After reading the book, You, Inc., The Art of Selling Yourself, by Harry Beckwith and Christine Clifford Beckwith, I was impressed with the simple ways the authors communicated the major point of the book.  The main point the authors drive home very well, is that in business, what your client are really buying is you.  And what you are really selling is yourself.

One of the key areas the book addresses is the necessity of becoming a good listener.

The authors relate the story of a colleague who attended a party.  After the party the women their colleague had spoken to sent him an e-mail of thanks that stated, “I thoroughly enjoyed our conversation.”  After learning about this women’s comments, the fellow indicated the in the 50 minutes or so that they had talked, he spoke for not more than one minute.  The point:  listening well makes you very interesting to people. 

Listening is not as simple as it may sound. It is a complex process that involves hearing, understanding, and analysis. This will require conscious effort – it is not a passive act, as many seem to believe. You should make sure you are aware of both verbal and emotional data that is being communicated. This will require you to “read between the lines,” as the old saying goes.

So what are some simple ways you can become a better listener? 

• Don’t interrupt – Many times the speaker merely wants to be “heard”, so resist the temptation to put your two cents in too quickly
• Mirror what the other person is saying – A great technique is to restate what you have heard in your own words.  For example, once the person has finished speaking, you can respond with “It sounds like what you’re saying is . . . “  This accomplishes a couple of things.  It allows you to show the speaker that you have been actually listening.  Also, if you didn’t catch the right message the speaker was trying to communicate, this is an opportunity for clarification.
• Maintain eye contact -  This one is easy.  Don’t be looking around the room.  Looking the speaker in the eye shows that you are paying attention and what they have to say is important to you.
• Don’t try to solve problems – Again, many  people just need to be “heard”.  So resist the temptation to solve the speaker’s problem, unless they specifically ask you for advice. 
• Don’t interrupt a “pause” – If a pause arises in the conversation, do not start speaking just because you feel awkward. Use that as a moment to reflect on what the speaker has just said. If you feel that you do not understand some of the points that were just communicated, you can then use that as an opportunity to ask any questions that might arise in your head.
• Don’t judge - Once you start judging the speaker, you lose the title of a “good” listener. 

These tips for becoming a better listener are pretty simple to understand, but like any skill require practice to become skilled at.

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One of the most important goals of marketing is to reach your target at the times when they are most ready or open to “hear” your marketing messages.  These moments are called “touch points”.

But, with all the marketing clutter, and choices your clients or prospects have how do you determine the proper “touch” points.  The short answer is you don’t.

Let me explain this a bit further.  Marketing has changed dramatically over the past 10 years  and what used to be a one way exchange from marketers to consumers has shifted to a two-way conversation where consumers can now gather as much information on their own without waiting for a business to solicit them.  The vehicle that has created this situation is the internet.

In fact, the ability of consumers to “pull” information from various sources has become even more important than a marketers outreach to the consumer.  Marketing used to be driven by companies “pushing” their messages through the traditional sources such as direct marketing, newspaper, radio and other channels.

Now customers have the power as they seize control of the process by “pulling” information that will help them make their ultimate choice for the product or service they are looking to acquire.

So, how do you address your target markets decision-making process in this “new” world of marketing?

The best way is to first understand that you must move beyond purely push-style communication and learn to influence your targets touch points when they want the information, namely through internet information sites.

The best way for the small business owner to address this new reality is by having a content-driven website that allows visitors to become “educated” on how your company can solve their problem or meet their needs.  And that’s not all.  Your business must very clearly be able to articulate why a suspect or prospect should do business with you rather than your competitor down the street.    

Unfortunately many business owners still only use their web site as a billboard that really says nothing of any importance and doesn’t educate their prospects when they really want it . . . when the prospect is pulling information.

Here are some of the major benefits of a content-driven site:

• Awareness
• Shortened selling cycle - an educational site will help you build credibility and trust even before your prospect talks with you.
• Access to your information
• Automated distribution of marketing information – you can and should offer free information – -  white papers, free reports, etc. to help build credibility and trust
• Ability to capture lead data - your site should provide this free information in exchange for the visitors contact information.    

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I have a tendency to adopt new words or language and then use them over and over again until I find another word that I like and I do the same with this.

One of my favorite phrases for 2009 has been Head Trash.  I’m not sure where I first heard these words, but every time I mention head trash, I get some sort of reaction from the person or group of people that has heard me say it.

So, let’s clarify exactly what head trash is.  Head trash is a collection of limiting thoughts or ideas (voices) that prevent you from taking specific action that will  help you generate better results.

We all have head trash, but for some business owners this thinking negatively impacts their businesses.  So, while many people have some degree of head trash, keeping it under control or limiting it altogether is critical to achieving success in your business and personal life. 

 To achieve the results you deserve and are capable of it is essential that you dump your head trash. While this is easier said than done, applying a few techniques will help.

First, focus on what you CAN do that will generate a positive outcome.  Instead of thinking of the negative aspect of the task, concentrate on the best possible outcome. For example, most salespeople hate to cold call.  But if you put yourself into the mindset that making these calls will generate new business, or at the very least, that they will help you connect with new and interesting people, your willingness to invest in this task will dramatically improve.

Next, take action immediately. Most people procrastinate when head trash invades their thinking and this prevents them from moving forward. However, taking one step or small action supersedes the desire to remain complacent. I believe it was Confucius who said, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” I have learned from experience that making a difficult telephone call eliminates the need to procrastinate and stimulates my desire to take further action throughout the day. And, as I continue to take action, the trash that may have collected in my head is emptied.

It is also important to associate with action-oriented people who support your goals and objectives. I start the week by talking to a good friend of mine every Monday morning. During our conversations we discuss the challenges from the previous week and explore options and ideas. I also belong to a Mastermind group and when we meet each month, where we help each other look for new opportunities within our respective businesses. All of these conversations help eliminate my head trash and motivate me to try new approaches and apply different ideas.

Take out your trash and watch the difference in your results.

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I don’t mean to get carried away with the title of this post, but since reading John Maxwell’s book, The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, I’m convinced that one of the key success factors to being a successful business owner is becoming a better leader. 

Here’s the good news -  – becoming a better leader is a learned behavior, just like most other skills we learn.

So, what exactly is this thing we call leadership?  What does it look like?

According to John Maxwell “leaderhip is influence – nothing more, nothing less“.  Leadership may come in all shapes and sizes, but it only comes from influence and that can’t be mandated by a title, position or knowledge.  It must be earned.  The only thing a title can buy is a little time – either to increase your level of influence with others or to undermine it.

I believe leadership is misunderstood.  Many people mistakenly believe that by being a business owner or entrepreneur, you are automatically a leader.  Nothing, in my opinion can be further from the truth.  To be truly successful, a business owner needs to develop (and continue to develop) the necessary skills to not only influence the people in their organization, but their prospects and customers.         

 So what are some of the key elements of effective leadership?

• Relationships - Effective leaders are able to develop relationships – the stronger the relationship, the more potential for effective leadership.
• Knowledge - Information is critical to the success of a leader.  Knowledge alone won’t make someone a leader, but without knowledge, on one can become a successful leader.
• Intuition - Effective leaders have a “gut” instinct when it comes to putting their “finger on the pulse” of others feelings, morale and energy.   
• Past Success - Nothing is more important to a person’s ability to lead than their track record of accomplishment or for getting the job done. 

Here’s a quick method to access what factors you rely upon to persuade people to follow you.  For the following factors listed below, rate yourself on a scale of 1 to 10.  (1 means it’s not a factor while a 10 means you rely on it continually)

• Character – who you are
• Relationships – who you know
• Knowledge – what you know
• Intuition – what you feel
• Experience – where you’ve been
• Past Success – what you’ve done
• Ability - what you can do

Now, try to determine ways to better utilize the factors with low scores.

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As I’ve been reading The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership by John Maxwell, I’ve become a bit fascinated with the concept of leadership. 

This facination prompted me to pose the following two questions on Twitter:

1. How do you define leadership?
2. Do you believe in the concept of “born” leaders or is leadership a learned behavior?    

Not surprisingly, the responses to question one were very varied,  with definitions of  ”leadership” running the gamut from listening well, managing people, influence, position,  etc.

In sharp contrast, the answers to whether leaders are born or bred were quit similar with one another, with almost everyone answering that they believe the qualities of leadership is a combination of heridity and learning.

What do you think?

I believe and agree with leadership expert, John Maxwell, that leaders can be trained or bred given the right teachers and the desire to learn. 

Maxwell believes anybody can become a better leader, by becoming better at the 21 Laws of Leadership.  Maxwell believes that although we must learn the 21 laws and apply them to be excellent leaders, in reality, none of us does all of them well.  He continues by stating that no matter where you are in the leadership process, the greater number of laws you learn, the better leader you will become.  Each law is  like a tool, ready to be picked up and used to help you achieve your dreams and add value to other people.    

In my next couple of posts, I will outline some of what I believe are the most important laws of leadership required to be a successful business owner. 

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Here’s what separates very successful service providers from those that haven’t quite made it yet . . .  TRUST.

Yes, I know, this sounds very simplistic, but without a doubt, I truly believe that the number one reason that differentiates very successful service professionals from those who aren’t very successful is that the successful people have developed a strategy for creating trust and credibility so that they stand out from the crowd.     

Let’s take a closer look at this statement.  Who are the service professionals in your life – -  your doctor, lawyer, insurance agent, real estate agent, or your marketing coach?  Do you trust all of these people?  Of course you do; if you didn’t or you don’t, they will not maintain their presence in your life for very long.

What are some of the things professional service providers can do to build trust?

• Responsiveness – You’re expected to respond on a timely basis
• Credentials – depending upon the service profession, credentials are sometimes critical.
• Client importance – your clients want to be considered important
• Establishing yourself as a category authority

 Michael Port, in his book, Book Yourself Solid, claims becoming and establishing yourself as a “category authority” is the one “special” thing “that will make you stand out from the crowd every day of the week”.   

 What is a category authority you ask?

A service professional becomes a category authority by learning everything they possibly can about the one thing they have decided to become known for.

Michael Port believes (I agree) in part, that becoming a category authority will allow you to :

• Create the trust and credibility necessary to make your potential clients feel comfortable about purchasing your products and services
• Provide you with the necessary visibility to reach your target market 
• Help you gain clients and increase sales easier 
• Help you expand into new markets

Where do you begin to becoming a category authority?

We will explore that on my next post.

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On Tuesday, I presented a workshop to a group of small business owners titled – How to Build a Rock-Solid Foundation For Your Business.

Because it was the first time I delivered this seminar, I wasn’t quite sure how well the content would be received by the audience.  Guess what?  I was floored in a very good way.

The main theme behind the workshop was the importance for business owners to build a foundation or strategy for their business before doing tactical marketing “stuff”.  Unfortunately, most business owners, if they engage in any type of marketing activities,  just “fire” away without giving much thought to  getting ready and then aiming.

Why is that?

 Well, most business owners have been trained that marketing is only tactical “stuff”, newsletter, website, direct mail piece.  Don’t get me wrong.  Tactical marketing is very important.  But, your tactical marketing will never be as effective and won’t produce the stunning results until you develop a stratetegic plan.  Your strategic marketing plan consists of what you say, how you say it and the audience you say it to.    

Here are the elements of a strategic marketing plan or a foundation for your business:

• Identifying your target market and your ideal target market, so you don’t end up marketing to the “world”.
•  Understanding what your target market wants and expects from a business that provides the products or services that you provide.
• Educating that target about the benefits or results that you deliver with your product or service.
• Developing ways to build know, like, and trust with your target market.   

Marketing isn’t magic, although some marketing gurus might try to get you to believe this.  Marketing is developing a strategy and then consistently and repeatedly touching your target with the correct tactical plan.

One of my ongoing goals is to become a better communicator,  public speaker and leader.  Here’s my thoughts on this . . .  not matter what you do in life, one of the secrets to success is being able to effectively communicate your messages, whether that is to a group of one, ten or one thousand.

And what better place to hone your public speaking skills than a Toastmasters club.

For those not familiar with Toastmasters, here some of the facts:

• International organization with over 250,000 members
• 12,000 Toastmaster clubs located throughout 106 countries
• Major objectives are to improve communication and public skills of its members in a friendly and supportive atmosphere  

Now, I am not a card-carry member just yet, but I have been doing a bit of leg-work to investigate a couple of different local chapters.  My first visit was to the Toastmasters Club in Kingston, MA called the South Shore Soliloquy, lead by president, George Boerger.     

Here’s what I found:

• A very diverse group of individuals committed to becoming better communicators 
• A very supportive network committed to making all members feel comfortable no matter what the skill level
• A very open and friendly atmosphere that made me and the other guests feel completely comfortable
• A very fast-paced and interesting meeting
• A very strong leader in George Boerger

Here’s a quote on the front cover of their brand-spanking new brochure, which literally came right off the press .  .  .

“The tongue is the only tool that gets sharper with use”

-Washington Irving

I agree; here’s to The South Shore Soliloquy members in Kingston.

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Strategic partnerships are probably one of the best methods for a business owner to create additional leads and sales without investing a ton of money.  It takes a bit of “sweat equity” and creative thinking, but most great partnerships can be found “next door”.

I workout at the Abington Athletic Club, (obviously, not often enough) a  local gym, and literally, right next door, there’s a Sullivan Tire, a tire retailer and automotive center. 

So what do these two businesses have in common?  People and proximity .  . .  a great fit.  (pun intended)

When you visit Sullivan Tire to have work performed on your car, there is a sign in the lobby prominently displayed that reads, “Do you need something to do while you wait?  FREE workout while you wait for your car to be finished.”  You don’t even need to be a member of the athletic club to go for a free workout.  And it actually gets better.  If you are a member, you get a 10% discount off the invoice.  Great marketing for the club . . .  great stuff.

Now, let’s go next door.  When you enter the Abington Athletic Club, there is a Sullivan Tire display, including a tire, with a sign that reads “Keep your automobile in as good of shape as you keep your body”.  Membership has its privlidges -  10% discount for all ABC members when you have your automobile serviced at Sullivan Tire. 

Very simple, but a very effective and powerful strategy.  Think of ways that you can really be a “good neighbor”, by leveraging the business next door and helping each other succeed.

 Strategic Partners is one of  the most effective and simple ways for businesses to help each other and keep their business tuned and fit.

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Why do your customers call you? What do they want? Customers call for one reason — they want help.

How about taking on a new perspective on an old subject?  Shouldn’t it really be called “customer helping”, rather than customer service?  Wouldn’t you deliver better service if you thought of it that way?  

Here’s what your customers want:

1. They want value.
2. They want excellent communication
3. They expect your attitude to be positive (even if theirs isn’t) 
4. They expect reliability
5. They want assurance and often need reassurance
6. They expect empathy when something goes wrong
7. They expect exceptional service as the norm, not the exception
8. They want in NOW.

Your customers are telling you:  Know me, undertand me, lead me, help me and serve me the way I expect to be served now.

Are your customers happy with your approach to “customer helping?”

How do you even know?   

A surefire way to know if you’re making your customers happy is if they “shout from the highest tree” to sing the praises of your company or an employee in your company. 

JB Edward Uniform Company is a three-store retail chain supplying school uniforms to private schools in the New England area.  As you can imagine, the month of August can be “hell” month for the company, as they try to fill last minute orders for their customers in time for the start of the school year.  Beth Veneto, the General Manager of JB Edward Uniforms, related the story of an e-mail she received from a new customer,  complimenting one of her employees, Jen Pfeiffer.  The e-mail is too good not to quote it directly, so here goes:

“I am a new customer.  My granddaughter enrolled yesterday at St. Brigid’s in Portland ME.  My daughter had been waiting for a confirmation of a transfer, so the enrollment is “last minute.”  I place an order on line and called today to find out its status.  Jen answered my telephone inquiry.  In an age when I sometimes think Good Customer Service in an “endangered species”, Jen was outstanding.  She was efficient, called back as promised, and provided me with good information.  She even checked with shipping to assure that the order should arrive in time.  Please share the “attagirl” with Jen.  You definitely have a keeper, and I wanted to take the time to tell you so!” 

Louise H. – Dorchester         

Are your customers giving your employees atta-girls or atta-boys?  (whatever the case may be)

Do your customers shout from the highest tree?  If not, you need to figure out why.

Stay connected.