Thanksgiving is a great week! Kids coming home from school. Gathering with family and friends. And without the pressure of the Christmas holidays . . . yet.
Of course, in the background is all the noise about the government and the upcoming elections. But let’s face it, it all starts on Thursday, at home, with family.
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Yesterday I received a very expensive brochure in the mail, almost magazine quality. It was beautifully designed with striking colors and even wrapped in a transparent wrapper. I was impressed . . . so impressed that I tossed it into the garbage without removing the wrapper.
I know that you do the same, every day, at home and at work.
This is not a knock on brochures. Most of us use such important collateral material all the time in the course of our direct mail marketing and as leave behinds at meetings.
But here is the difference. Read More
Have you ever had a situation when you were the customer, a problem occurred, stress was running high and the service provider stepped up and solved the problem?
A classic is when you show up at a hotel and they do not have your room reservation, so after a bit of conferencing they not only find you a room but upgrade you for your trouble. We tend to forget they caused the problem in the first place, and remember how they came through for us in the clutch.
We can learn a lot from these kinds of scenarios to apply to the sell side. Read More
Research and experience show that at least 50% of a sale is dependent upon the buyer’s perception of the salesperson. It may be a good product, but if presented poorly, a buyer will often turn away.
Mr. Shmooze is politically neutral . . . we are just trying to help people sell better. So, keep that in mind as you read the following. Read More
Here is a question for some of your clients:
“Mr. Client, what is your company doing during this downturn to increase market share?”
Now, his answer is likely to be, “We are just trying to survive.”
Your response . . . Read More
I took my family on vacation last week. Vacations are great because they break up our daily patterns and expose us to all sorts of new situations and opportunities to learn and grow.
In this case, I picked up a pattern I want to share with my fellow business owners and salespeople. Read More
In our book, “Mr. Shmooze,” we spend a lot of time on the concept of “elevation.” That is, taking the small details that go into our day-to-day interaction with people and “kicking them up a notch” so that we stand out from competitors who mope along without adding any spice to the lives of people around them.
We point out in the book that you never know when you are going to run into an “elevator,” that is, a Mr. or Ms. Shmooze. But when you do, the difference is both inspiring and profound.
This past week, I ran into a concierge, Robert, who makes most concierge people look stoic by comparison.
First of all, his personality lit up the entire lobby. He greeted everyone from the car hops to the bellman by name, and his friendly and booming voice formed the epicenter of the entire lobby area.
When we engaged, he was a great listener. He then began to recommend some restaurants with details about the cuisine and the wine lists that were both knowledgeable and enthusiastic.
Here is the kicker . . .
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As a sales athlete, I am playing a little game with myself to help maintain a sense of control during these challenging times.
I’ve decided to get in shape. I don’t mean the garden variety shape. I mean shape like big time cardio/strength training . . . I’m going for it with everything I’ve got.
In fact, the more negativity I hear, the more I crank up my workouts. I figure, I’ll show ’em . . . if it comes down to survival of the fittest, they’re gonna be dealing with Rambo!
OK . . . I’m not going that far, but I have been going for it hard now for several months now and it’s really paying off.
And there are so many benefits: Read More
I have mentioned several times over the years, over 50% of human communication is nonverbal, but every once in a while, I am reminded of this critical fact in real time.
Over the weekend, I had breakfast at a diner which was in the thick of its rush hour. Our waitress showed up and said all the right things, but she was obviously stressed out. Read More
We have all run into professional “chiselers” . . . experts at asking for ever more service for the same price. It’s actually a highly refined technique taught in most negotiating courses.
“Chiselers” thrive on weakness. If they sense any weakness in your position, they will exploit it.
Conversely, if you are delivering good service at a fair price, or remain certain about your value proposition, they will usually back off when they do not smell fear. Read More
Game of Thrones was a cultural phenomenon. It attracted and energized people from all over the world who fully invested in the show’s dramatic story line, extraordinary writing, riveting characters and fantastic actors.
For seven years it built and captivated its huge audience with world-class engagement. And then came season eight.
The media industry has never seen anything quite like it. The drop off in storyline, character development and writing were the topic of criticism around the world. People wondered how such a hard won, beautiful journey could fall off so abruptly.
What happened? Read More
We all know charisma when we see it. The energy. The magnetism. The star quality.
It seems so natural that our intuition might tell us that charismatic people are simply born that way, but psychologists tell us that this is absolutely not the case.
Charisma is primarily a learned characteristic. Read More
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