Tag Archives: business

10.07.15
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Timing is important

Sat in on a webinar a week or so ago.  The title of it intrigued me since I could not figure out why it was setting such a low expectation for a certain metric.  Then I gave them an hour of my life and they basically explained why.

Some people don’t think big enough  

Kind of reinforced me to not pay much attention to consultants who are paid for time not necessarily results.  Anyhow, Lots of goofy ideas where talked about but two stood out;

  1. The times you should be cross selling a current customer/client
  2. The times to ask for referrals

Both are very valid things to talk about.  There are likely dozens of ideas and concepts that have been written about and that those writers will say work.  Cool.  A couple of questions to consider;

  1. When I make the time to call you, I am likely calling to handle something specific.  I may be stressed, busy, on my lunch break, etc  Why would you think I am giving you permission to take more of my time?
  2. What correlation is there between changing a car on an auto insurance policy or refinancing my home with asking me for more money?

Now, I absolutely agree with just about every study surrounding account rounding and the more lines of business in a household.  On the other hand, I am confident to know that whatever I have already done for you should have been done in such a way that you see the value in me.  That value and hopefully personal connection we have made is a very powerful thing and can undo most stats.  Consider this as an alternative; what if you politely kept in touch over the course of a year without trying to sell me anything?  Think about it, you politely keep in touch with this nice person who is already a customer.  By doing this you can hopefully bring additional value and maybe a smile therefore keeping the door open for me to buy something else.  Any way you look at it, me buying something from you is way better than you selling something to me.  Besides, you should have enough people to work with that you do not need to depend on forcing/selling anything to anybody.

On that note, I think asking me to introduce you to friends and family is almost as bad.  Why?

Quit being lazy!!!  Bring value and participate in Social Media!!!

That’s right, I think you asking for referrals, many times, is simply lazy.  I also lump it right in with interruption/spam marketing if you are asking me for referrals when I am calling for some other reason.  Some thoughts;

  • Just like me buying from you, isn’t it better when I proactively share you with friends?  How can you make this easy for me?
  • Is paying for referrals really a good idea
  • If I am only referring you someone so I can enter a contest, is it really a referral?
  • Are you even referable?  Think about it.
  • Really, if we were missing in person do you still think putting a notepad and pen in front of me is a good idea?  **Please say no***

It’s only fair to present some alternatives;

  • Where are we connected on-line?  Hopefully where I am comfortable.  P.S.  do you really think I am sharing canned insurance articles
  • I am not at all opposed to saying thanks with a gift or money.  I hope you are not either.  But should I be offering you money in exchange for your friends contact info?  Do you like it when your email is sold to random vendors?  Do you like it when you are added to a newsletter list without opting in?
  • Seriously, ” you can enter our contest for a t.v. if you refer us to a friend….”  Come on.  Keep selling on price as well and let me know how that works out.   leads us to the next one
  • Be referable.  Seriously, I’ve been thanked several times for referring one person to another and a part of my response is always, ” no problem, thanks for being easy to refer…”
  • Still  one of my favorite “techniques” and still one I have nor will never use.  Try the digital version of this and become a connection on Linkedin.  All of their connections will see it.  How about you like/share something of theirs on Facebook and see what happens.  Even better, how about you proactively refer them in some way or bring other value

Anyway, just some thoughts.  Thanks for letting me share.  Do whatever you think works for you but remember, the world has adjusted and much of what used to “work” doesn’t.

05.05.14
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Never end the referral loop

Here is what referrals would look like if they were a “symbol”;

Thanks Charles Petzold

Pretty simple, where the intersection takes place is the referral/sharing moment.  The idea being that the referral takes place and the Referrer and the Referee continue on the path and eventual pass and receive another  referral.  Reality is in perfection it is more like this;

thanks Etsy person.

A continually growing chain of infinity symbols that interlock with one another therefore allowing a continual stream of referrals and sharing to take place.  If at some point you choose to cut the loop you hinder the ability to give and  subsequently receive referrals in the future.  Why would you want to do that?  No idea.

Keep the chain going.  Keep sharing.

 

12.16.12
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Lessons in business brought to you by death

**Going off topic, will be going a bit personal and not talking much insurance**

So it has been the worst four week stretch in my life.  Started with the sudden death of my older brother followed by four weeks of floundering about.   I am finding that the floundering about, trying to get back to full speed part to be especially annoying and difficult.   Normally there is an article, book or mindset I can apply but none of what I know seems to be working.  Either way, you must keep moving forward.

Since I would prefer you never have to learn or have the experiences that death created for me let me share some with you.

1. Totally think that when at a wake some solid eye contact and a hug/handshake/pat on the shoulder is way better than saying “So sorry…” or “How are you..”  Just like when doing business or closing a sale sometimes saying nothing is best.

2. Despite how many people contact you, write about you, show up to pay their respects, etc there are always more people out there that have no idea who you are.    This is a big world, it is great when the world shrinks for a moment but remember it is a big world, make the most of your little piece of it.

3. It is absolutely true that in times of adversity you will see true character emerge.  Scary to think how many people just float about life completely self absorbed.  Never forget that more times than not you have no idea what is going on in another persons life.  Sometimes by design sometimes because there is no reason to know but that does not excuse you from acting like a decent human being.  ** Thinking of Adam Sandler and Steve Buscemi’s conversation in Billy Madison**

4. Why wait till tomorrow? I have no idea.  There have been some very deep things written towards me and I have also been involved in some very personal conversations.  Despite how positive the messages are they all hurt.  The ones that hurt especially bad are the ones filled with regret of not saying something or meeting him or clearing up some bad feelings.  That sticks with you.  Stop waiting.

5. Having a to do list, goals, a written plan, etc.  was about the only thing that kept working.  When your brain is working or when it is mush a written plan is a huge help.

6. As amazing as it is to see a network/tribe/group of people pay homage to one of their own post-mortem it presents a new challenge.  How can you maximize your network when death or sickness is not involved?  Not sure but I will actively be trying to figure this out.  In the meantime, it means a lot to have good wishes, e-mails, contributions to a memorial, flowers, etc. sent to a family. Actually beyond words at this point BUT I cannot help but wonder how many people said these things to him before he died.  I suppose the other challenge is really appreciating everything while you have it.

7. Yet to find anyone that talked about all my brother owned instead everything is about what he did.  Quite honestly it isn’t much but boy did he have a ton of experiences.  Best I can tell is he plowed whatever he had into living life.  Memories are the best souvenirs.

8. Do whatever you can to fill your “good will” account as much as your bank account.  You have no idea how helpful it has been to have built up  my personal good will account.  I did not do it to be repaid but since I have made many withdrawals in the last month I gotta tell you how glad I am to have a pretty hefty balance available.

Well I suppose I can keep writing but this will do for now.  I would expect to get back to talking insurance soon.  I suppose tip nine is;

A good brain dump feels good.