates garbage out. Keep you inputs positive and your outputs will improve in a positive way

Chosen Words

I was trying to think about what I should write today about carefully choosing ones words when I remembered this very inspiring video I had saved that says it all with ironically NO SPOKEN WORDS AT ALL! A successful sales event can turn on how you express yourself and of course how that expression is perceived by to whom you are speaking or corresponding. I do much better with the written word than the spoken word because it gives me time to choose my words more carefully ( and I don't say "you know so much"-you know?-LOL). Some of you are more talented than I in the spoken realm. Whichever is your cup of tea, carefully chosen words to convey ones point is the most compelling way possible is a skill you must develop to be successful in building any relationship either for fun or for profit. Watch this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=Hzgzim5m7oU&vq=medium

Cicero was one of the greatest thinkers of the Roman Empire. He was a skilled orator, lawyer, politician, linguist, and writer. Still today he is quoted for his clear prose and practical wisdom. For instance, of having friends he wrote: “Friendship improves happiness and abates misery, by the doubling of our joy and the dividing of our grief.” He understood the double benefits of friendship along life’s journey.

It always amazes me why we all don't try to be friends when conducting our business. It is a winning formula for not only a more pleasant business experience but a life enhancing technique as well. People do not like to be SOLD anything but they LOVE buying things. Friends are no different (actually probably more so). Friends do like doing business with their friends as they feel more comfortable and trusting of people they know.

How much effort have you put out befriending your customers? Take a shot at making a customer a friend today. You are not always going to succeed every time but when you do you will be happy for the result. Put yourself out there, open up and share, listen and learn, sympathize and empathize.

When I was a kid, my Dad taught me something, after being very frustrated in a restaurant following a fine meal, as to the time it took to get the check. In a very nice way, he explained to the waitress and her manager the importance of completing the “sale” properly (everything was about a “sale” to my Dad). They seemed GENUINELY appreciative.

After they left our table, he told me something I have never forgotten. Telling people in the service business how they are doing or not doing is the best thing you can do for them and yourself because that is the only way they know if they need to improve. I might add that he also said that the worst thing you can do for them is to say nothing.

The name of the game in this day and age seems to be more for less. It is true in the workplace as well as the marketplace.

I was thinking about what my Dad told me years ago and realized that his lesson for me really applies to the relationship between your server and you in the transportation world.
Whether you are a customer or a carrier, take the time to not only show appreciation for the services provided you (yeah, yeah, I know you are paying for them) but just as important, let them know what does not satisfy you.

That is where the Customer Relations Department at Trinity Logistics comes in. Not only do we reach out regularly to you to access your ever changing needs relative to our ever growing service offerings but we are also here as a Customer Advocate as well. We ALWAYS have a willing ear listening to you whether it is a concern or a compliment. Rest assured every conversation we have is acted upon promptly to insure your concerns are met or your praises are passed on to those who not only serve you but their management as well.

There is an old adage that one catches more flies with honey than with vinegar.

You want more for less?

Try our suggestion as you might find you see better results than you ever expected in your levels of service. It is hard to correct what you don’t know you are doing wrong.

CALL US OR EMAIL US WITH YOUR COMPLIMENTS OR CONCERNS OR BOTH!

866-807-5800 or customerrelations@trinitylogistics.com

Quit Flying by The Seat of Your Pants

.According to NFL.com’s Football Freaknomics, last year, quarterbacks who threw for over 300 yards in a game were 47–49, and quarterbacks who threw for over 400 were 3–11. A big reason? Their offense was in hurry-up mode because their team was behind. Good for fantasy football, but bad for winning championships. Statistics can be misleading.
It occurred to me the other day that were we better planners tons of money could be saved in wasted next day deliveries, multiple phone calls to get a little bit more information because we forgot to ask, and fuel to run back somewhere to get or do something that had we written it down would not have happened.
It does not matter how you do it but planning is essential in life and certainly in business and for sure when making sales
calls. A simple list in front of you with everything you what to accomplish on the call and then taking 2 minutes after the call to summarize in writing what you learned will be invaluable to you going forward. It can be as sophisticated as a CRM or as simple as folder in your Mail Folders but it is essential that you plan and retain the information that you receive. With the tools at our disposal today, it is so easy to plan and retain that there can be no excuse for not doing it.
Back in the day, I used a 30 day file ( I am sure not many of you even know what that is or was I should say) to organize my calls and put handwritten sheets in each day with my tasks and specifics of said tasks like pre-call planning questions. The point is that I did it and have a 40 year record of success in sales to prove that it works. My cousin and I are both licensed pilots. He flew by the "seat of his pants" and is very lucky to be alive based on the near misses with death he experienced. I took advantage of every technology development at my disposal and never had even close to an accident. Well, maybe some hard landings but as we always said " if you can walk away under your own power, it was successful flight.
Do yourself a favor and quit flying by the seat of your pants and plan your flight to success every day along the way. You will look back as I can today at many years of successful selling and a lot of fun along the way because it was much less stressful then had I not planned and been organized.