Warren is ON THE AIR today!

10/27/2005

Just a reminder that Warren Greshes’ weekly internet radio show, “Warren Greshes Talking Success,” will air today, Thursday, October 27th at 12 Noon EST (9AM Pacific Time). It can be heard over the World Talk Radio Network. Just click on the following link and it will take you right to the show’s web page: http://www.worldtalkradio.com/show.asp?sid=84.

From there just hit the “Listen” button.

I’m back from all my travels and am ready to roll. This week’s show topic is one I discuss on almost every show, but have not dedicated a complete show to it in a long time. So this week I’ll be talking about “Delivering Memorable Customer Service.”

We’ll discuss
- What constitutes “memorable” customer service?
- The need for consistency of message and attitude
- How losing a customer impacts everyone in the company, not just the sales force.

Plus,
- What makes the affluent market buy
- The latest trends in the global workplace
- How to listen to Warren’s show without being in front of your computer.

Stuck On Price

Do you need help selling? Click here.

One of the main reasons you never want to be stuck selling price, or be considered the price company, is that "price" never makes you indispensable to your clients. "Price" only makes you highly replaceable.

When you sell price, you are communicating to the customer the fact that your price is the single, biggest reason or benefit to buy from you. But, in a previous newsletter, I note that price is also the easiest thing for competition to duplicate.

So what happens when, inevitably, a competitor comes along with a lower price? You have, in effect, just told your client there is now no reason to buy from you.

Let’s face it, knowing that you are only surviving on price, there are competitors out there who will lose money on their product, on a temporary basis, just to grab your customers away.

By setting yourself up as a resource for your customers, who makes it easy for people to buy, while constantly providing solutions, you make it hard for customers to walk away from you.

Let’s face it, what do you think is easier to replace: A company who will cut their price, or, a company who will be your resource, provide solutions and make it easy to buy?

Change: The Only Real Constant

Planning in Life & in Business

Do you need help setting goals? Click here.

If you’ve ever had, or wanted to have a house custom built, would you consider doing it without a complete set of architectural plans? After all, if you have an experienced builder, couldn’t you just tell him or her what you want? Besides, it would save a lot of time not having to wait for plans to be drawn up. Don’t you think, after years of experience, your builder could build a house from memory?

I’ll bet it could be done, but do you think it would come out exactly the way you want it? Plus, don’t you think the time you would have saved not drawing up a plan, would be squandered by all the time you’ll waste having to redo the mistakes; not to mention the money wasted?

Yet, isn’t that how many people live their lives? We are in such a hurry to have everything now, that we consider stopping to formulate a plan something that will only slow us down. When, in reality, the little bit of time we invest up front to create a written focused direction and plan, ends up saving us far more time in the back end by not leading us in directions we don’t want to go: which happens when we “wing it.”

Another benefit of planning is: it helps us understand that the things we want most in life take time. I wonder; how many people give up on their dreams because they didn’t plan, have an unrealistic idea of how long it should take to achieve and, when it doesn’t materialize immediately, give up, convinced it can’t be done?

Formulating a plan also helps us decide what our true priorities are. It enables us to clearly define what sacrifices need to be made in order for us to achieve what we want. It also allows us to decide whether or not we’re willing to make those sacrifices, which, in turn, helps us decide whether what we say we want out of life is truly what we want. Imagine how much time and frustration you can save by not chasing a dream you didn’t really want in the first place.

Whether it’s a career change; starting your own business; quitting your job to stay home with the kids; saving for retirement; picking up and moving to a new location; or, picking the right college or university; the ability to sit down, take a step back and invest some time in creating a written, focused direction and plan with pros, cons, priorities and sacrifices, can only increase your odds of success.

Fight For Your Rights as a Customer

Some companies abuse our trust, take our money, and give us nothing in return. When we ask for something out of the ordinary, they come up with all sorts of reasons why they can’t do it. Why? Because we let them. Listen to Warren’s tips on what you can do to fight for your rights as a customer, and WIN!!!

Listen to Warren give you five specific, easy to implement ideas that will put money in your pocket and stop bad companies from taking advantage of you.

Warren continues his advice on fighting back by showing you how to shame companies into giving you “free stuff.” Also, listener questions on sales, job hunting and starting your own business.

Succeed During Tough Times

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Far too often, a slumping economy is a convenient excuse for many salespeople to give up. In fact, during tough times, it seems as if the salespeople stop selling long before the customers stop buying.

Below are some of the mistakes companies make during tough times that appear to be smart belt-tightening, but should NEVER be taken.

• Cutting Back on Service. The first instinct of many managers. This strategy only works if the service concerned is very costly and doesn’t fit into the company’s long range strategy. The last thing a company should do is make its customers feel that they are getting less value for the money.
• Trimming Staff. Often the fastest and easiest way to scrimp, but if not accompanied by a corresponding reduction in capacity, it can hurt operational efficiency, which is essential, especially in leaner times. Remember salaries have a way of responding quickly to market conditions.
• Reducing Advertising Budget. Ad spending, generally regarded as “discretionary,” is also among the first to get the axe. This makes little sense, as it is during a recession or period of slow growth that companies should try even harder to persuade people to buy their products or services. If customers stop seeing your ads, they might “perceive” that you are out of business or not doing well. Surveys show that companies who continue to advertise during a recession or slow growth period, will end up doing more business than their competition, once the recession ends. Don’t forget: Out of sight, out of mind.
• Lying Low and Hoping for the Best. As effective as hiding your head in the sand. In a period of growth, bolder and stronger companies, can in fact, grab market share through aggressive advertising or acquisition. Periods of slow growth are a great opportunity for even small companies to grow market share, mainly because in tough times, so many people give up. If you are one of the people who continue to show up, you’ll find yourself stumbling into a lot of found business.