New Kitchener-Waterloo Entrepreneurs Google Group

I recently created the Kitchener-Waterloo Entrepreneurs Google Group to foster communication between members of the Group.  So far, it's just myself in the group.  I've put a discussion posting about the group on LinkedIn Group to see what people think about the idea. 

Will it foster more communication?  Are more face-to-face meetings required for people to communicate more in the group?  So far, I've had some interesting responses.

Some people say that the LinkedIn Group is quite adequate and that we should not be fragmenting the Entrepreneurial discussion outside the LinkedIn Group.  I can't help but feel, though, that the ease of group member posting on the Google group, would really supercharge the group.  There is also a Kitchener-Waterloo Entrepreneurs Facebook Group but there is very little activity on it.

What do you think?  The new Google Group is at http://www.google.com/group/kitchener-waterloo-entrepreneurs

Why do Companies or Individuals Resist Improving?

I recently posted the following response to this question on a Q&A Board on the Linked In site and the individual who asked the question selected it as the best overall response that they received:

Ignorance (not knowing they are in over their head or unable to get to where they want to go based on the present paradigm), apathy, pride, ego, fear, not convinced (don't see the perceived value, believe in the potential returns) shear stupidity take your pick.

So many of us learn that independance and self sufficiency is an indication of strength. Asking for help, seeking guidance or assistance, contracting the services of others or simply looking for advise is often considered an indication of weakness or an inability to self assess and take care of one's own business, professional or even personal matters.

It takes guts, courage, intelligence and wisdom to be willing to submit to the direction and guidance of others good times and/or bad. It also takes a man or woman acting as a catalyst, with enough backbone to kick the initiative into full swing who isn't concerned with what others think about how it will be perceived by others.

Shameless Self-Promotion

We have a tendency to group the words marketing, advertising and promotion under the same umbrella. It’s not uncommon for sales and business people to think that all these activities are someone or some other department’s responsibility. In addition, some people think that they are too good to stoop so low to become involved in these types of activities. Especially shameless self-promotion! Small business owners cannot afford the luxury of such thoughts.

If you don’t tell people what you do, how will they ever know. This is difficult for people to understand who don’t work in sales. My wife often kids me about engaging in shameless self-promotion when I meet people in any setting at pretty much any time. Yes, I freely admit that I make certain I leave no stone unturned when it comes to promoting myself, my company and the services that I offer. I do my best to maneuver the conversation in a direction which forces people to eventually ask me what it is that I do. This is a science in itself and it takes practice to get good at it. Over the years, I have initiated many sales outside of regular work hours and outside the work environment simply by letting people know what I do for a living. Many of the people who subscribe to my newsletter and blog originated from just such a conversation.

The easiest way to tell people what you do is to get them to ask you. This statement shouldn’t be confusing. It isn’t meant to be a riddle. This is actually very easy to do. You don’t have to be loud, rude or obnoxious to accomplish this goal. All you have to do is get very good at meeting other people, introducing yourself, taking a sincere interest in them and ask what they do for a living. When you get good at doing this, you will find that people will naturally take an interest in you and ask what it is that you do for a living. You won’t have to attack people; you will be able to have a very casual conversation that will happen very spontaneously. This is a very non-threatening way for you to promote yourself, your products and your services.

For those who earn their income selling, having a desire to constantly tell people what you do for a living is part of self-preservation. I believe that when you works in sales you owe it to yourself to find every opportunity you can, to gently slide it into every conversation you have. It’s a must to let people know what line of work you are in. In retail sales this can be your best form of prospecting for new customers. Lets face it, most people prefer doing business with someone they know so why not make certain that person is you. If you earn a living selling in retail you owe it to yourself to tell as many people as you can what products you sell. I’ve done a great deal of work with real estate agents and found that many of them fly under the radar. I might ask them if people that they encounter on a regular basis know that they are in real estate sales. Ironically, it’s not uncommon that there are people like their next door neighbour who by their own admission don’t know what their occupation is. I will joking call them secret undercover agents. It would be awfully disappointing if someone you know made a purchase and you missed out on the opportunity just because you neglected to mention what line of work you were in. Would it be their fault if you didn’t even give them a chance to become your customer?

We all know that selling is a numbers game and you improve your odds of success by increasing your number of exposures. If you’re not accustomed to doing this, it just takes practice. There is no pressure, it’s just something that you do in the line of duty. All you have to do is make getting to know some new people each day part of your routine.

“Strangers are just friends that you haven’t met yet!”

Marshall W. Northcott, Canada's Sales Expert
www.marshallnorthcott.com

The Epitome of Professionalism

Elite Training Systems works with Consultative Sales Professionals to help them develop their skills and elevate their performance level. As entrepreneurs you have all had first hand experiences with people in sales. Just as with any profession, there are people in the sales profession who are exceptional men and women who take great pride in their workmanship and the reputation that they establish. Some of your business interactions with sales people have been positive and others have been disappointing and disheartening. I'd been interested in hearing your feedback and comments in response to the following questions: What qualities, characteristics, behaviours and attitudes do you consider to be the epitome of professionalism in sales? How can a sales representative best service your business needs to ensure that they capture your business initially and then maintain an ongoing business relationship for repeat opportunities? What matters most to you?

It’s Not All About Price

Some people don’t think before they open their mouths and speak. I’m frequently faced with sales people who complain to me that their business is all about price. It frustrates me and I know from speaking with many clients that it annoys them to no end to hear this kind of talk from sales staff. That statement in almost all instances is absolutely asinine! Usually I respond by saying if that were true then why doesn’t your company fire all the sales people to eliminate the overhead, pay minimum wage staff to consistently research market pricing, set up an incredible web site with the lowest advertised price, effectively communicate this to the customer base and promise that they always guarantee the lowest price?

Then I will ask them if their company asks for a premium on some or all of their products and services. Undoubtedly the answer will be yes. To this I ask if they have customers who buy from them now and again the response is again yes! My reply, “Well I thought you said that all customers care about is price?” Obviously that isn’t the case or no one would be buying from your company. I will also ask them if there are associates in their company who are experiencing success and again the response is a resounding yes! So what’s different about them? Do they have all the naïve, ill-informed, brainless customers? Of course not!

How well do you really understand your business, the customer base and the product or services that you market? It is the responsibility of a Sales Professional to educate and deliver value to their customers. Anybody can get the business (give it away) when low price is the only consideration. Of course most intelligent decision makers want to get the best value when making a purchase but that is only one piece of the puzzle. Sales Professionals must apply sales skills and intellect in order to have and maintain success.

In most industries there are variables that set one vendor apart from another. Decision makers usually consider various criteria when making decisions. The criteria can vary widely from individual purchase to purchase and time related circumstances. Here are a few examples of variables that will typically be considered by buyers when making purchasing decisions:

• Your ability to solve a specific want, need, void, gap or problem for the customer through the features, advantages and benefits offered by you, your products and/or services.
• The degree of value that you have built up in the customer's mind regarding the overall purchase, going beyond simply the product or service.
• If you have been able to address their concerns and eliminate or minimize any objections that they may have had.
• Most industries offer good, better and best items, therefore choices in grade and quality are usually considerations.
• Trust in the sales representative and supplier.
• A solid working relationship between vendor and supplier.
• Frequency of contact and level of service.
• Friendly and cooperative customer service and administrative support reduce hassles and client stress.
• Logistics, warehousing, product inventory and selection provide options to give the customer more control.
• General ease of doing business with the vendor or user friendliness with technical products makes you a more appealing alternative.
• Flexibility vs. rigid policies, procedures and business practices.
• Dependability of all departments and individuals servicing the account.

Customers are going to jam you on price, that is a reality of the sales profession. They want the lowest price so they can either minimize expenditures or be more profitable. That matters as long as they don’t have to sacrifice too much. Next time you point the finger at price just remember that there are three fingers pointing back at you and they are asking you to step up to the plate and be an accountable professional. The sort of whining described above, is unacceptable and it needs to be silenced! Get to the source of what really matters to the customer. Be profit minded and learn to deliver value to your clients, that is what your employer expects of you and if you consider yourself to be a professional then that is what you should expect of yourself.

“You can either make money, or you can make excuses, but you can’t make both. ”

Marshall W. Northcott, Canada's Sales Expert
www.marshallnorthcott.com

Finns help Canadians learn about Entrepreneurship at Canada 3.0 Conference in Stratford, Ontario

Finns, Antti Vilpponen and Lari Lohikoski, taught me a lot about Entrepreneurship at the 3.0 Conference in Stratford, sponsored by a consortium of High-Tech Companies from the Region, including Open Text.

The photo to the left is of L: Charles Borras and R: Antti Vilpponen who was one of the Finnish presenters talking about case studies of digital incubators in Finland in the Digital Media Research & Commercialization stream of this burst-at-the-seams conference with about 1000 participants by some reports.

The whole conference has been informative, but I learned a few really valuable things from these Finnish Entrepreneurs. These are the points that I took away from their talk:

• you have to focus on the innovation process from beginning of the venture to the end;
• you can organize a regional development company and then have companies and individuals within the group self-select with whom they would like to work based on mutual interest;
• centres of expertise can be used to create joint projects;
• Finland has its own national digital content cluster, much like the one Canada is creating;
• small businesses can band together to create first-line business incubators and services;
• a pool of consultants can be created to support start-ups through their life cycle;
• displaced, but very highly trained workers, should be encouraged by government and the private sector to continue using their skills to create new enterprises;
• smaller countries like Finland necessarily have to look overseas to help the process of innovation;
• innovation alone has no commercial value;
• big companies should be encouraged to set up incubator companies;
• visibility, such as provided by news reports in http://www.arcticstartup.com/, fosters interest in investing in new companies;
• we need to create a culture of innovation;
• start-ups can take matters into their own hands and start their own incubation space if 3 or 4 companies get together;
• large companies need to learn how to use small companies and start-ups in doing their work.

Vilpponen and several partners have established http://www.arcticstartup.com/ which is definitely worth emulating. The organization allows start-ups to band together on-line, increase co-operation, increase visbility for member companies, and raise venture capital. You will also want to check http://www.culminatum.com/ which is owned and operated to foster innovation by a consortium of Helsinki business interests.
I was pleased to invite Antti to join Kitchener-Waterloo Entrepreneurs, the largest on-line group of entrepreneurs in Kitchener-Waterloo.

Why is social networking good for you?

I saw this Common Craft video on Bob Guenther's LinkedIn page. I want to thank Bob for posting it and show it here. Social networking empowers a group like the K-W Entrepreneurs in many ways. I would like to hear stories about how social networking has empowered you.

The Basics of Customer Service

It is not uncommon for people to express their concern and frustration for the poor level of customer service that they often receive while out in the world doing business or even over the phone from their workplace, or the comfort of their own home. It’s not unusual to hear complaints or criticism for how they have been mistreated because of what is often refer to as a lack of good old common sense. It is my contention that if common sense were as common in society as we think it should be then there would be little need to remind people of the basics of life constantly. Some people are naturally gifted when it comes to serving the needs of others while other people need some help in this area and I’ll admit that there are some people who are either so thick or indifferent that they should never be placed in a position where they interact with customers or the outside world for that matter. Here is a list of general rules or guidelines that you should follow, that project respect, reflect maturity on your part and show the customer that you appreciation their business:

1. Smile and act with enthusiasm!
2. Always behave in a mature, responsible and professional manner. (This is especially important if you are younger because you will never be treated with dignity and respect if you don’t first treat others this way!)
3. Pay attention (solid eye contact) and listen when the customer is speaking to you.
4. Do not interrupt customers mid sentence.
5. Minimize wait times (putting them on hold), bureaucracy, red tape and passing the buck.
6. Never engage in an argument with a customer, it won’t resolve anything.
7. With in reason, do your best to ensure customer satisfaction.
8. Make the customer’s life easier by making things simpler for them and minimizing inconveniences.
9. Think ahead about how your actions or inactions may impact the customer and the long-term business relationship and then make necessary changes to create the best possible outcome for the customer.
10. Take personal ownership of problems rather than passing the buck or giving the customer the run around, don’t assume it is someone else’s issue or ignore it and hope it will go away.
11. Make suggestions to management regarding potential improvements that can be made in order to improve customer relations.
12. Reduce customer wait times by making certain that serving the needs of the customer is always your num- ber one priority!
13. Speak in a clear, audible tone so that customers can easily understand you when you communicate.
14. Avoid pulling rank on a customer or having a power trip because of a perceived sense of authority.
15. Keep a level head, never allow your emotions to get the best of you, avoid becoming angry or frustrated, always remain calm and cool.
16. When passing a customer call to another individual or department because of an inability to resolve the customer issue, stay on the phone line with the customer while they are being transferred, introduce them to the other party and make sure that they are okay before ending your involvement in the matter.
17. Make any instructions that you provide simple and easy for people to understand.
18. When you make a commitment to get back to a customer with information etc., follow through with your promise.
19. Always ask for acknowledge or acceptance of information or instructions after you explain them to the customer. (eg. “Do you understand?” or “Does that make sense to you?”)
20. Think about how you would prefer to be treated if the roles were reversed and you were the customer.

Anyone who works in customer service is occasionally going to be presented with a irate customer who will never be happy no matter what you do or say. These instances are rare unless you are employed somewhere where negative situations are created because of the very nature of the business or because the company just does a poor job of servicing clients needs on a regular consistent basis. Hiring the most suitable candidates, providing them with some guidelines and boundaries to follow and giving them proper training in the disciplines of effective customer service will significantly increase the odds of better customer interactions and stronger customer relations.

Always apply The Golden Rule - “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

Join us for Elite Customer Service on July 14, 2009 for details: http://www.elitetrainingsystems.ca/workshop26.html

Marshall W. Northcott, Canada's Sales Expert

www.marshallnorthcott.com

Toll Free in Canada: 866-896-6603

Building and Using Virtual Teams

Jennifer Janik's comments on Virtual Teams led to me finding this useful video on virtual teams.

Hiring Virtual Teams?

I really appreciated Jennifer Janik's commentary on the first meeting of the Executive of the Kitchener-Waterloo Entrepreneurs:

"I really appreciated the opportunity to meet with fellow entrepreneurs from the KW region to share ideas on how we can join together to form a virtual organization of complementary skills. With the shifts in business, it's important to adapt to the market and be able to provide a complete suite of services on-demand and as needed to organizations in the region.


My hypothesis is that as we form our virtual organization alliance, companies around the region will come to know us as the "one-stop shopping" resource of allied forces that get jobs done well.

I also hope to become familiar with the resources that are available around the region to be able to help direct customers to the services that they need. In general I think this benefits the larger organizations and their people by providing flexible resources when there are spikes in their work loads."

Photo: Jennifer Janik is on the far right at the first meeting of the Executive of the Kitchener-Waterloo-Entrepreneurs.