Leaders are full of ideas and innovations that can improve the business performance of their teams.
If you want to kick your leadership up a few notches try “planting the seed” versus just telling your team the new idea / innovation that you have formulated.
In “planting the seed,” you will need to provide “teaser” information, and then coach your team to get to the desired outcome. Along the way, your team members may even improve on your original idea, so be open to suggestions, but stay the course.
You will find that this process will motivate your teams to improve their performance because they now have ownership of the idea / innovation.
Remember the 3 P’s- Plan, Prepare, Practice before you implement “planting the seed.”
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Communicating to Our Customers: Drop the Acronyms and Industry Speak!
Did you ever answer a customer's question and receive a very confused
look from them in return?
A few years back a customer asked me why we were out of a particular item.
My answer was, “I know that we “surveyed” that item, but I think it was either “scratched” or on “allocation.”
The customer gave me the same look I gave the young doctor when he told me that my “diastolic” number was fine but he was concerned about my “systolic” number.
The point is we need to communicate to our customers on their terms. Many of us with retail experience use words like “discontinued”, “selector error”, “focus item” “shipper” "drop-ship" ... just to name a few...and acronyms like "OOS" "CSS" "POS" ...what do these mean to our customers? Nothing!
Knowledge of the your business is good, but the ability to successfully communicate and have your customers understand you is excellence!
This presents an unique opportunity to “raise the bar” in customer communications and in conversations with those that may not be related to your specific industry.
look from them in return?
A few years back a customer asked me why we were out of a particular item.
My answer was, “I know that we “surveyed” that item, but I think it was either “scratched” or on “allocation.”
The customer gave me the same look I gave the young doctor when he told me that my “diastolic” number was fine but he was concerned about my “systolic” number.
The point is we need to communicate to our customers on their terms. Many of us with retail experience use words like “discontinued”, “selector error”, “focus item” “shipper” "drop-ship" ... just to name a few...and acronyms like "OOS" "CSS" "POS" ...what do these mean to our customers? Nothing!
Knowledge of the your business is good, but the ability to successfully communicate and have your customers understand you is excellence!
This presents an unique opportunity to “raise the bar” in customer communications and in conversations with those that may not be related to your specific industry.
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
We All Need A Reason To Wake Up In the Morning", inspired true story
His name was Vince. I met him one day at the Burger King while eating lunch.
“Excuse me; are you the Store Manager over there?”
I then introduced myself and Vince went on to tell me his story.
“So are you guys hiring?...I need a job. I am a retired executive from US Steel, my wife passed away about two years ago and my kids are spread across the country.
I fly every weekend to visit them, so I can work Monday through Friday.
You know I miss working. A man can only play so much golf, I am really getting bored, …I need a reason to wake up in the morning.”
Vince was a tall man, wearing a wrinkled non-matching jogging suit and sporting a 3-day beard. I felt sorry for him, he really looked like he needed a job and the story he told me, well that really seemed a bit far-fetched, so I hired him.
Vince came on board and worked Monday through Friday 7 to 11am pushing carts and greeting people as they entered the store. He really loved his job; smiling and saying thank you, talking to customers, keeping the place clean, and I felt good because I gave this guy a job.
About 6 months later Cindi, my office manager, came to me, “Bob, the Payroll dept. called and said they need Vince to cash his paychecks.” Well I was really surprised, Vince?...the guy who needed a job so bad, not cashing his paychecks?!
“How many paychecks hasn't he cashed”? I asked Cindi.
Cindi looked right at me and said, “Bob, Vince has not cashed a paycheck since he started 6 months ago!”
At that moment I realized, I did not give Vince a job,he gave me a life lesson.
We All Need a Reason to Wake Up in the Morning, thank you Vince P.
“Excuse me; are you the Store Manager over there?”
I then introduced myself and Vince went on to tell me his story.
“So are you guys hiring?...I need a job. I am a retired executive from US Steel, my wife passed away about two years ago and my kids are spread across the country.
I fly every weekend to visit them, so I can work Monday through Friday.
You know I miss working. A man can only play so much golf, I am really getting bored, …I need a reason to wake up in the morning.”
Vince was a tall man, wearing a wrinkled non-matching jogging suit and sporting a 3-day beard. I felt sorry for him, he really looked like he needed a job and the story he told me, well that really seemed a bit far-fetched, so I hired him.
Vince came on board and worked Monday through Friday 7 to 11am pushing carts and greeting people as they entered the store. He really loved his job; smiling and saying thank you, talking to customers, keeping the place clean, and I felt good because I gave this guy a job.
About 6 months later Cindi, my office manager, came to me, “Bob, the Payroll dept. called and said they need Vince to cash his paychecks.” Well I was really surprised, Vince?...the guy who needed a job so bad, not cashing his paychecks?!
“How many paychecks hasn't he cashed”? I asked Cindi.
Cindi looked right at me and said, “Bob, Vince has not cashed a paycheck since he started 6 months ago!”
At that moment I realized, I did not give Vince a job,he gave me a life lesson.
We All Need a Reason to Wake Up in the Morning, thank you Vince P.
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Inviting Your Customers to Return, the Missing Link in Service
Companies that boast good customer service in most cases are missing one very important component that could really raise the bar……Invite your customers to return.
The next time you visit a retailer, restaurant or any business, pay close attention to the final words you hear.
90% will offer a thank you, 5% will say nothing and only about 5% will thank you and ask that you to return in the near future.
Step back, listen and observe…are you inviting your customers to return?
Asking your customers to come back can be a huge point of difference for your business.
You will need to practice this until it becomes a habit. Say something like, “Thank you and please come back and see us again real soon, mention 'Joe' when you return.” (one way you can measure the process)
The next time you visit a retailer, restaurant or any business, pay close attention to the final words you hear.
90% will offer a thank you, 5% will say nothing and only about 5% will thank you and ask that you to return in the near future.
Step back, listen and observe…are you inviting your customers to return?
Asking your customers to come back can be a huge point of difference for your business.
You will need to practice this until it becomes a habit. Say something like, “Thank you and please come back and see us again real soon, mention 'Joe' when you return.” (one way you can measure the process)
Monday, April 19, 2010
"Willing To Learn" by Julie Ann Sullivan
While getting my son’s lunch ready, I expressed that all the food and drink would not fit into his lunch box.
I told him I would have to use something different.
He said, “Can I try?”
I was outraged! I told him how rude it was for him to say that. Didn’t he think I was smart enough to have tried all the possibilities?
In that same instant, the lesson began. Still angry, I told him to try, but if he couldn’t do it, he lost TV for the day.
Indignantly, I went out of the room to get his juice box for lunch, which surely would not fit.
I’d show him!
On the way back to the kitchen, I realized there might be another side to this story besides my predicted outcome.
I said to him, “Get it all to fit and that’s $5 for you.”
You know of course, he figured out how to get it all to fit. I paid up the money and learned several valuable lessons:
1. It’s not always about me
2. People like to try for themselves and that’s not about me either.
*Julie Ann Sullivan*
Learning Never Ends
724-942-0486
Visit my web site @ > > www.julieannsullivan.com
I told him I would have to use something different.
He said, “Can I try?”
I was outraged! I told him how rude it was for him to say that. Didn’t he think I was smart enough to have tried all the possibilities?
In that same instant, the lesson began. Still angry, I told him to try, but if he couldn’t do it, he lost TV for the day.
Indignantly, I went out of the room to get his juice box for lunch, which surely would not fit.
I’d show him!
On the way back to the kitchen, I realized there might be another side to this story besides my predicted outcome.
I said to him, “Get it all to fit and that’s $5 for you.”
You know of course, he figured out how to get it all to fit. I paid up the money and learned several valuable lessons:
1. It’s not always about me
2. People like to try for themselves and that’s not about me either.
*Julie Ann Sullivan*
Learning Never Ends
724-942-0486
Visit my web site @ > > www.julieannsullivan.com
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Reached a Plateau? You May Need a Paradigm Shift
Time to revisit your:
-Vision Statement
-Mission Statement
-Point of Difference / Value Statement
-Target Market
-Strategy
***Most importantly; Your Team (you can’t do it all yourself, it is okay to ask for help).
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Top 5 Reasons Small Businesses Fail
Top 5 Reasons Small Businesses Fail
By Abbie Drew
If you’ve been under long-held belief that 50% of businesses fail in the first year and 95% fail within five years, you can put those dismal stats behind you.
The truth is you do have a realistic chance of success.The bad news is if you do not run your business well, your business could fail within 5 years.
And according to the NFIB over the lifetime of a business only 39% are profitable.
Another 30% of business break even, the other 30% lose money and 1% can not say.
So how do you make your business one of the profitable 39% that succeeds for the long term?
You start by avoiding these 5 big mistakes.
I have been profitably running DEMC since 1995 and I speak from experience. I have battled the mistakes I am about to review and I have worked with 100s of small businesses over the years. Thus, I have seen what works and what doesn’t.
Here is what you need to avoid.
1) Fail to establish a team.
I saw a great definition of entrepreneur in an email I received from Dan Lok recently. Entrepreneur was defined as an individual who uses the time and money of others to make his ideas a reality.Think about that definition and your own business. Are you are doing all of the work in your business yourself? If yes, you need to re-evaluate.
Too many small business people are caught up in doing the day to day tasks of running their businesses. As a result, they are unable to work on the bigger picture of growing their businesses. When your business is not growing and improving it is falling behind and headed for extinction.
You have to stop trying to be your own copy writer, web designer, customer support staff, product innovator, tax accountant, marketer, search engine optimizer, press release contact, book keeper, etc., etc., etc..Start becoming a believer in the saying – “Do what you do best and farm out the rest!
Establish a “Team” of people who help you succeed. Some will work with you and/or for you. Others will be mentors to you.
Use your team to help build your business and improve your prosperity.To emphasize the importance of establishing a team, I encourage you to review some of the Interview articles from past issues of DEMC.
In fact, I’d recommend you start by reading the interview in today’s issue of John Di Lemme.
You will find again and again in these interviews, that successful business owner mention how their “Team” has helped them arrive where they are today.
Want to know Two through Five? Clink on the link below
Bottom Line....it is okay to ask for help!
http://www.demc.com/
By Abbie Drew
If you’ve been under long-held belief that 50% of businesses fail in the first year and 95% fail within five years, you can put those dismal stats behind you.
The truth is you do have a realistic chance of success.The bad news is if you do not run your business well, your business could fail within 5 years.
And according to the NFIB over the lifetime of a business only 39% are profitable.
Another 30% of business break even, the other 30% lose money and 1% can not say.
So how do you make your business one of the profitable 39% that succeeds for the long term?
You start by avoiding these 5 big mistakes.
I have been profitably running DEMC since 1995 and I speak from experience. I have battled the mistakes I am about to review and I have worked with 100s of small businesses over the years. Thus, I have seen what works and what doesn’t.
Here is what you need to avoid.
1) Fail to establish a team.
I saw a great definition of entrepreneur in an email I received from Dan Lok recently. Entrepreneur was defined as an individual who uses the time and money of others to make his ideas a reality.Think about that definition and your own business. Are you are doing all of the work in your business yourself? If yes, you need to re-evaluate.
Too many small business people are caught up in doing the day to day tasks of running their businesses. As a result, they are unable to work on the bigger picture of growing their businesses. When your business is not growing and improving it is falling behind and headed for extinction.
You have to stop trying to be your own copy writer, web designer, customer support staff, product innovator, tax accountant, marketer, search engine optimizer, press release contact, book keeper, etc., etc., etc..Start becoming a believer in the saying – “Do what you do best and farm out the rest!
Establish a “Team” of people who help you succeed. Some will work with you and/or for you. Others will be mentors to you.
Use your team to help build your business and improve your prosperity.To emphasize the importance of establishing a team, I encourage you to review some of the Interview articles from past issues of DEMC.
In fact, I’d recommend you start by reading the interview in today’s issue of John Di Lemme.
You will find again and again in these interviews, that successful business owner mention how their “Team” has helped them arrive where they are today.
Want to know Two through Five? Clink on the link below
Bottom Line....it is okay to ask for help!
http://www.demc.com/
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