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What’s your proactive marketing approach to loyalty?

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Dear Jeffrey, I am a huge fan. I recently had a WOW experience that completely coincides with your philosophy on customer loyalty versus satisfaction. Today, I received the following email from Amazon:

Hello, We noticed that you experienced poor video playback while watching the following rental on Amazon Video On Demand: The Hunger Games. We’re sorry for the inconvenience and have issued you a refund for the following amount: $3.99. While Amazon Video On Demand transactions are typically not refundable, we are happy to make an exception in this case. This refund should be processed within the next 2 to 3 business days and will appear on your next billing statement for the same credit card used to purchase this item.

This is amazing to me for a few reasons. Yes, I did notice that my movie was buffering more than usual and, yes, it was annoying. However, it was nothing more than a minor frustration. I didn’t complain. I didn’t complete a survey or give any feedback about this experience. Truthfully, until I received this email, I hadn’t given it a second thought.

When I got this email, it stopped me in my tracks. THEY NOTICED. They noticed that this particular experience was below their normal standards. But what’s more important, THEY NOTICED WITHOUT ME TELLING THEM.

Good companies would refund my money if I complained. Of course they would, that is expected. I never have had a company refund my money without being prompted. Never. And this, this was a surprise.

Would I have used them again even if they did not refund my money? Yes, often. So what’s the difference? I wouldn’t have REFERRED them. I received this email today at 2:18pm. Since then, I have told all my coworkers I came in contact with, posted this on my Facebook wall, and now am writing you.

Amazon lost four dollars today, but they gained a customer for life! It was so impressive, I had to share. Make it a great day, Candace

Brilliant, eh? Proactive, memorable service.

Amazon is monitoring the quality of their streaming bandwidth and can identify quality issues. Then, they DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT. No waste of time and money “survey,” no phony empty apology, just a good, old fashioned admission of guilt, and a proactive refund for poor performance.

My bet is Amazon has given thousands of these, and the same customer response has happened with every one of them. What a strategy! Let’s make sure the customer experience was great, or let’s give them a refund.

Simple. Powerful. Profitable. Give up $4.00 to earn thousands. I wonder who thought that one up? Certainly not their advertising agency.

Look at the elements of business and sales as a result of Amazon’s action, and customer reaction: a huge wow, several social postings, more social proof, an amazing testimonial, customer loyalty, and pass along value that cannot be measured on any ROI scale. Amazon’s actions breed return on proactive, memorable service – the WOW factor, social response, and customer word of mouth. It’s WAY beyond ‘priceless’ – in the long term, it’s worth a fortune.

HERE’S YOUR LESSON: You can invest in some marketing program to reach new people – or you can invest in giving your existing customers the best service possible, and let THEM find new people for you.

PREDICTION: I’ll bet the investment in existing customer experience is one-tenth the cost of any marketing program. In fact, I doubt this type of outreach is even on a marketing team’s mindset. They’re still in the Stone Age measuring ‘ROI.’

Amazon has lead the Internet all the way with vision and tenacity. Quality and value. Ease of doing business, buy with one click. Suggestive buying and published reviews. Not just price, delivery.

And now add to that list: proactive WOW interaction. They dominate because they differentiate. They dominate because they innovate. They don’t study the market – they create it (like Apple). Most marketing studies are a CYA act of companies afraid to make mistakes, let alone be bold.

Take this lesson to heart – and take it to your customers. If you come up with something creatively compelling, you can also take it to the bank!

Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.

About the Author

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].

Your sales voice. What is it saying to you? What is it saying to others?

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I was recently at Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas, giving a seminar sponsored by Sales & Marketing Executives International. I had an informal logistics meeting with some of the association members before the event when Jamie, the young woman who directed me to my preparation room, talked to me about her career. I asked her what she was seeking to become.

Her response startled me. She said, “I’m still trying to find my voice.”

I was taken aback because I expected some alternate career choice, or something along the lines of ‘make a lot of money,’ or ‘get a job in event planning.’ But no, she was seeking something much higher.

Jamie was seeking to gain control of her self and her power first, and find her career path second. We talked about ‘voice’ for a while, and I began to type to capture the thoughts. What came out of the brief conversation will benefit you and your career, and help you understand who you are and who you seek to become.

Jamie was looking for her voice to come from something she believed in that would make her voice stronger, more resonant, more powerful, and more believable.

How do you speak?

Not the just words, the voice that you project. Your voice is a statement and picture of your character, your poise, and your persona. It’s a statement of belief, confidence, and personal power.

Where does your voice come from?
How do you ‘find’ it?
And once you do, how do you master it?

BE AWARE: Your voice has nothing to do with your selling skills or your product knowledge. Your voice is way beyond that.

GOOD NEWS: You don’t have to look far. Most of your voice is right at the tip of your tongue. The rest of it is mental and emotional.

ANSWER: It STARTS with your inner voice. It’s the language you speak to yourself BEFORE you say a word.

Your voice becomes yours, and authentically yours, when you…

  • do what you believe in.
  • do what you’re passionate about.
  • work in your chosen field.
  • find your calling.
  • discover something you feel you were made or born to do.
  • do something you love.

EASY WAY TO START THE DISCOVERY: Write down the hobby or sport you love best, or the sporting event you go to because you love to see your team play and cheer them on.

My friend, Hall of Fame baseball player Dave Winfield, said it as simply and as completely as I have ever heard it, “I loved baseball and baseball loved me back.”

Here are the elements of voice:

  • You have decided to pursue your chosen path.
  • You have belief in who you are.
  • You have belief in what you do.
  • You have a desire to succeed.
  • You’re personally prepared – attitude, enthusiasm, friendliness, and ideas.
  • You maintain self-confidence that comes from your heart, not from your head.
  • Your enthusiasm is real.
  • Your sincerity is evident.
  • You’re eager to master every aspect of what you do.
  • Your passion is contagious.
  • Your moxie engages others.
  • Your desire to improve is never ending.
  • You love what you do.

NOTE WELL: Your voice is not about how to make sales faster – your voice is how to make sales forever. For your voice to appear, you must possess ALL of these elements. Most people have a ‘weak’ voice because they don’t love what they do, or lack sincerity, or they don’t fully believe in themselves, their company, or their product.

SUCCESS ACTION: Go back to this list and rate yourself on a 1-10 basis. Ten being the best, your highest possible score is 130. My bet is you’re 90 or below.

SUCCESS ACTION: Record your spoken voice ONCE A WEEK, and listen to it actively – which means take notes. By listening to yourself – arguably one of the toughest things on the planet to do – you will gain a true picture of where you are right now. Your jumping off point.

And for those of you living in the dark ages still trying to ‘find the pain’ in your sales presentation, just record and listen to yourself – THAT’S the pain. The real pain of selling is listening to your voice trying to make a sale – it’s also funny as hell.

You’ll know your voice when you hear it.
It will speak to you before you ever say a word.

Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.

About the Author

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].

Creating an internal sales mastermind to make more sales

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Calls not getting returned?
Prospects telling you your price is too high?
Prospective customers asking for three bids?
Unable to get to the real decision maker?

Do you think you’re the ONLY salesperson facing these issues? Come on, really now?! My bet is every one of your colleagues has exactly the same issues. So, eh, why are they reoccurring?

Why aren’t your calls getting returned? Why is your price continuing to be too high? Why are you having major blockage to get to the decision maker? Huh? Why?

Another bet: there are a few people on your team who are able to get through. There are a few people on your team that are able to get their price. But in spite of that or them, you go out every day banging your head against the wall and the world, trying to make your sales and your quota.

Here’s how to have a better, easier, more fun, more productive, less frustrating (sound good so far?), more bountiful, and more profitable sales life: Create an internal sales mastermind.

One of the most powerful principles Napoleon Hill wrote about in Think and Grow Rich is the ninth step: Power of the Master Mind. He defines mastermind as a “Coordination of knowledge and effort, in a spirit of harmony, between two or more people, for the attainment of a definite purpose.”

In other words – people working together in harmony to get to ‘best answer’ or ‘best response.’ In your case: sales barriers or objections in common.

Take one objection at a time and have single subject meetings…

  • Everyone has two to five minutes to discuss their issues and whatever form of success they have had.
  • Everyone takes notes.
  • No one interrupts.
  • Everyone has a chance to have two minutes to share their best idea based on their homework, their past experience, and what they’ve just learned.
  • Everyone takes notes.
  • No one interrupts.
  • Each person in the group shares their personal opinion of what they believe will work best, either by what they’re doing in the field, or what they have just learned.
  • Everyone takes notes.
  • No one interrupts.
  • One or several answers and strategies are agreed upon, and all participants agree to try them – and RECORD them as they’re being executed.

The next mastermind session (one week later) should begin with ‘what happened’ in the past week…

  • Everyone has two to five minutes to discuss their application, what happened, and what form of success they have had.
  • Everyone takes notes.
  • No one interrupts.
  • Everyone gives their refinements based on actual circumstances, applications, and results.
  • Final tweaks are offered and agreed upon.
  • The entire sales force now has a set of answers they can use.

    • When applying new strategies in the field, or on the phone, do them a few times to get familiar. Depending on your situation, and who you’re talking to, wording may be critical. Make certain your language is positive. Make certain all language is non-manipulative.

    For example, if you’re trying to find the decision maker and you ask, “Are you the decision maker?” it will breed inconsistent answers and half truths. But if you ask: “How will the decision be made?” followed by asking, “Then what?” a few times, it will bring real results.

    Pretty cool, huh?

    If you wanna make certain to get the best results, follow these rules and guidelines:

    MASTERMIND GROUND RULES:

    • A mastermind is NOT a corporate meeting.
    • A mastermind is not a politically correct meeting – it’s wide open.
    • A mastermind IS a real-world meeting designed to generate answers in less than 60 minutes – and those answers are to be taken out into the field, or delivered over the phone, the same day or sooner.
    • A mastermind is all about what CAN BE DONE.
    • If a member acts like a jackass, toss them IMMEDIATELY.
    • Keeping the focus on ONE SUBJECT PER MEETING cannot be stressed enough.
    • • At least three consecutive meetings on each topic.
    • Let the laughs flow; the answers and ideas will follow.

    CHALLENGE: If you have balls, invite your CEO to attend your mastermind. He or she will not only be impressed, they will get to see how their paycheck is created.

    Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.

    About the Author

    Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].

    Global sales needs are also local sales needs

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    I’m traveling to Warsaw, Poland, next month to deliver two public seminars. After a couple Skype interviews, I discovered that although the United States and Poland are five thousand miles and many, many cultures apart, our sales needs are the same.

    To prove my point, here’s a portion of the question and answer interview I did:

    Jeffrey, everyone needs to increase sales, especially during this economic crisis. Everyone is looking for some magical formula or shortcut. You write there is no formula, but there are rules to follow that will lead you to the promised land of more sales. What’s the best way to keep up sales during the current recession?

    Recession means ‘less’ not ‘none.’ Salespeople have to fight harder during tough economic times. I recommend having a morning breakfast (or coffee) with a client or a prospective client. This gets your day started early and on a positive note. But this is only ONE way to keep your sales up. It takes a concerted effort that includes social media, solid relationships, referrals, and attraction. It’s not impossible – and it’s NOT easy. The good news is most salespeople are not willing to do the preliminary hard work it takes to make sales easy.

    How about sales channels? You talk a lot about different media (email, video, social networks, etc.) as ways of selling. How is the role of the salesperson changing, and what’s changing in terms of which sales channels are being used right now?

    The Internet and all forms of social media are the new channels and the NOW channels. But it’s not ONE channel – it’s ALL of them – each with their own formula for attraction, engagement, and connection. Is there one key element that’s a constant across all channels? Yes, the element is perceived VALUE to the recipient.

    In your newest book Social Boom you say that social media is the new cold call. How does that work best?

    Here’s the short version of using social media to connect for the first time: I can find anyone on LinkedIn, and then by using simple Google search and research, I find out everything I need to make a personal connection. Once I connect, I ask for an informal meeting (usually coffee) to see if we have anything in common, or if there’s a need for my product or service. The secret is the first call is NOT a sales call, and the first meeting is NOT a sales pitch.

    You state, “People don’t like to be sold, but they love to buy.” One of the things people can take away from that is to be themselves and be authentic as a leader or as a salesperson. How is authenticity important in sales?

    For maximum clarity, let’s separate this question into two answers…

    1. BUYING. The key to selling is uncovering WHY the prospect wants to buy. Also called a ‘buying motive,’ it reveals the real reason for purchase. This strategy is much more powerful that trying to convince the buyer that your product is great by trying to ‘sell’ it.
    2. AUTHENTICITY. Authenticity is a characteristic that the prospective customer PERCEIVES as the presentation and the relationship move forward. Authenticity is not a specific characteristic – it is derived from the ethical, honest, and consistent actions of your total words and deeds.

    Leaders must prove their own authenticity and the authenticity of their company. Tasteless, forgettable mission statements don’t have the force of attracting strong customers. What defines glorious organization in the 21st Century?

    Most companies, especially large ones, fail to understand the difference between a mission statement, a value statement, a vision statement, and a hot air marketing message that no one understands or believes in. A company needs TWO mission statements: One for the company and one for its salespeople. If you give salespeople a real mission, they will accomplish it. It is also important to understand that ‘core values’ must precede ‘mission’ – it has nothing to do with being “number one,” it has everything to do with being ‘best.’ Apple has proven that, and the world needs to learn that lesson.

    Is it true that many leaders are not keeping up with changes in the market, changes in technology, and changes in human capital needs? Should they be blamed for sales losses and errors?

    Leaders are only partly to blame. When they are not on top of market changes and technology updates, they are giving their people permission to do the same. But the real issue is the talent pool that the leader creates. Human capital, if chosen correctly, can create their own examples by taking responsibility (the opposite of blame) for the generation of new ideas and products to stay ahead of their market.

    What are the key indicators in the candidates you’re shortlisting when you’re recruiting for a sales position?

    Here’s the SHORT list for hiring the best people: Smart, self-starting, positive people with a past history of success. The rest (including selling skills) can be taught.

    What mistakes have salespeople frequently made, and what’s the best way to correct them?

    The biggest mistake salespeople make is thinking it’s all about ‘product’ and ‘price.’ They fail to understand that believing in every aspect of self, product, company, and customer will lead them to the success they (you) are hoping for.

    ASK YOURSELF THIS: Is my world different from their world?

    I guarantee you have the same issues, questions, and concerns in your company – and in your sales – as they have in Warsaw.

    The world is small. Your world is smaller. Answers are becoming universal.

    Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.

    About the Author

    Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].

    The good times. The bad times. The changin’ times.

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    It’s no surprise the late Steve Jobs’ favorite music was written and performed by Bob Dylan and The Beatles. I just finished his biography and it was as compelling a book as Atlas Shrugged.

    Anyway, about three months ago I started a column about the 1964 Bob Dylan song, “The times they are a-changin.’” An anthem for those, times and these times. Bob Dylan can write his soul – and touch yours. The times are changing. But for one reason or another I set the column aside.

    As I was reading the Walter Isaacson Steve Jobs biography (a book I could NOT put down), I got goosebumps when Jobs got fired from Apple after a decade of it being his creation and child. Devastated, he went home and played the second verse of “The times they are a-changin’” over and over:

    Come writers and critics
    Who prophesize with your pen
    And keep your eyes wide
    The chance won’tcome again
    And don’t speak too soon
    For the wheel’s still in spin
    And there’s no tellin’ who
    That it’s namin’
    For the loser now
    Will be later to win
    For the times they are a-changin’.

    I just sat there stunned. The song, one of Jobs’favorites, actually predicted his return, and arguably one of the greatest business comebacks of all time. And the timing of my column. Further proof (as if you needed it) there are no coincidences.

    The most chilling of these non-coincidences is that my set aside writing already contained Apple examples of how the world is changed.

    So – here are my original thoughts and the added thoughts since I read the Jobs book:

    When Dylan wrote about changing times in 1964, it was about societal change. The politics, civil rights, rebellion of kids, music, and a new generation of thought and expression.

    The same holds true today, almost fifty years later. It’s brings to mind the French novelist Alphonse Karr’s quote, “The more things change, the more they remain the same.”

    EXAMPLE: The t-shirt has been the same since the ’50s. What keeps it popular is the design printed on the front and back. Millions of shirts are sold each year because someone wants the design printed on it.

    The picture I want to present to you is the BIG PICTURE of change. Not yoursales plan, or your quota, or your boss, or your comp plan – what I’m offering are life changes that go way beyond sales and race for dollars.

    It’s about how technology and your ability to see what is now will affect what is next. Jobs was able to see it and do it because it was his life’s work. But you must intensify your focus (the same way I’m intensifying mine) to see what is next for your industry, your market, and your customers – so there will be a positive impact for your company, your family, and yourself.

    The Internet, the smart phone, the tablet, and soon internet TV will become a vital part of our society and world commerce. AKA: sales. Advances over the next decade will dwarf what is available now, and will change markets forever.

    The same way trading of shares of stock and insurance policies were turned upside down with the Internet, the same way the iPod changed the way music is played, distributed, and sold, the same way Amazon and eBay became the world’s department store – so will your market evolve. And it will go to the most prepared to understand, create, capitalize, and master the evolution and the quality of products.

    A FEW EXAMPLES OF WHAT WAS AND WHAT’S NEXT:

    • The schoolbook is being replaced by the iPad. (Microsoft Word still tells me that iPad is misspelled.)
    • The hardbound book is being taken over by an e-book.
    • The smartphone is smarter than you are – and Siri talks to you. Blackberry owned the market, and sat on it – and lost it. Apple has 500,000 apps. Blackberry has about 10% of that number. Angry Birds is finally among them.
    • The television is flat and cheap. It will soon become your home Internet connection. Someone will own that market. I’m betting Apple. You?
    • Got fax machine? Make me laugh! Or should I say, “LOL” or should I say, “PDF.”
    • Use the Yellow Pages or Google? Bing helps you decide – I decided to use Google.
    • Will cars run on gasoline in ten years?

    And with all of that, technology lifecycles are shorter. How have you taken advantage ofthis? And for those of you saying, “I know that.” Ask yourself, “How good am I at that?” and “What am I doing to master that?”

    FACT: THE times are changing.
    UNKNOWN FACT: How are YOUR times changing?

    Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.

    About the Author

    Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].