Be Different or be dead

December 21, 2015

Why it’s important to tell the truth about the service you receive

Source: Pexels

Why it’s important to tell the truth about the service you receive.

Most businesses these days want their customers to score them on the service they have provided.

In fact some even go to the extent of advising you that you will be receiving a survey to complete and then asking that you give them the best score!

This has happened to me several times from various organizations.

Being a contrarian, I don’t conform and they sometimes regret asking.

Others think that good ratings are based on intent.

Some customer service people expect a good mark simply because their intent was to provide excellent service even though it wasn’t delivered. My web site problem wasn’t solved but the consultant was pleasant and did her best; ergo she expects an excellent rating.
My car repair wasn’t done properly but the service person served me in exemplary fashion and expects a good mark.

Again, I disappoint them by rating the service provided to me by the organization as unsatisfactory.

The ONLY way for any individual to get a good mark is to deliver what was promised in a way that delights.

Fix the car and provide an amazing experience for the customer while doing it and then you get an excellent rating.

Of course the service person says they can’t control what the mechanics do; the web consultant says they aren’t responsible for deciding on what changes are made to the blog posting algorithm.

They are right of course but it’s not my problem!

They need to ensure that the front end intent is delivered by the back end result.

OR, change the front end intent to match the capabilities of the back end; promise what you can deliver.

As a customer, it is our responsibility to teach business about service.

Don’t let them off the hook by giving a high rating to a service rep when the organization didn’t deliver what you asked for.

Teach them a lesson.

Rate them poorly; tell them why and hope they can improve.

If they don’t, go elsewhere.

Cheers,
Roy
Check out my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series

• Posted 12.21.15 at 04:59 am by Roy Osing
• Permalink

December 14, 2015

Does a leader’s strengths make them great?

The strengths possessed by someone address the lowest level requirements of the leadership job.

Without the basics you have little chance to lead; with them you’re guaranteed nothing in terms of being remarkable and memorable. At best you will be guaranteed a solid position in the leadership herd, blending in with other leaders who also have the same strengths.

My eyes glaze over when some individuals describe their strengths.

I hear things like:
- Technology;
- SEO;
- Finance;
- Team building;
- Dealing with others:
- Communications;
... and it goes on and on.

They all say the same thing. They’re clones of one another.

Strengths that are cited are merely adequacies if the herd promulgates them.

Rather than asking someone what their strengths are, let’s start asking “How are you different from everyone else?”

▪️“What have you done that shows a contrarian attitude?”

▪️“Where have you gone in the opposite direction to the crowd?”

▪️“Tell me a story about where you’ve diverged from the crowd not conformed with it;

▪️“Do you believe that there is strategic value in benchmarking?” (and hope for a negative response)

Good leadership is achieved by being strong.

Great leadership is created by being different.

Cheers,
Roy
Check out my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series

• Posted 12.14.15 at 04:22 am by Roy Osing
• Permalink

December 7, 2015

4 simple ways to stand out and easily beat your competitors

Source: Unsplash

4 simple ways to stand out and easily beat your competitors.

NEVER has it been more important to get out of the herd and carve out a distinctive and unique place for your organization in the market than it is today.

The economy is unpredictable.

Competition is intense as new competitors are entering the market at a blistering rate.

New technology disrupts organizations relentlessly.

Markets are cluttered with sameness; products and services are undifferentiated and competitive claims are lost in the crowd.

Customers are more empowered than ever before, establishing relationships with suppliers that deliver distinctive solutions and ignoring those that don’t.

Which organizations are successful and survive this challenging business environment, and what separates them from the others that struggle, hang on and eventually fail?

Those that are able to win this battle are different from their competitors. They survive the scrutiny of the discriminating customer by providing relevant, compelling and unmatched value.

Those that have no distinctive identity simply don’t make it.

They die.

How can organizations stand-out from the herd and easily beat their competition?

Business plan — It starts with reinventing how strategy is developed. The emphasis is shifted from strategic direction to execution. Many plans look good on paper but can’t be executed. They are theoretically pristine but worthless as they fall short of delivering results.

The strategic business game plan is designed for execution and is created by answering 3 questions:

1. HOW BIG do you want to be? - growth goals;
2. WHO do you want to SERVE - target customers to achieve growth;
3. HOW do you intend to compete and WIN - the value proposition that gives the WHO reasons to buy ONLY from you. Being the best of the best is ignored; being the ONLY ones that do what you do is coveted.

Marketing — Marketing is focused on creating experiences rather than flogging products. Investing in current loyal fans is given priority over providing special promotions and deals to acquire new customers.

Mass markets are ignored in favour of concentrating on the individual and discovering their secrets that will unlock economic value.

Marketing to ’ME’ gains momentum.

Customers are looked at holistically; experiential packages are designed for each of them to satisfy their broad life desires. Creating happiness is the marketer’s end game.

Customer Service — Customer service the way it has been traditionally practiced is out; SERVING customers is in with the end game to dazzle the customer and take their breath away. Internal rules and policies are re-vectored to make customer engagement a friendly process.

The customer is brought in to the organization to get their fingerprints on how they want to be treated.

Leadership —  Leadership is practised by serving around is the new culture. “How can I help you?” are the words leaving leaders’ lips not “Do this.”

To Stand-out from the Herd you need to provide VALUE that people CARE about and that is UNIQUE. Failure to deliver and you’ll be IgNORED, InVISIBLE, CoMMON and DeAD (sooner or later).

Cheers,
Roy
Check out my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series

• Posted 12.7.15 at 04:02 am by Roy Osing
• Permalink

November 23, 2015

Sales can push or build, what’s absolutely the best way?

Source: Unsplash

Sales can push or build, what’s absolutely the best way?

Sales people have a choice in terms of the modus operandi they choose to employ to deliver results: they can either push or flog products at customers or they can build intimate relationships with them and trust that sales will follow.

Here’s the profile of each.

The pusher:

- is focused on short term success; it’s all about making the numbers;
- flogs technology, emphasizing the cool things it can do;
- loves to make speeches on how wonderful their products are; not too much listening here;
- will try and force-fit their product to the customer’s problem even though the product is not be the perfect fit for the customer. They are more motivated to sell their product and not to do whatever it takes to solve the customer’s problem;
- is a one-way communications artist. They are constantly in the transmit mode; they listen very little;
- wants to get the sale and get out; the quicker the transaction the better;

- is frustrated by the need for after sales service and devotes minimal time to it;
- is driven by their annual compensation plan and dedicates little effort to medium and longer term issues;
- spends copious amounts of time doing cold calls;
- relies on low prices to express their value proposition; blames high prices when they lose a sale;
- avoids personal accountability when a client is screwed over through a service mishap made by the company;
- is super driven to win an annual sales award and get a trip to somewhere exotic.

Source: Unsplash

The builder:

- is a server with the innate desire and ability to take care of people;
- is a highly engaging individual; believes that deep conversations with the client will expose opportunities;
- wants to get paid by their compensation plan, but is willing to balance longer term needs with the short term;
- drives the majority of their sales through repeat business from long term loyal clients;
- creates intimate relationships with clients trusting that the relationship will yield sales over the longer term;
- sells value at the highest price possible. Avoids commodity transactions where the sale goes to the lowest price supplier;
- focuses on obtaining client referrals to grow sales; doesn’t have to cold call;

- spends time trying to discover client hidden wants and desires - secrets - and employs this knowledge as a critical component in their sales proposition;
- is a recovery addict; doing whatever it takes to recover from a service mistake the organization made that caused client pain;
- takes the role of client champion inside their organization fighting for them regardless of the issue;
- has incredible listening skills which represent a heavy dimension of their personal brand;
- uses a customer report card regularly to gather customer feedback on their performance; follows up to ensure improvements are recognized;
- will lose a potential sale by recommending someone else’s product when they have a better solution to a client’s problem;
- is very involved with marketing in the new product development process; ensures that their client’s unmet needs are addressed;
- are viewed by their clients as partners; part of the client team.

Which approach do you think will build customer loyalty and distinguish you from your peers?

Cheers,
Roy
Check out my BE DiFFERENT or be dead Book Series

• Posted 11.23.15 at 05:56 am by Roy Osing
• Permalink