The client says, “Your recommendations sound terrific.” That’s good. Then the client says, “Can you put together a proposal? Something I can take to my boss, Mr. Sale Stopper?”

That’s good too. Right?WRONG!Why? For a couple of reasons:First, if you haven’t already noticed, customers learn in “prospect school” that the best way to avoid buying is to procrastinate. When they do this, they are neither saying “no” nor “yes.” The result is that they can maintain the relationship with us (the seller), continue to pick our brains (maybe even getting our expertise for FREE and buy from the cheapest bidder), all without making any sort of commitment. This sets the tone for the future relationship. A relationship that is “one-sided.” A relationship where WE have to perform, yet they can continue to postpone, delay and maybe even not live up to their side of the bargain. Even if we do get the business, we can end up working like dogs while they drag their heels with decisions and pay us in their own good time.Sound familiar?The second reason to not just roll over to the proposal request is that it may give them reasons for NOT doing business with us. Since proposals are not an interactive process, we may inadvertently say the wrong thing and never even know why we lost the sale.Here’s the way I recommend handling the proposal request:PROSPECT: “Can you put together a proposal for us?”
SELLER: “Sure, no problem. May I ask you a question?”
PROSPECT: “Yes.”
SELLER: “If we are able to develop a proposal that is acceptable to Mr. Sale Stopper, what would happen next?”
PROSPECT: “We would do business.”
SELLER: “Great! If I understand you correctly then, only you and Mr. Sale Stopper are responsible for making the final decision to move forward?”
PROSPECT: “Correct.”
SELLER: “Sounds good. Let’s review some of the things that we need to put in the proposal to make this happen. You mentioned our weekly service call. What else should we include? What are your key concerns? What are the best solutions? What is most important to Mr. Sale Stopper? Really? Why? What things will be important to you and Mr. Sale Stopper in the future? What would be the main reason Mr. Sale Stopper would not approve the proposal?”
SELLER: “This is great. Do you think we’ve developed a winning proposal so far?
PROSPECT: “It sounds good.”
SELLER: “Perhaps I can help you further. Customer service is critical to our firm, and for this reason we have a policy on presenting proposals. Our company requires us to deliver the proposal and present it directly to the buying team. This eliminates any possible confusion, maximizes use of your time and gives you a chance to ask questions. When do you think we may be able to do that with you and Mr. Sale Stopper?”
PROSPECT: “Well, maybe next Monday at 10am.”
SELLER: “Great. Now let’s look at another scenario. Even with all the elements that we have included in the proposal, it is possible that Mr. Sale Stopper might not go for our proposal. In that event, what would happen next?”
PROSPECT: “Well, I guess we wouldn’t do business.”
SELLER: “Sounds fair. When would you anticipate making that decision?”
PROSPECT: “Well, a few days after the proposal, I guess.”
SELLER: “That sounds reasonable. So if I understand you correctly, Mr. Sale Stopper and yourself will make a final decision on this by Wednesday, at close of business?”
PROSPECT: “I think we can do that.”
SELLER: “Great. I’ll be working on putting in writing what we’ve developed today. Can I ask one more thing?”
PROSPECT: “Sure.”
SELLER: “Can I call you on Friday to just check in and confirm everything. Perhaps you and Mr. Sale Stopper might think of something else that needs to be added to our proposal?”
PROSPECT: “Sure.”With this technique, we have significantly increased our chances of developing a winning proposal, as well as lessened the chance of continued procrastination. Most importantly, this is no longer OUR proposal. It is the CLIENT’S proposal. We have strategically secured agreement in advance of putting things in writing. We have created greater value to the proposal on agreeing to a presentation time rather than just mailing or delivering the proposal to the client. And we set a deadline for the approval or denial of the proposal.I will assure you that this technique works nearly every time. It does, however, require practice. If you are interested in learning how to implement techniques such as these, inquire about our upcoming class, “Out-Marketing the Competition.” In this class we work on branding, differentiation, proposal development and how to make our marketing initiatives more persuasive, compelling, client-centered and profitable.

One day a father decided to go shopping for his daughter’s birthday present. Melissa was to be nine in just a few days and she wanted a puppy – a Cocker Spaniel to be exact. Well, when the center of your universe wants a puppy there’s only one thing to do – get her a puppy!

So the man visited a local pet shop. Cruising the isle of the sad, penned, baby beasts, the man spotted the most adorable Cocker Spaniel imaginable. Consulting the salesperson he asked the price of the puppy.”That cute little one there is $150,” the salesperson replied.
“Wow, that’s some serious change for a dog,” the father said.
“If you get her today, I can give you a 10% discount,” the salesperson countered.The father thought for a moment. “What if she can’t handle a dog yet? What if he’s disobedient? What if…”Being a smart shopper the father thought he owed it to himself to visit at least one other pet store. He drove up the road and stopped at another pet shop. Low and behold if he didn’t find the absolute twin of the Cocker Spaniel he saw at the previous store. Maybe this one’s a bit less, he thought.Once again questioning the clerk, “How much for this little guy?”
“Oh yes,” answered the salesperson. “That little one there is $200.”
“What?” the father exploded. “Two hundred dollars, why so much? At the pet shop just down the street the exact same puppy is selling for $150. That’s nearly a third less! Why such a difference?”
“I understand how you feel,” the salesperson replied. “You see, this is a very special puppy.”
“How so?” asked the father.
“You see,” said the salesperson. “This is probably the only Cocker Spaniel that you will find that is guaranteed to satisfy your daughter Melissa or he’s FREE!”
“What do you mean?” asked the father.Then the salesperson told the father, “Take this puppy home with you today and pay me nothing. In fact I REFUSE to take even a penny from you until you and Melissa tell me that you are both totally satisfied with this puppy. In fact let’s talk again in two weeks. If you are NOT totally satisfied that this is the puppy and the ONLY puppy for you guys then I will take him back and you won’t owe me a dime. To go a step further I will pack this puppy up for you tonight in a special ribbon-wrapped cage with two weeks free puppy chow, a food dish, water bowl and special chew toy.”Which puppy do you think the father bought?Why?Reversing Risk
If you guessed the more expensive puppy with the guarantee, then you are correct. But why spend more for the same puppy? Because that father was not merely buying a puppy, he was buying a guarantee of birthday joy for his little daughter. Saving $50 was less important to him than running the risk that he or his daughter would be unhappy with the puppy.Why then are you still trying to compete based on price? Don’t you know that your customers are just like that father? They are looking for the supplier that understands their motives. They are looking for the supplier with the best competitive edge.Having a competitive edge doesn’t mean having a lower price. On the contrary, having a competitive edge means that you have developed a way to make it easier for the customer to say YES to your product or service rather than NO. How? By removing or significantly lowering their risk.RISK is the primary obstacle to making a purchase decision. Think about the last time you changed your mind when considering a purchase. Wasn’t it because the risk seemed to outweigh the reward? What if the product or service DIDN’T perform as advertised? Could you afford to take that chance? What if that chance was eliminated?Everybody can come up with some way to reverse the customer’s risk. What ultimate results are your client’s looking for from your product or service? If you can guarantee these either in part or in whole, then you have successfully come up with a powerful risk reversal offer.Example 1:
I have a client that manufacturer’s computer components. They pride themselves in their less than 0.15% error rate. This high accuracy rate really set them apart from their competition. But their competitors were grabbing-up market share because they were always under-pricing and out-bidding my client. The components they made would sell for just a few dollars but if they failed within the warranty period, the manufacturer would have to repair or replace the entire computer. My client was so confident of their component accuracy they began offering a guarantee that if one of their components caused the failure of a manufacturer’s computer within the warranty period then they would pay for the repair or replacement of the ENTIRE computer. The guarantee allowed my client to regain their market leadership as well as reduce the replacement and repair cost for their manufacturing clients. It also improved customer satisfaction for the manufacturer and allowed THEM to claim a failure rate on their computers.Example 2:
When visitors go to my web site, www.smallbusinesshour.com they find a very compelling offer. First, they can sample all kinds of articles and information on small business marketing and management improvement for FREE. Without spending any money at all they can learn valuable information, which may help them market their products or manage their business more effectively. Second, they can sign up to receive my 100-page Small Biz Success E-Manual, which provides even more information and heaps on more value. Finally when they decide to make a purchase of a book, tape, or learning program they receive a no questions asked, 100% money back guarantee. If they are unsatisfied in any way with their purchase within the first 30 days I will give them back every penny of the purchase price. I have yet to have any customer ask for a refundWhen we reverse risk everybody wins:

1. It’s a way to improve the level of service for our customers.
2. It holds our organization more accountable to peak performance.
3. It heaps on more and more value.
4. It adds to a more quantifiable return-on-investment for our clients.
5. It gives us the ability to more easily overcome the price objection.
6. It makes our solution unique and credible in an already crowded marketplace.

Think about ways that you can apply this “risk reversal” strategy to your business. I assure you every type of business can. If you need a little help in finding out how this can apply to your business, send me an email, or request my SPECIAL REPORT on “Risk Reversal.” If applied, the concepts presented in this report are guaranteed to help you overcome the price objection within 30 days!

In this difficult economic environment it is becoming more important that we fully understand the needs of our customer. In fact it is critical that we begin to see things from our customer’s viewpoint now, more than ever.

Unfortunately today many marketers are looking closer at their income statement than at their customers. Many are concluding that because they offer a more “optional,” high-ticket product, they are in fact offering what will be perceived by the consumer as a luxury purchase. This perception is the result of fear. This kind of fear is very dangerous to any industry. It has caused many marketers to cut back on their advertising, reduce their marketing expenditure, and even begin to slash the price of their products and services in the marketplace. These kinds of actions only result in lessening the value of our products and services in the eye of the customer. It makes the statement to the consumer that WE OURSELVES do not place a high value of the services we offer.

Webster’s defines luxury as “something that is not necessary.” Think of the telephone. A decade or two ago it was not uncommon to meet someone who did not have a telephone. Now it is unimaginable. Cell phones, pagers and Internet connections are becoming the same way. What were once luxury items are now necessities of life.

Itamar Simonson of Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business and Ran Kivetz of Columbia University surveyed 3,100 consumers about their attitudes on luxury purchases. The researchers asked participants to rate themselves in terms of how guilty they felt about purchasing luxury items in general. They found that more than 62% of the respondents felt guilt over purchasing luxury items. “Most people need to justify luxuries,” Simonson said. Their findings suggest that people believe luxury purchases should be “earned.” Is this the category that you want your products and services to occupy? Are we deciding for our customers, “what is necessary?”

It’s very important that we do not position our products or services as luxury purchases. They need to be marketed as very necessary solutions to very real problems. People purchase your product or service because they seek solutions to their problems. The more that we can demonstrate our connection to the customers needs, the more valuable we will be to the customer.

Have you ever thought about which occupations pay the most?

Is it doctors? No, managed care has taken care of that.How about lawyers? They do OK but it’s no guarantee of fortune.What about CEOs of major companies? You can make a pretty penny when you get to the top, if the stress doesn’t kill you first.Then who?
ENTERTAINERS.Think about it. From sports figures to pop stars to TV personalities to the icons of stage and silver screen, its entertainers that top the charts both in cash and glamour. They are also far more influential than authors, scientists and even Nobel Prize winners. Why?Its quite simple really. Entertainers make us FEEL GOOD!While knowledge is important in the new economy it is just the second step in building enduring relationships. The fact is that people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. It all boils down to passion. How are you showing passion in your work. I’m not talking about sexual passion here. I talking about using our emotional state to let people know how we feel about them. It is only then that we will have a receptive audienceThink about kids. They do this all the time.Recently Kathy and I were driving with a friend and we had her two six year old children with us. As we drove past the stores and restaurants the kids seemed quiet until those Golden Arches came into view. I nearly jumped out of my skin when the shrill of two squeaky voices in unison yelled out, “McDonald’s.” This caused me to think about McDonalds in a way which I never had. Why are these kids so excited about a fast food place? Is it because McDonald’s has great hamburgers? Do they appreciate the clean, friendly environment? I don’t think so. Six year olds could care less about good food or clean, friendly environments. What they care most about is – – HAVING FUN! Let’s face it, McDonald’s provides a great experience for kids. In fact EVERYTHING that McDonalds does is built around FUN! From the commercials to the menus, to the place mats, to the free gifts, to those giant plastic tubes kids crawl in and out of, it’s all aimed at HAVING FUN! It’s not the food or the service. It’s the McDonalds EXPERIENCE. You’ve got to give McDonalds credit. They know their audience.Other businesses are catching on to this trend — and those that do stand out. I know a pediatric dentist that is tapping into this concept by creating a whole building called Tooth Zone. It, too, will have tubes and slides and other fun stuff. He already has free video games and a cool play area for kids. His practice is thriving because he gives patients an experience — not just a cleaning. Kids in his practice can’t wait to go to the dentist! He’s turned something negative into a positive experience.Adults are not much different than children. We want to have fun too. Maybe more so than the kids. The lesson that these innovative marketers have learned is people want to have fun. And business is about giving people what they want. Often times that’s a special and unique experience. Recently I heard about a unique retailer in Fort Worth, Texas, that had a Mardi Gras Parade through the aisles of the store. They were providing more than shopping. They were providing a fun EXPERIENCE.Creating a “fun experience” can be adapted to just about any business. Consider the most somber of services, like health care. I have a number of medical clients like doctors, hospitals and surgical centers. One of things I do is to try to help them to differentiate themselves. I try to work with the people and the processes within these institutions to help them to create a “fun experience” for their patients. Like the cosmetic surgeon that has a huge library of movies and state-of-the-art video games that patients and their family members can watch and play while they are waiting. I also work with a hospital that maintains a complete game room with pinball machines, video games and all types of fun stuff for adults and kids. This helps patients and guests to pass the time in a comfortable way.How about the construction company that gives every customer a framed two foot by three foot caricature poster of their finished home or office with them standing on front of it. He actually has a book of them that he uses for evidence and shows prospects before and after pictures. They go nuts over the posters because they are personalized and funny. How about the business attorneys that have all types of trains running throughout their office. They have melded their personal life with their business life. Clients can begin to see them as people just like themselves and it removes the austere nature that often pervades the attorney/client relationship. Come into my office and the first thing you will see is a huge leather couch and a regulation size pool table. Clients can relax and entertain themselves by playing pool while waiting for their appointment or waiting for a job to be completed.How are you tapping into the great American desire to not merely consume, but also have an experience at the same time? Look at your business. What can you do to provide an EXPERIENCE for customers? An EXPERIENCE in service. An EXPERIENCE in people’s everyday world. You’ll stand out and be noticed. The opportunity is waiting. E-mail me your about your business, and let’s come up with ways to apply the experience economy to your situation.

“Are you paying attention?”

This is what my parents always used to say when I was a child. “Yea sure Mom,” I’d answer. But in reality I wasn’t paying them any attention. I was preoccupied in my own little world. This drove my parent’s crazy. Which made me a proud beastie of a son. (Aren’t you glad I wasn’t your kid?)

Do you sometimes find it difficult to GET the attention of others?

Is it a challenge to HOLD people’s attention at times?

Whatever role you are playing in business, getting attention is absolutely critical. In many cases getting the favorable attention of customers, prospects, employees, team members, strategic partners, investors and stockholders can be the difference between winning and losing.

In spite of this, few recognize that attention can be managed like other precious resources. How? Now that I have your attention, I will get to that shortly. In order for us to fully understand this concept, let’s first look at the types of attention:

Front-of-Mind AttentionThis is the kind of attention that is demanded when we are writing a report, engaged in a business discussion, making a purchase or conducting a transaction. It is conscious, focused and explicit attention.

Back-of-Mind Attention
While you may be engaging your conscious through these front-of-mind attentions you are also using your back-of-mind attention to filter through all kinds of thoughts such as a spouse or friend, a shopping list and an upcoming vacation.

Captive AttentionThese are things we MUST give our attention simply because we have no choice. They include cinema advertising, work assignments, poor weather, our boss’s crummy jokes and so on.

Voluntary AttentionThese are things we CHOOSE to pay attention to like TV/print advertising, hobbies, glancing through a magazine. These are typically less explicit stimuli.

Attractive and Adverse AttentionThese are things that stand out among the typical experiences in our day. Attractive attention stimuli includes seeing an attractive women or man pass by, a shooting star, a rainbow or a dolphin frolicking in the waves. Adverse attention stimuli includes seeing a car accident, a highly unattractive person, getting bad news.

The ultimate attention-getter draws on all five types of attention simultaneously. These are experiences that characterize the most intensely rewarding and enjoyable moments of our lives. Think of extreme sports like skydiving, hang gliding, scuba diving, rock climbing. These use all 5 of the areas of attention focused on one activity. It seem that what people really love is to have every area of their attention totally saturated.

How can you saturate your audience’s attention? What can you do to get their “Front-of-mind” working, stimulate their “Back-of-mind” attention, “Captivate” them, get them to “Voluntarily” give you their attention and stimulate both their adverse and attractive attentions?

How to Get and Keep a Person’s Attention
Here are some great tips on how to get and keep a person’s attention regardless of your circumstances:

1. Make a change – One way to keep attention over time is to make changes. This is true for employee management, advertising, web media, public speaking and even relationships. Make changes to your content, format, tone, and involvement level in order to keep people more interested.
2. Tell a story – We stay in movies and finish novels because we want to find out what happens to the characters in the story. Give your audience a story and they’ll stay with you.
3. Keep it real – Informational messages that are lifelike and realistic are more likely to keep attention than those that are not.
4. Don’t stop – If you have an audience’s attention already you have a good chance of moving to the next topic or location without losing them. Don’t let your written or spoken messages drag.
5. Alter the flow – The most successful attention- structure tools hold our attention long enough to give a message but also make it easy for us to change the informational context. Look at the most successful web sites for example.

There is no doubt that we live an in age of information overload and attention deficit. This is why relationships are so important today. Use the above guidelines to get more favorable attention in your written and spoken messages, advertising, marketing, personal and business encounters. This will help you to build stronger relationships and offer more value to your clients, team members and personal associates.

Networking is probably the most misunderstood method of marketing yet.

What is networking?How should we go about it? Is networking just for acquiring new business?Does it work for only certain types of businesses?How have people built their entire business based on networking?I set out to answer these questions and I welcome feedback and comments from everyone.The Purpose of Networking?
Successful networking is neither art nor science. It is a result of commitment, determination, and plenty of hard work. The ability to succeed in this area, is not innate. Like any new behavior, the more you practice the skills of networking, the easier they become. Oh yes, there are skills to effective networking. Of course like anything else, networking requires constant attention. That means having a proven networking strategy, keeping sharp, staying in touch with people, and maintaining communication in a sincere and genuine way. We will look at methods of successful networking, how to develop your own business network, and how to make sure that you are never more than one phone call away from getting what it is that you need.Networking Defined
“A business relationship formed to meet the needs of two parties or more on an ongoing basis.”Networking’s Bad Rap
Today, it seems that networking has a bad reputation. Many dismiss networking as a viable marketing medium. It’s not surprising really. Just attend one of the many networking meetings in your area and fend off the jackals that hungrily compete for your business or contact list. Often times I’ve found myself being eyed up at networking meetings only to feel like a goldfish in an aquarium full of piranhas. Will I be chewed up or just swallowed whole? To say the least it can be a real turn off. Most people go to these events with one thing on their mind, “getting business for themselves. NOW!” How naive they must be to think that people will give up their trusted contacts after having just met them! But networking is far more than just exchanging business cards over coffee and doughnuts.Don’t Be Afraid To Give It Away
Over the years, I have come to realize that networking is about building long term relationships that are based on trust, credibility and genuine concern for the other person. Believe me, it’s not about how many business cards you have, or even who you know. It’s about who wants to know you. True networking begins when people really want to know you, and when people call you for advise or to get your opinion before they make a change in their business. But how do we attract people to us? What will make people want to know us? The old adage applies here. What’s in it for them? President John F. Kennedy said, “It is not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.” But, how can we help others? The same is true in networking. What do we have to offer that may be valuable to others?Step One
The first step is to identify business categories that you want to build a relationships in. For me, as a business advisor these include CPA’s, financial consultants, designers and ad agencies, attorneys, media representatives and more. What are the categories for your business? The trick is to meet these people and build a relationship BEFORE you need their help.Step Two
Our next step is to perform a self-inventory of our skills, abilities, talents, and contacts as they relate to our fellow networkers. I suggest creating a chart which includes in formation such as our fellow networker’s name, type of business, specific needs and desires as well as their talents, abilities, contacts, memberships and so on. Some of the abilities, which could be valuable to others in your network, may have absolutely nothing to do with business. For example, I’m fairly good at golf. I found out that someone in my personal referral network was interested in finding some golf partners. I have invited that person to play golf in our foursome several times. Not only have we had the pleasure of including them in our activities, but I have had the opportunity to find out more about their business and talk to them about what it is I do and how I help my customers. As a result, I have received a referral for a fairly large printing job, which we are working on at this very moment. I am also a classical guitarist. I was playing a tape in my car one day while taking a fellow networker and prominent Real Estate Agent to lunch. She heard the music and told me her daughter was getting married and she wanted to have that kind of music for the cocktail hour at the wedding. When I told her that it was me and I would play for free at her daughter’s wedding, she was ecstatic. She reviewed her contact list with me and wrote a letter to every person on the list introducing me as a resource for them.
What talents, abilities, contacts, and skills do you have? How can you exploit them to HELP others!Step Three
The third step is know what to say when in a networking situation. Helping the other person is of course foremost, but we also have to make sure that our fellow networkers know and understand what it is that we do and HOW we have benefited our clients. I like to boil this down to what I call a “Benefit Profile.” The “Benefit Profile” should be no more than 30 seconds, NOT sound like a sales pitch and include the following:

1. Your typical client
2. Client challenges
3. Client benefits
4. How you are different

My Benefit Profile is as follows:
My customers are typically companies in the $2 million to $10 million range. They have exceptional product quality and responsive service. In the past they were very profitable but now find they face price competition from cheap imitators. They like that our marketing and management consulting programs go beyond just preparing ads and promo material. They say we’re more affordable because we’re NOT paid based on a percentage of advertising. Our mission is to propose creative solutions, influence direction and generate greater profitability for our clients. (Learn more about how to build powerful “Benefit Profiles” in my upcoming Dale Carnegie Class in Long Beach, CA starting this December).Know Where the Bodies Are Buried
As Harvey Mackay states in his book, Dig Your Well Before You’re Thirsty, “Networking may not be rocket science, but studies prove it works with rocket scientists.” Consider the scientific community. Scientific superstars are typically perceived as loners, nerds in white coats. Nothing can be further from the truth. The reality is that scientist and engineers are the best networkers on the planet. They know who to dial-up when they need to find grant or research money. When they are stuck with a problem they can call on the experts in the field to get their opinion. They even know how to become celebrated in the press to promote themselves and new discoveries.Some may be familiar with the movie Six Degrees Separation. It refers to the theory that there’s a chain of no more than six people that link every person on this planet to every other person. That means if we know the right people and they respect, trust and admire us we can get to know just about any other person we need. It’s all about people.Taking a Risk
Taking a risk is critical when building an effective networking team. By taking a risk, I mean allowing yourself to fail. This gets back to the concept of giving for the sake of giving and expecting nothing return. Of course we want to network with those that have the capacity to help us in the future, if not now. But if others know that we are giving to them strictly for the reason of helping them, they’ll be much more inclined to refer us to those that might have the capacity to buy our product or service.