Was it something that they said?

What you say doesn't mean nearly as much as what your consumer's say!

More and more consumers are turning to the internet to either express their frustrations or to magnify their favorites when it comes to products and businesses.

Where they express their feelings can impact your business success.

Believe it or not - providing a platform upon which your clients can vent or praise publicly can be beneficial to your business, especially if you are quick to resolve any problems to the client's satisfaction.

Because they will find a venue in which to vent! But if it is not on your site, it may be weeks or months before you find it and by then your reputation is damaged. If clients complain on your site then you know right away and can respond in order to make your reputation for customer service sparkle.

Karon Thackston wrote "The Incredible Persuasive Power of Online Consumer Reviews."

Genuine or Just Technique

(There will be an article on Tuesday and another article on Friday.)

One of the reasons that Sales has a poor reputation is that salespeople tend to focus on technique.

Now there is a place for Sales Technique and I am NOT denying its legitimacy. The problem is that too often it is a fake. When it is polishing that which is real, technique can make it happen and it can build relationships.

But beneath the surface, it needs to be real.

Mark Tewart teaches the technique of being "giving" if this springs forth from being a genuine caring person it is a great technique. However, notice that when Mr. Tewart gives an anecdote regarding a store where he did a book signing that he indicates that what impressed him was the AUTHENTICITY of those who were involved.

The article is entitled "You Have To Give To Get."

Can You Be Trusted?

There has almost always been a segment of the business community that was convinced that Nice Guys finish last.

These are the Donald Trumps and the Financial Advisors that do redistribution just in time to pass on 1099s to those who are supposed to be their clients.

Well if you want to swim with the sharks, go right ahead. But sharks are neither trustworthy nor trusted, at least not by the wise.

Someone recently asked Marshall Goldsmith what advantage there is in business to being "good." He wrote an article entitled: "Why Shoot Straight in a Crooked World?"

Tomorrow's Leader

Short term leadership is easy compared with life long success. If you want a long career as a leader of the pack, you have to consistently convince the pack that you are worthy of long term leadership.

Jonathan Farrington wrote "Influencing Really Is That Important!"

Borrow a page from the wise Politician

Politicians who stay in office for a long career learn the same lesson. Their constituency's voting patterns are not based on the strident special interest group demonstrators.

Sometimes to survive a primary, a politician will focus on pleasing special interest groups, but when it comes to the general election - the wise politician realizes that the independent vote is often the deciding factor. He also realizes that the size of a market segment is not based on the volume of the vociferous few.

As a business, to discover how to please your customer base, you need to discover how large the silent majority is and what the gripes of the silent majority are.

Seth Godin wrote "Listening to the Loud People."

Your Brand is not your Logo - How To Destroy it.

Too many small business owner's confuse brand and brand identity. However you can't really blame them when a lot of article writers who should know better use the term brand when what they mean is brand identity.

Your company brand is your public corporate reputation. If the general public thinks that your corporation is reliable, trustworthy and customer friendly - that is part of your brand.

But another part of your brand is what the general public thinks that your company does. Some companies have ruined themselves by trying to do too many things under one brand identity.

That is why some companies, for example, Nestle, have separate brands for separate products. Sometimes consumers are surprised to learn that two products are from the same company. This is actually good for marketing as the segmentation of identity allows for more flexibility.

However, some business owners ruin their company's reputation. Ed Roach wrote a "tongue-in-cheek" article entitled: "Dork Your Brand!"

No Presumption of Innocence, Defendant!

You are accused of being a con-artist and a cheat.

The prosecution does not have to establish its case because in this court - there is no presumption of innocence.

This is the Buyer's court and you are the seller. In this court, the seller is presumed guilty.

There are some articles that I almost always skip over and don't recommend. One of thes is the Book Review. But every rule has its exception. If an article could stand on its own even without the Book which is being reviewed then it might just make it to this venue.

Ardath Albee wrote about a book that describes the last century of salesmanship. This book traces many of the traditional methods of salesmanship back to the deceptive practices of a company which was convicted of anti-trust practices before World War I.

Yet their methods of selling became part of the foundation of the culture of American salesmanship. The result is that most Americans find it very difficult to trust any salesperson who they meet for the very first time.

Ardath Albee lists eight of the reasons that twentieth century sales tactics don't work and gives a preview of the tactics which are suggested by the book which she reviews.

Ardath's article is entitled "Salespeople guilty until proven innocent." If you are a business owner or a salesperson, you really should read this article.

Quality or Money

Money has a tendency to cancel out Quality. Although there are definite exceptions to this rule, it is a general tendency.

If a customer buys on the basis of price, the customer will tend to reject Quality to get a good buy.

If an employee leaves one company because of a slightly larger salary at another company, it usually means that either the first company did not provide a quality work environment or the employee does not value nor give quality.

The stereotypical general reaction which occurs when a young beautiful woman marries an older wealthy man is based on the cynical assumption by society that the marriage is not based on quality.

If your company has to rely on cash incentives to retain your best customers, you are probably failing to provide either quality customer service or a quality product or failing in both areas.

Steve Yastrow wrote "A Bribe is not a Relationship."

Now That Was A Mistake!

The company was run great, the product or service was great, the past customers had always been pleased and then the company's reputation was ruined because the event which they held went sour.

But you can avoid that and you can also harvest leads and conversions, if you follow some simple steps for holding a business event.

Shannon Cherry wrote "Effective Publicity, Anyone?"

Can you appear tonight on our TV news program?

Almost every news program occasionally has guest experts. Have you ever seen your competition featured as an expert? Have you ever wanted to know the steps necessary to take to be viewed by the Mainstream Media (MSM) as an industry expert?

Dan Forbush recently provided an article for reporters and bloggers to reprint as if they had written it - even though it was actually produced by PR News Wire. Even though the article pretends to be written by a different entity, the blog to which this posting links decided to make it clear to the reader that this was a RELEASE from PR News Wire.

The article is entitled: Steps for Turning Your Organization into a Heavily Quoted Source

To receive Trust, you must first be worthy

Recently, I talked about the need to be genuine.

Today, let's talk about being "real." Real people have convictions and opinions. Real people are not always trying to hide. Real people have the courage to be real. Real people are loyal to their relationships.

In other words, to be real is to be engaged in the humanity of others.

Sonia Simone wrote "Are you trustworthy?"

Why does Trust based selling work?

Many people who have not mastered trust based selling do not believe that it works. Sometimes someone who "tries" it without truly being trustworthy becomes convinced that the fault does not lie with himself but rather with the method.

One of the biggest hurdles of trust based selling is that it can only be mastered by someone who is truly genuine. The truth is that many entrepreneur's have an "It's only business" attitude. If that is your attitude then you can never master Trust based selling because when you try it you are a phony.

The reason that trust based salespeople are masters of their craft is because they truly do care about their clients and when their client suffers, they bleed.

Charles Green wrote an article explaining why the idea that trust based selling doesn't work is based on a misconception.

No Testimonials? No problem.

Almost every business owner knows how important testimonials are to the success of a business, but there are times when you may not have any testimonials to offer. What do you do then?

Dean Rieck wrote a very good article on how to promote your company even when you do not have testimonials. Tou should read this article, even if you have plenty of testimonials. It will help you, also.

How DO I Know I Can Trust You?

Just because you say to a prospect that your company is trustworthy does not mean that you build their confidence. In fact making that statement may have the opposite effect to what you intended.

The lady doth protest too much, methinks. - William Shakespeare - Hamlet

However, there are things which your company can do to build trust and to help build a referral network because of trust.

Ardath Albee wrote "Marketing Behaviors that Build Trust"

Economic Slowdowns favor certain Businesses

During a booming economy people are more likely to take risks than they are during a slow economy. Those companies which are perceived as being less risky and more trustworthy have a better chance of prospering during a slow economy than do edgy and avant garde companies.

The Brooks Group wrote an article containing three sets of three items each that focus on how to improve sales during an economic slowdown

Nurturing Relationships

I am a big believer in business relationships. Unfortunately, those who believe the way I do about business relationships are few.

I believe that business relationships should be two way. Some businesses have Customer Loyalty programs but they are not loyal to their customers.

I believe that business relationships should not be based on being transactional but rather on character. Transactional business relationships are like affairs and flings, they tend to focus on selfishness and a year later are awkward.

I believe that today's small potatoes may be tomorrow's King of the Hill. Businesses that treat their small clients differently than their big clients are sacrificing long term brand loyalty for quarterly profits.

I believe that sharks should be avoided. Any business person who betrays an ally is very likely to betray me.

I believe that takers are not worth the investment of time and energy. A taker is one who demonstrates over and over that he "is only in it for himself."

I believe that givers are always worth more than I can ever invest. A giver is not simply someone who gives to me nor is a giver someone who does something for personal glory or satisfaction. A giver can be impoverished and still be a giver. A giver is a giver in their heart and character, one who possess a generous spirit.

Another thing about business relationships is that, unfortunately, there are also "rules."

Mark F wrote an article about the rules of vendor-client relationships.

Word! What He Said!

Quotations are like money in the Bank, when they are testimonials concerning your company.

One of the most powerful resources that your company has are the testimonials which your customers have given you.

But did you know that HOW you present those testimonials to the public affects how effective the testimonial is?

Dean Rieck wrote: "10 Quick and Simple Ways to Power Up Your Customer Testimonials."

Transparency can destroy Mental Commodification

Have you ever found yourself faced with a long term client who is beginning to waver about whether or not to switch to your competition?

The reason this happens is because of mental commodification.

Although you are always trying to differentiate your company from your competition, on some level this client has decided that the difference is relatively insignificant.

But what would happen, if instead of your TELLING the client that you are different, the client was able to SEE the difference?

Sean Hazell wrote an article entitled, "Take Your Customer to Work Day."

Earning the Right To Ask

Two of the best resources for making more sales are "Warm Referrals" and "Prospect References."

A "Warm referral" is a referral in which the person who is giving you the referral has already informed the prospect that you will be contacting them or better yet personally introduces you as a recommended provider to the prospect.

"Prospect References" are highly credible contacts who have agreed to let you use their name and contact information for referring a prospect to them as a recommender of your services.

Lee Salz wrote: "Your Sales Need A Little R & R."

Real and Yet Professional

One of the ways in which Internet Publishing differs from writing white papers is that successful blogging usually requires that the authors personality can be seen in what is written, while in writing white papers there is a need for more objectivity.

However, sometimes an internet writer lets his hair down too much. The article resembles a stereotypical photo from the 1970s. (I graduated from High School in the 70s, so I am allowed.)

How does an Internet writer show his audience his or her real self while also maintaining a degree of professionalism necessary to developing a good brand?

Chris Brogan wrote "If You Intend to Blog Seriously."

Client Driven Sales

In the 1970s, I learned Sales, the wrong way. Oddly enough, I had been doing Sales the right way for years. But I had not been doing it effectively the right way.

The right way to sell, is to place the client in the driver's seat. The salesperson asks questions, offers suggestions, provides advice, does research, but does not attempt to manipulate or overcome the client. The right way to sell, makes the salesperson a resource for the client.

I no longer do Sales, the way that I was taught. I have no desire to persuade someone against their will. But if I can help my clients, I go out of my way to find solutions which make their business more effective. If I can not help, I refer them to someone else - I don't try to get them to buy something which is not in their best interest.

Karen Swim wrote "Five Things Freelancers Should Know About Sales."

If you Want Commitment, Then You Have To Give Commitment

Many companies have what are called "loyalty programs." But what they tend to be is bribery and commoditization programs. If you really want your clients to be loyal to you, you might want to start by first being loyal to them.

If you want love, you got to give love. If you want good branding, then you better give customer service and satisfaction bountifully. If I am your customer, I don't want your discounts and your rebates - I want to know that I can trust you and that when I have a complaint that I will have my problem resolved as if I were your absolute best friend.

If I have a choice and the service is available from all three, and my choices are Comcast, at&t, and Earthlink. All things being otherwise relatively equal, I am going to go with Earthlink. Why?

Because even though Earthlink does not offer me six months at half price or a hundred dollar rebate, Earthlink has always (at least as far as my memory remembers) made me happy when I had a problem. And if it can be resolved, they resolve the problem with very little hassle.

I can not say the same thing about Comcast and at&t.

Steve Yastrow wrote an article (on Walt Goshert's blog) entitled "Turning Customer Loyalty Upside Down."

Three Marketing Strategies

What is more effective than improving Quality or Lowering Price? If you are seeking to affect your client, should your client be affecting you? How do you get past the prospect's skepticism?

These questions are answered by an article by Corte Swearingen.

Don't Be A "Nowhere Man"

Are you Marketing in a Nowhere Land and making Nowhere adjustments to your marketing position and Customer No-Service?

Seth Godin writes about the success of a show in which the performer is not acting but being.