Monday Mornings with Madison

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Sales

October 6, 2014

Agreeable, Disagreeble and the Ability to Disagree

Issue #348

Most character traits can be a quality or a flaw, depending on the situation or circumstances. A coworker who is very detail-oriented might also be considered nitpicky or persnickety. An employee who is very communicative can also be perceived as being a chatty Cathy. A boss who is very direct might also be seen as aggressive or blunt. What is seen as a positive trait in one situation could just as easily be viewed as a personality failing in another situation. The truth is that every characteristic – even the negative ones — probably has value at the right time, place or in moderation but might also be problematic when applied in excess or in the wrong situation.

Take, for example, openness to new experience. Openness distinguishes imaginative, creative people from down-to-earth, conventional people. Open people tend to be intellectually curious, appreciative of art, and sensitive to beauty. They tend to be more aware of their feelings as compared to closed-minded people. They also tend to think and act in individualistic and nonconforming ways. Intellectuals tend to typically be open to new experiences. Openness is often perceived as the healthier and more mature way of being. However, openness and closed-mindedness are useful in different environments. While openness may serve a professor well, research has shown that closed-minded thinking is tied to superior job performance for police officers, salespeople, and a number of service occupations. In the right job or situation, openness can actually be a flaw and closed-mindedness can be a quality.

What about agreeableness? It is hard to imagine how being agreeable could ever be considered a flaw. Employers go out of their way when recruiting new employees to find individuals that are agreeable and will “go along to get along” with others in the organization. Reference checks often focus less on validating the veracity of factual information and more on whether the person was agreeable and cooperative. While being agreeable is generally considered a quality, there are situations where it can be a flaw. Just as there are situations that call for being agreeable, there are also times and places that call for being able to disagree. . Of course, that’s not the same as being disagreeable. Continue reading →

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September 29, 2014

The Power of Promises in Business – Part 2

Issue #347

Research by Accenture has confirmed what most smart business people have long believed to be true: broken promises hurt business. Day in and day out, many businesses make overt or implied promises to customers. Often, those promises are intentionally, carelessly or inadvertently broken. In any given year, nearly half of customers have a promise broken by a company with which they do business. Of those, almost two thirds report companies breaking multiple promises. Some industries are more habitual in breaking promises than others.

What is the actual impact of broken promises on business? Logic dictates that broken promises erode trust between the customer and the business. But do broken promises actually cause customers to stop doing business with a company? Is just one broken promise enough to cause a loyal customer to go elsewhere with his business or does it take multiple offenses? Research indicates that this is an area that should be of prime concern to business owners, CEOs, CFOs, Controllers and anyone who is focused on a company’s bottom line. There is a very strong, direct relationship between customer erosion and broken promises.
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September 22, 2014

The Power of Promises in Business – Part 1

Issue #346

Every day, businesses make promises to its internal and external customers. Throughout the relationship life cycle, from entry level clerks to the top brass, employees at every level of every company make promises to customers regarding work to be done, deadlines to be met, or issues to be resolved. Some of those promises are explicit. “I give you my word….” “Count on it.” “Rest assured, it will be there on time.” Other promises are implied. Implied promises can be just as powerful as expressed ones. Everyone recognizes a commitment has been made when a business advertises that it has “the fastest turnaround times in the industry,” or a salesperson says “I’ll send you that proposal by the close of business today.” There are countless implied promises that a business makes in its marketing materials, sales pitch and customer service.

It is fairly well-accepted wisdom that each promise made ultimately affects the success or failure of the business. Indeed, it is commonly understood that while nothing builds customer confidence and loyalty more reliably than a history of well-kept promises, it is equally held as truth that nothing undermines a business’ brand or bottom line more than a string of broken promises. That imparts a great deal of power to promises… promises kept and promises broken. But is that really true? Do broken promises impact business? Is just one broken promise enough to lose a customer or does a business have to repeatedly break promises in order to impact loyalty? And do broken promises impact all businesses and industries the same way and to the same extent? Just what impact do broken promises have on sales, repeat business, and customer loyalty? Research sheds some light on this commonly accepted yet little understood occurrence.
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September 8, 2014

The Most Underestimated, Undervalued and Needed Skill in Business – Part 2

Issue #344

Imagine this. An employee has to write a proposal for a prospective client. The proposal is not something that can be copied from something else online or taken from another sample. Now imagine that the proposal goes out to the prospective client, filled with spelling, grammar and punctuation mistakes. In the proposal, the company’s values and services are unclear. How would that employee’s manager feel if he got wind of that document? Embarrassed? Humiliated? How would that proposal affect the company’s ability to land that client? How would that proposal impact that employee’s upward mobility?

Good writing skills are imperative for any professional’s toolbox. In business, there are letters, memos, reports, presentations, company publications, emails, advertisements speeches, press releases, proposals, five-year plans, and so much more which must be written. Each document needs to be clear, concise, grammatically correct, and fluid. Each written piece should engage the attention of the intended audience, fulfill the intended purpose – whether it is to persuade, inform or engage — and conclude effectively. An employee’s writing skills represents the company or organization for which he or she works. If the writing is not professional and clear, it reflects poorly on the company. But good writing also serves other business purposes as well.
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September 2, 2014

The Most Underestimated, Undervalued and Needed Skill in Business – Part 1

Issue #343

What skill is the least venerated, most underrated and yet most essential skill in business today? Is it the ability to speak clearly and connect with people? No, although it is a vital skill and most people think the best leaders are those who can deliver a rousing, engaging speech. Is it excellent resource management? No, even though managers who can get the most productivity out of their team generally get the best bonuses. Is it the ability to crunch numbers and data in order to maximize profitability? No, but the number-crunchers definitely have the most power and control within most organizations. Is it the ability to persuade and sell? No, even though salespeople are treated like royalty at most companies. Actually, the skill that is probably the most valuable for managers, leaders and business people at all levels in all industries is the ability to write well.

As a writer, it may sound a bit boastful to say that good writing is the most underestimated, undervalued, and sorely needed skills in business today. Personal experience aside, while the ability to write well may seem like a mundane skill (after all it is not taught as its own subject in grade school or at most colleges), it is one of the most crucial skills any exec, manager or leader can bring to the table, regardless of industry or occupation. From engineers to educators and from real estate brokers to investment bankers, practically anyone in business today needs to be able to write well…. to deliver written information in a crisp, clear and concise manner. Says who?…. Well, just about everyone.
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August 11, 2014

When a Company’s Brand Sends Mixed Signals – Part 2

Issue #340

In many ways, the brand is the Achilles heel of the corporate world. As companies shift more and more to being all about brand meaning and brand image, the more vulnerable they are to attacks on image. That is why it is increasingly critical for companies to protect every aspect of their brand, and work hard to avoid having any mixed messages about the company’s purpose and position. That includes guiding – as much as is possible or practical – what the company’s own people say about the company. This is a challenge for even the most successful businesses.

In fact, last week, LinkedIn’s CMO Network — the #1 Group for Chief Marketing Officers — posted this question for discussion by some of the top marketing minds in the world: “We are so sensitive about the language in our marketing campaigns and websites. How do we ensure our employees use the right words and tone while talking to customers?” There is an understanding at the highest levels of leadership that all brand cues must align in order to avoid mixed messages. Marketing cannot be saying one thing while sales is saying something else altogether. Materials cannot tout one image while leadership makes decisions that communicate the total opposite. While there are strategies (such as a clear Social Media Policy, scripted telemarketing dialogue, templated sales letters and emails, training sessions and a sales manual) that can help ensure sales efforts align with the company’s position, protecting a company’s brand goes far beyond that. Whether it’s a company’s marketing strategies, business tactics, or its approach to customer service, a business brand should obey the three Cs: be clear, cohesive and consistent.
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August 4, 2014

When a Company’s Brand Sends Mixed Signals – Part 1

Issue #339

Every company, no matter its size or purpose, has a brand. Regardless of whether the owners and leadership know what the brand is or what it stands for, the company brand exists. In theory, a company’s brand speaks about its purpose, voice and values. The brand reflects what the company does and does not do and how it wants to be viewed by the world. In practice, it also reflects what others – customers, potential customers, vendors, investors, and the general public — think about it. A brand reflects how the company is actually perceived by the world.

So a company’s brand is not just its logo or iconography, such as Nike’s swoosh or Apple’s bitten apple. Nor is a brand just it colors or fonts. That’s all just window dressing. A company’s brand is comprised of a multitude of elements that feed into the total picture or image (or in some cases the façade). Values. Voice. Personality. Corporate integrity. Product quality. Service delivery. Look/style. Marketing. Customer engagement. Approachability. A company’s brand is a reflection of all of this… combined. The better a company manages all of the elements that comprise its brand, the more likely it is to thrive long-term. To succeed, a company should be genuine in what it stands for and authentic and on point in everything it says and does. All of the messages should align.

But sometimes the messages don’t align. What happens if a company’s brand – this myriad of messages – sends mixed signals? What happens when there is a ‘disconnect’ between a company’s values and the quality of its products, or between its marketing messages and the actual service it delivers, or between its public voice and its online engagement? What happens to a brand where there are mixed messages muddying the brand’s image?
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June 2, 2014

Attention Deficit, Part 2

Issue #330

Defined as “the concentration of attention or energy on something”, focus is clearly a behavior that businesses want from their staff and customers. Employers want employees to focus on their work. Companies want clients to focus on the marketing message, sales pitch, product displays or services being offered. But, with all the diversions and noise that compete for our attention and energy in today’s world, it is very easy to fall prey to distraction. If everyone is being driven to distraction, just how much is this lack of focus affecting business, and what – if anything – can be done about it?

Some economists and business strategists see focus – not ideas or talent — as perhaps the scarcest and most desirable resource today. In a sense, focus is seen as the distilled, concentrated part of a person’s mind. Focus is what puts a person “in the moment”. It is the difference between hearing and listening. It is the first essential element upon which all business transactions start. Some experts have even gone so far as to say that only companies that learn to effectively capture, manage, and keep attention — both internally and out in the marketplace – will be able to succeed in the increasing information-cluttered world of tomorrow. So how does a company capture, manage and keep focus, especially that of customers?
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May 12, 2014

The Power of A-B Testing – Part 1

Issue #327

What, When and How To Test

Imagine this scenario. The sales manager and production manager are working with marketing to create a promotional email for the company. After deciding on a message, they discuss what time of day to deploy the eblast. Sam thinks it should be sent at the beginning of the workday, around 9am, as usual. Mike disagrees and thinks it should be sent at the end of the day, around 9pm.

To make his case, Mike cites a recent study by Experian Marketing Services which analyzed the best time of the day to send emails. The study found that emails sent between 8pm and 11:59pm had the highest unique open rate (21.7%), highest unique click rate (4.2%), and highest transaction rate (0.34). Those were all considerably higher than during any other time of day. It was also the time of day when recipients received the lowest volume of emails. Sam is unconvinced. He cites a DEG study that found that the highest email open time ran from around 8am to about 1pm, with a small dip around 11am. Moreover, the DEG study indicated that statistically the worst open rate time was 8pm. With such different results and opinions, what should the marketing department do? If the marketing department is savvy, the answer is to do both. Say hello to the power of A-B testing. Continue reading →

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April 28, 2014

Forget the ‘Sales Pitch’… The Seven Cs of Collaborative Sales Conversations

Issue #325

Every company or business must ‘sell’ its products or services to survive. As long as there is competition, there is a need for sales. It used to be that salespeople would lob fast balls of information about a product or service at a customer to make a sale. Hence the term sales ‘pitch.’ The problem with pitching information is that the customer’s response is to either swing to bat it away or duck to avoid it. Perhaps that is why the old-fashioned ‘sales pitch’ is being replaced with a better approach.

Whether face-to-face, on the phone or via some form of messaging or social networking, the method of selling in which information is spewed at a customer like a fire hose is largely ineffective in part because the pitch approach is a monologue, not a dialogue. Those still using that approach might consider ditching the “pitch” and instead treating the sales process as a collaborative conversation…. a dialogue in which the salesperson asks thoughtful questions, listens carefully to the customer’s answers, seeks to understand the customer’s needs, and offers a valuable solution to a problem. Here are the qualities of a great collaborative sales conversation.
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